Written by Paul Vettise
A tip off from a multiple Group 1-winning horseman led the mother and daughter training combination of Leonie Proctor and Lyn Tolson to acquiring Flemington winner Curran (Night Of Thunder {Ire}) for a minimal price.
Leading conditioner Ciaron Maher alerted the Mornington-based pair to the availability of the then 2-year-old Curran, and Proctor followed the lead through when the chestnut was offered at the 2020 Inglis Digital July Sale.
A cheeky $600 bid was lodged and it turned out to be the sole interest and Curran has subsequently posted three wins and three placings from seven appearances and an impressive bank balance of nearly $260,000.
Curran wins Saturday's William Capell Sprint
“Ciaron came up to us at the beach one morning and said, 'I’ve got a little horse that needs a throat operation and he’ll come up for sale on the internet as the owners didn’t want to do the operation,” Proctor said.
“He said the horse had plenty of ability and we’d had throat horses before and can manage them the way we’re set up at the beach and out in the yards.”
Top return on investment
A month late, Curran was listed for sale and with a sole bid the horse was secured and is proving an outstanding investment.
“I was at the races at Bendigo and saddling up a horse and we were counting down the Sale and we got him. Ciaron was at Bendigo as well and I went up to him and said has that horse got four legs?
“He said, 'what do you mean?' I told him we got the horse for $600 and he said, 'no way!' ”
“He said 'what do you mean?' and I told him we got the horse (Curran) for $600 and he said 'no way!' ” - Leonie Proctor
Curran, who had trialled once for Maher and Eustace last season, was booked into the Ballarat Veterinary Clinic and the throat operation was successfully carried out.
Proctor and her mother share in the ownership along with Proctor’s partner, former jockey Rikki Cartwright whose son Matthew has ridden Curran in all of his appearances.
The 3-year-old’s only unplaced performance came on debut in February when he finished fifth.
“He’s an absolute ripper and so laid back. That’s the reason he got beaten in his first start at Stony Creek,” Proctor said.
“He jumped out the barrier and another horse came across him and he looked at it and virtually pulled up to a stop. We put the blinkers on after that and he hasn’t looked back.”
“We put the blinkers on after that and he hasn’t looked back.” – Leonie Proctor
A decision has yet to be made on Curran’s immediate future with the option of a black-type tilt or a spell in the paddock.
“We take it a race at a time and there is the Listed Creswick S. in a couple of weeks back at Flemington. We might nominate him, but we’re happy enough to put him away and look to the spring,” Proctor said.
“That will come around pretty quickly and he’s a big, solid type of horse so he won’t need too much of a spell, he’ll get too fat.”
Curran is a son of the winning Street Cry (Ire) mare Tremell and she is out of a sister to North American Listed winner Tanaasa (Ire) (Sadler’s Wells {USA}) and a half-sister to the Group 2 winners and sires Mujtahid (USA) and Just Happy (USA).
