NSW farms look for Southern exposure

Article images by Sam D'Agostino (SDP Media) courtesy of Inglis

Widden Stud, Yarraman Stud, Newgate, Milburn Creek, Twin Hills Stud and Segenhoe Stud are among those who have returned hoping to cash in on a buyers' bench that left money on the table last year.

Inglis Managing Director Mark Webster issued a rallying call after last year's Melbourne Premier Sale for the local breeders to throw their full weight behind the 2020 catalogue and it's clear that message was also heard north of the Murray judging by the quality and quantity of bloodstock which has headed down the Hume Highway in the past week.

Scone-based Bhima Thoroughbreds reaped the rewards for placing faith in the Melbourne market last year, topping the sale with $800,000 for a Brazen Beau colt, one of 14 yearlings it sold for an aggregate of over $2.1 million and an average of over $150,000.

Mike Fleming and his team return in 2020 with a draft of 13 and with the confidence of last year's success behind them.

"When you look at the results of last year and what they have done with this complex in terms of the auditorium, we targeted our draft into Melbourne last year," Fleming said.

"We have got a very good client down here, Bruce Wilson of Glentree Thoroughbreds, who we consign yearlings for. He's based in Victoria, so he's always got horses down here and they fitted into our draft. We've also got some other horses by proven sires and those by sires on the up in our draft."

Bhima's entry into the Melbourne market last year was timed because Fleming felt he had the right horses to offer for the buyers.

"We've always assessed the market here at Premier and we've been looking at it for a couple of years. We thought last year was the right time to step in," he said.

"We brought some horses by some nice proven sires down here and they don’t necessarily need to have the VOBIS bonus on them. They sold well, both the colts and the fillies.

"We have returned this year and obviously on the strength of last year we have seen some re-appearance of some other New South Wales farms that are coming back into the market.

"It shows the strength of the industry as a whole, with the diversity of the placement of these horses and where you can put horses that suit."

Northern influx bolsters catalogue

Those six farms named above contribute 58 of the total of 705 yearlings (accounting for withdrawals) for the entire catalogue, or over 8 per cent. For many, it is a chance to get their own stallions in front of the buying bench.

Newgate's draft is very much influenced by its crop of freshman stallions with yearlings by Flying Artie (4) and Capitalist (3) making up the majority of its offering, while Widden presents 12 yearlings on return, four by its rising star Zoustar and three by another resident stallion in Star Witness, who has a strong profile in Victoria.

Yarraman Park's draft of seven contains one by its top sire I Am Invincible and two from the last crop of the very much in-demand Hinchinbrook.

Emerging and unproven stallions dominate Milburn Creek's draft of nine, while Twin Hills has gone for a mix in its five on offer, but all by stallions with a profile.

Segenhoe returns hoping for right mix

Segenhoe's Peter O'Brien said vendors did need to be mindful that the lack of VOBIS attached to New South Wales-bred horses could prove a barrier and it was important to present good, strong horses by stallions which resonate with the market.

"We have tried to send yearlings by proven stallions and make sure they are good animals. If they aren’t a good horse and aren't by a proven horse, that lack of VOBIS can hurt you," he said.

Segenhoe has been selling horses at Melbourne Premier in recent years, but they were consigned through other vendors and it decided it was time to dip the toe back in the water under its own name in 2020.

"We've been sending horses here every year in other people's drafts and we only had a handful. Last year, we averaged $191,000, so we thought it was high time we sold them ourselves down here,' O'Brien said.

"Last year this sale, pound-for-pound, was one of the best sales in the country. That's the reason we are here."

The decision came at a cost, with Segenhoe opting not to put a draft in at the recent Inglis Classic Sale because logistically it couldn't handle two sales in such a short time frame.

Like Fleming, O'Brien said the effort made by Inglis to make the Oaklands Junction complex a much better place to sell horses had been a factor in the decision to prefer Premier over Classic.

"People might think it's a simple thing, but the refurbishing of the complex and having those tables and everything, there is a much better atmosphere and it lifts the atmosphere in the sales ring," he said.

Draft ready for market

Segenhoe's draft is highly influenced by horses bred by Sheikh Mohammad Bin Khalifa Al Maktoum, with four of them in its 10-strong draft, and four of the draft by young stallions which raced for Sheikh Khalifa, in Pride Of Dubai (3) and Sooboog (1).

"It’s hard to split them but the two Pride Of Dubais, Lot 165, out of Fitna, is a stunning filly and Fitna's 2-year old (Avenue Of Pleasure) is stakes placed," he said.

"The Pride Of Dubai colt out of Slippery Rose, he reminds me so much of Pride Of Dubai as a yearling, who we had. He's a really fast early type.

"The filly that everybody thinks is one of the best in the Sale is the Sooboog out of Bella Sunday (Lot 50). She's obviously a half to Oohood from the family of Not A Single Doubt."

Sentiment strong, but with some questions

Thursday may have only been the third of five days of inspections, but the feeling O'Brien has got from his return to Melbourne in that the sale, which starts on Sunday, is set to be very positive for vendors.

"Speaking to buyers and agents, the consensus is the quality of horse is better, so you would assume the average would increase. I've been really pleasantly surprised by the level of interest, and the amount of people. It’s a very optimistic vibe around the sales ground," he said.

Fleming also sees plenty of positives around the sales ground, although with half a mind on how global events may shape the market at the sale.

"Looking at the market over the past four or five years, there has always been a big presence from Asian buyers and Hong Kong buyers here. Obviously, with the current state of what is going on in the world with Coronavirus and those kinds of things. It will be interesting to see how that affects things," he said.

"But anywhere where you take a nice horse that suits the market, you get a result. The results so far, starting off at Magics and even the growth and strength in New Zealand and at Classic, then flowing through to Perth and Tasmania, everywhere has been up and everywhere has been positive. Australian racing is very positive with the level of prizemoney on offer."