Goffs To Open With Expanded Foal Sale

Goffs stages its final set of sales for the year–the November Foal Sale and November Breeding Stock Sale–Nov. 16 to 22 in Co. Kildare, Ireland. The action kicks off with the foal sale beginning Monday, which–as a result of an increased Irish foal crop and a resurgence in the sale itself in recent years–has been expanded to five days for the first time since 2007. The Goffs November foal sale consisted of three days just four years ago, but year-on-year growth since that time has seen an increased demand for spots for quality youngsters in the Goffs catalogue. Indeed, last year's foal sale saw an increased average of 41% (€37,068) and a median that was up 29.4% (€22,000), despite 54 more horses being sold, and the buyback rate was a very healthy 15%. Last year's sale also saw a record price for an Irish foal: the €1.8 million paid by agent Dermot Farrington for a filly from the first crop of Frankel (GB) out of Classic winner Finsceal Beo (Ire) (Mr. Greeley).

“The Goffs November Foal Sale has been enormously successful, and has grown year-on-year for five years,” said Goffs Chief Executive Henry Beeby. “Goffs' foal sale accounts for 82% of the Irish foals that are sold, so it's a market leader in that sense. We've sold the four highest-priced foals in Europe the last 10 years, headed by last year's €1.8 million for the Frankel filly.”

The success of Goffs foal graduates was highlighted Oct. 24 by the victory of Marcel (Ire) (Lawman {Fr}) in the G1 Racing Post Trophy. Marcel, a €50,000 purchase by Mick Flanagan two years ago, led home fellow Goffs graduates Johannes Vermeer (Ire) (Galileo {Ire})–a €300,000 Goffs Orby yearling–and Foundation (Ire) (Zoffany {Ire})–a €50,000 Goffs November foal turned €190,000 Orby yearling–in the final British Group 1 contest of the year for juveniles.

Discussing the position of Goffs in the market, Beeby pointed out that the auction house has sold both the highest-priced foal and highest-priced yearling by Frankel.

“Frankel was trained in England, he stands in England, and his highest-priced foal and yearling were both sold at Goffs in Ireland. You wouldn't have expected that,” he said.

While Goffs has no Frankel foals on offer this year, it does have a foal each by the current top two European sires Dubawi (Ire) and Galileo (Ire). The Dubawi colt (lot 1129) is a son of the G1 Irish 1000 Guineas winner Nightime (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}), already the dam of stakes-winner Zhukova (Ire) (Fastnet Rock {Aus}) and stakes-placed Sleeping Beauty (Ire) (Oasis Dream {GB}), offered by The Castlebridge Consignment. Nightime's Raven's Pass yearling filly was a 450,000gns purchase by John Ferguson at last month's Tattersalls October yearling sale.

The Galileo colt (lot 1182), offered by Swordlestown Little, is a half-brother to G2 Railway S. winner and young sire Lilbourne Lad (Ire) (Acclamation {GB}). He is the only progeny of Galileo to be offered at a European foal sale this year.

Other well-pedigreed offerings include an Oasis Dream (GB) colt who is the first foal out of the stakes-placed Harmonic Note (GB) (Nayef) (lot 1077); an Invincible Spirit (Ire) colt out of the stakes-winning Alava (Ire) (Anabaa) (lot 1005); a pair of well-bred sons of first-crop sire Dawn Approach (Ire) (lots 1013 and 1021); a full-sister to Group 2 winner Star Lahib (Ire) (Cape Cross {Ire}) (lot 1027); a half-brother by first-year sire Camelot (Ire) to Australian Group 1 winner Magic Hurricane (Ire) (Hurricane Run {Ire}) (lot 1039); a Mastercraftsman (Ire) half-sister to the dam of Banimpire (Ire) (Holy Roman Emperor {Ire}) (lot 1069); a Fastnet Rock (Aus) half-sister to Group 3 winner and Classic-placed Venus de Milo (Ire) (Duke Of Marmalade{Ire}) (lot 1084); an Invincible Spirit (Ire) half-brother to G1 Gold Cup winner Trip To Paris (Ire) (Champs Elysees {GB}) (lot 1095); a Dark Angel (Ire) colt out of G1 Moyglare Stud S. winner Miss Beatrix (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}) (lot 1115); and a New Approach (Ire) half-sister to last year's €1.5 million Orby topper The Major General (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) as well as group winners Cuis Ghaire (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Scintillula (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) (lot 1165). The foal sale is organized on a rising tide, with the quality increasing each of the five days.

“We have a Dubawi coming to the sale, which will be great, and the only Galileo foal in Europe this year, and plenty of other good horses,” Beeby said. “It's a really good, deep, strong commercial catalogue, and I think if you look back, the pinhookers have had a great time the last two or three years buying in Goffs and re-selling as yearlings.”

This year's yearling sale market globally saw results largely consolidated after a few years of dramatic increases following a correction in the market, and Beeby noted this halt in the upward trend is likely to have an impact on the foal market, especially because Goffs November is such a popular shopping ground for pinhookers.

“The premier yearling sales this year internationally have consolidated what's happened the last few years, so it'll be interesting to see how the foal market reacts,” he said. “The Goffs November Foal Sale has grown dramatically the last five years year-on-year, so consolidation would be what we're looking for and hoping for.”

Unlike yearling and foal sales, which allow for a much more accurate crop-by-crop comparison, the catalogues of breeding stock sales depend entirely on what breeders decide to put on the market, which must be considered when making year-on-year comparisons. The Goffs November Breeding stock sale of 2013 was truly a sale for the ages, with Paul Makin's Paulyn Dispersal headlining a blockbuster catalogue that also included the Citadel dispersal and a number of other special offerings. Therefore, last year's breeding stock sale was always going to struggle to live up to that, but it nonetheless performed satisfactorily, with the median down just 10%, while the average was down 65%.

Beeby pointed out that like last year, he is hoping to consolidate past results with 2013 aside.

“Nothing stands up to what we had two years ago, because we had not just the Paulyn dispersal but the Citadel dispersal,” he said, before pointing to the results of last week's Fasig-Tipton November sale. “If you compare, Fasig-Tipton had a very good sale, but not as good as last year's, and I think Boyd Browning said 'look, the catalogue was just different.' You can look at a foal crop or a yearling crop but when you have a breeding stock sale it really just depends what's on the market. So I would say our catalogue is a good, solid catalogue that matches up to last year, but it will be a number of years until we have a catalogue that's as good as two years ago. That was once in a generation.”

As usual, the sale has been supported by strong drafts of mares and fillies in and out of training from many of Ireland's leading operations, including Aga Khan Studs, Airlie Stud, Ballylinch Stud, Darley, Derrinstown Stud, Irish National Stud, Moyglare Stud and Redmondstown Stud. The standouts include an unraced 2-year-old half-sister by Galileo to dual Group 3 winner Yellow Rosebud (Ire) (Jeremy) and stakes winner Seeharn (Ire) (Pivotal {GB}) (lot 1333); the stakes-placed We'll Go Walking (Ire) (Authorized {Ire}), whose dam is a full-sister to Teofilo (Ire) and who is in foal to Mastercraftsman (Ire) (lot 1356); Redmondstown's Group 3 winner Tobann (Ire) (Teofilo {Ire}), in foal to Pour Moi (Ire) (lot 1386); Lady Lucia (Ire) (Royal Applause {GB}), the dam of this year's dual group winner Adaay (Ire) (Kodiac {GB}) who is carrying a full-sibling to that performer (lot 1370); Bridle Dance (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), the dam ofGroup 3 winner Hawksmoor (Ire) (Azamour {Ire}) in foal to Dark Angel (Ire) (lot 1390); and Sularina (Ire) (Alhaarth {Ire}), the dam of stakes winner Khione (GB) (Dalakhani {Ire}) in foal to Dark Angel (lot 1409).

“We don't have any horses to make those millions that we had two years ago,” Beeby admitted. “You don't get them every year, but we have a very solid catalogue from very good Irish bloodlines.”

Beeby said as usual, he is expecting an international cast of buyers to shop up at Goffs.

“We're expecting small groups of Americans to come and a number of South Americans to come and Japanese buyers,” he noted. “The foal market is dominated by pinhookers, of which the majority are Irish and buying in their own currency, but I'd be hopeful we'd have a pretty international turnout.”

Beeby said Americans considering making the trip should be encouraged by the current strength of the dollar against the Euro. As described in a recent Irish Thoroughbred Marketing advertisement in the TDN, a bid of €100,000 was last year worth $131,900, and it is currently worth $109,600.

“The great advantage to the buyers is the fact the Euro has the greatest buying power,” Beeby said. “The dollar will go much further than it did 12 months ago.”

To view the catalogues for Goffs' November Breeding Stock and Foal Sales, visit www.goffs.com.