Shamardal's Turn To Shine At Tatts Book 2

Lot 571 | Tattersalls

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Dubawi may have ruled Book 1 of the Tattersalls October Sale but his Darley stud mate Shamardal took his turn in the spotlight on the opening day of Book 2 with Mountain View Stud's colt (lot 571) making his way onto Shadwell's list for the session's top price of 250,000gns.

Shamardal has already worked well with this particular family, providing G3 Killavullan S. winner Dubai Prince (Ire), a half-brother to the colt's dam Dehbanu (Ire) (King's Best) who was bought by breeder Rory Mahon for 67,000gns in December 2011 in foal to Lope De Vega (Ire). The 9-year-old mare is a grand-daughter of Try To Catch Me (Shareef Dancer), the dam of Storming Home (GB) (Machiavellian), whose top-level trans-Atlantic wins include the G1 Champion S. and GI Clement L Hirsch Memorial Turf Championship in the colours of Maktoum Al Maktoum.

“He's a lovely well-balanced horse who has been very popular,” said Mahon. “There are good horses by Shamardal coming out every day and when you have a horse like this by that sire you can't go wrong.”

Despite 37 lots selling for 100,000gns or more during the first of three Book 2 sessions, the aggregate dropped by 14% to 12,565,500gns, though this was largely owing to the fact that Book 2 has been cut back in size, meaning that 31 fewer horses were sold than on the corresponding day last year. The median rose by 4% to 50,000gns, and the average was virtually on a par at 62,828gns. The 200 yearlings sold on day one achieved a decent clearance rate of 83%.

Shadwell's Angus Gold signed for 16 yearlings during Book 1 for a total of 2.6 million gns and was quick to continue the spending as Book 2 got underway, with a further 18 yearlings added to Sheikh Hamdan's list of runners for next year and beyond for just over 2 million gns. These included lot 757, another member of the Try To Catch Me clan who is likely to go down as one of the pinhooks of the sale having been bought by Pat and Breda Donworth for €26,000 back in February at Goffs and sold eight months on for 200,000gns.

Returned to the ring, the son of Society Rock (Ire) out of Storming Home's unraced half-sister It's In The Air (Ire) (Whipper) became the subject of a tussle between Gold and Anthony Stroud, who was sitting with the Society Rock's former trainer James Fanshawe.

“We had a lot of vets for him and plenty of x-rays so we knew he was going down well and we were obviously hoping he'd sell well but this is quite a surprise,” said Breda Donworth, who, with her husband “breeds a few and pinhooks a few” every year at their farm in Knockainey, County Limerick.

Pat Donworth added, “This was just a lovely horse all the time and very straightforward.”

The first yearlings of Society Rock, a dual Group 1 winner for Fanshawe and the horse's octogenarian former owner Simon Gibson, had already been well received during Book 1, with four sold for an average price of 145,000gns, and his death in May at the age of nine will be much lamented by the team at Tally-Ho Stud, where he stood for an initial fee of €8,000. A further seven of his yearlings sold through the first session of Book 2 for an average of 98,857gns.

Roger Varian was another buyer kept busy in Book 1 on behalf of Sheikh Mohammed Obaid and he was again prevalent on Monday, signing for seven horses for a total of 820,000gns. Stroud once more played second fiddle as Varian went to 210,000gns for lot 696, a colt by Iffraaj (GB) consigned by Kilminfoyle House Stud. The brother to G2 May Hill S.-placed Musharakaat (Ire) was bought as a foal by Michael Fitzpatrick for €55,000.

Varian's purchases also included a beautiful daughter of Nathaniel (Ire) from the session-leading Newsells Park draft (lot 609) who was bought for 200,000gns with Sheikh Fahad Al Thani as the determined underbidder. The February-born filly is out of the Listed runner-up Elas Diamond (GB), a half-sister to the G2 Doncaster Cup winner Pallasator (GB) (Motivator {GB}).

Cheveley Park Stud played combined roles as a leading consignor and leading buyer and under the former banner sold a racy-looking Acclamation colt (lot 796) to Shadwell late in the session for 200,000gns.

“He is a strong, robust colt, a cracking first foal,” said Cheveley Park Stud manager Chris Richardson of the son of Listed winner Ladyship (GB) (Oasis Dream {GB}).

He added, “Of course, this colt's grandam Peeress (GB) is the dam of the 1.3 million gns Frankel colt who we sold here last week. It is a progressive family that is going places now, it has just taken us 30 years to get here.”

As purchaser, Richardson signed for two well-bred fillies who will be added to the stud's broodmare ranks in years to come, including the first yearling through the ring on Monday morning, New England Stud's Mastercraftsman (Ire) half-sister to Listed Corrib S. winner Dalkova (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) (lot 551) whose grandam Dalara (Ire) (Doyoun) is a half-sister to Darshaan (GB) (Shirely Heights {GB}) and Darara (Ire) (Top Ville {Ire}).

After going to 165,000gns for one grey, Richardson later secured another, the Dream Ahead half-sister to Saturday's G3 Prix de Conde winner Frankuus (Ire) (Frankel {GB}) who was bred and sold by Ballylinch Stud for 170,000gns and was offered as lot 588.

John Gosden is a fully paid-up member of the Kodiac (Ire) fan club thanks to the exploits this season of his juvenile son Ardad (Ire), whose Listed Windsor Castle S. triumph at Royal Ascot was followed up with victory in the G2 Flying Childers S. last month. The champion trainer will be hoping for more of the same from lot 721, Mountarmstrong Stud's full-brother to Listed Doncaster S. winner Dhahmaan (Ire) (Kodiac {Ire}) who was bought with the help of Blandford Bloodstock for 170,000gns.

A welcome name among the list of leading sires on day one was that of the Aga Khan's stalwart Sinndar (Ire), whose sole yearling in the catalogue (lot 676) sold for 165,000gns to Oliver St Lawrence. Bred in Germany by Philipp and Marion Stauffenberg, the neat near-black colt is a brother to Four Sins (Ger) who was a rare yearling purchase for the Aga Khan back in 2005 and subsequently won the G2 Blandford S. for John Oxx. Their dam Four Roses (Ire) (Darshaan {GB}) has produced six winners and is a half-sister to G2 Rockfel S. heroine Germane (GB) (Distant Relative {GB}).

The second day of Book 2 gets underway at Park Paddocks at 10am.

 

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