Australasians make a plunge at Tattersalls December Mare Sale

Cover image courtesy of Tattersalls

Jim Clarke of Clarke Bloodstock (FBAA) and Michael and Terry-Ann Sherrin of Sheralee Estate made their presence felt at the recent Keeneland November Sale and on Monday at Park Paddocks they continued to splash out for Northern Hemisphere-bred females, fighting off fierce competition to snare the Group 3-placed mare Romantic Rival (Ire) (Shamardal {USA}) for 300,000gns (AU$537,800).

A winner of two races, the daughter of Shamardal (USA) will be mated to Juddmonte’s leading resident sire Frankel (GB) on Southern Hemisphere time next year, before making her way back to Australia next spring.

The Shamardal / Frankel cross has proved a successful one in Australia, with Group 1-winning gelding Converge being out of a daughter of the late Darley-based sire and Clarke told TDN AusNZ they had been on the hunt for a mare free of Danehill (USA) and given the potency of the cross it made sense for Romantic Rival’s first cover to be with the son of Galileo (Ire).

“We wanted to come here and buy something that was free of Danehill and we were keen to find a mare to go to Frankel,” said Clarke. “Obviously, he is a very versatile stallion, but the fact that we landed on a Shamardal mare is a pretty obvious thing with the cross having worked in Australia already.”

Shamardal is carving out a reputation as a top-class broodmare sire, with Converge one of 10 elite-level winners out of his daughters, while overall his daughters have produced 83 stakes winners between them.

Trained by George Boughey, the 4-year-old is out of one-time winner Sense Of Fun (USA) (Distorted Humor {USA}), who is herself a sister to Group 1 winner Aesop’s Fables (USA), while further back this is the same family as multiple Group 1-winning Champion Lammtarra (USA) and Polarisation (GB) (Echo Of Light {GB}), who famously landed the void G1 Sydney Cup in 2017, before triumphing again when the Group 1 was held 14 days later.

“Mares by the stallion are pretty hard to come by, he’s an outstanding broodmare sire and the mare goes back to one of Sheikh Mohammed’s best families. She has had a good year on the track. She is one length off being a Group 3 winner and she has got some form around some very good fillies in Europe,” continued Clarke.

Earlier in the month, Clarke and the Sherrins teamed up to purchase G3 Soaring Softly S. winner Chardy Party (Ire) (Dark Angel {Ire}), paying Eaton Sales (agent for Stonestreet Stables) US$325,000 (AU$503,900) for the unbeaten daughter of Dark Angel (Ire) and Clarke revealed she would also be set for a date with Frankel.

“We will leave them here until the Australian spring next year and hopefully get them in foal on early cover next September and then bring them back. They will both live here together with Adrian O’Brien at Hazelwood Bloodstock and he is very experienced at looking after these mares going down to Australia.”

Of the price, Clarke commented, “I thought she was entitled to make that much on pedigree and her race record and I knew we would have to be up around that price for her and I knew we might have to stretch as far as we were willing to go to buy her.

“She will be pretty fundamental in the Sheralee Estate broodmare band for a while, and she will get every opportunity starting off with Frankel. Then we will bring her home and we have unlimited options going forward with her.”

Boomer stays late to secure Silent Monarch

The action on Monday stretched well into the darkness and Boomer Bloodstock’s (FBAA) Craig Rounsefell, who was working on behalf of Murray Thoroughbreds, waited until the end of the day to strike, eventually snapping up Silent Monarch (Ire) (No Nay Never {USA}), paying Boughey’s Saffron House Stables 170,000gns (AU$304,800) for the 3-year-old.

Unbeaten in both her starts, Silent Monarch is out of the unraced Giant’s Causeway (USA) mare Causeway Queen (Ire), making her a half-sister to Listed-placed Surbett (Ire) (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}).

Causeway Queen herself is a half-sister to G3 Dee S. winner Astrology (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}) and Listed winner Sandro Botticelli (Ire) (Galileo {Ire}).

Rounsefell told TDN AusNZ the filly would race on in Australia, before joining the Three Bridges broodmare band at the conclusion of her racing career.

“Thrilled to purchase Silent Monarch for Australian client Peter Murray of Murray Thoroughbreds late on day one,” said Rounsefell.

“She is a gorgeous 3-year-old filly who is unbeaten in two starts this season. The plan is to race her on in Australia before joining Peter's broodmare band at Three Bridges. She is a lovely outcross from a quality family that should be well suited to Australia.”

Cambridge Stud to the fore

Cambridge Stud bolstered their broodmare band with two purchases on Day 1 at Tattersalls, with John Foote Bloodstock (FBAA) parting with 50,000gns (AU$89,600) for one-time winner Suspicious (GB) (Nathaniel {Ire}).

A few lots later, Charlie Dee, who works as the assistant for Luke Lillingston for Lillingston Bloodstock, purchased dual winner Terra Mitica (Ire) (Ulysses {Ire}) on behalf of Brendan and Jo Lindsay’s New Zealand nursery.

Dee told TDN AusNZ the filly would be kept in training before joining the Cambridge Stud broodmare band once her career on the track is done and dusted.

Gallery: Mares purchased for Cambridge Stud, images courtesy of Tattersalls

“I bought her with John Foote who was buying a few mares for Cambridge Stud and he asked me to make a list of fillies that could race on in Australia or New Zealand that might be able to get black type down there,” said Dee.

The 3-year-old filly boasts some good form, having beaten Rousay (Ire) (Muhaarar {GB}) into second at Salisbury in July, form which was duly franked when the runner-up took out a Listed race later on in the season, while the third-placed horse home, Peripatetic (GB) (Ulysses {Ire}), went on to finish second at Group 3 level.

Dee said he had been impressed with the form and was confident that this held her in good stead in the Southern Hemisphere.

“I loved her profile a lot. She won a race at Salisbury where the filly that finished second has since won a Listed race and the horse that finished third in the race has been placed in a Group 3,” he said.

“She ran some really good speed figures which suggests to me she could very well be Group-classed in the UK let alone in Australia and New Zealand. From a racing perspective she really fit the bill and 2000 metres really looks her trip and she loves firm ground.

“She has a lovely pedigree as well, so she should make into a lovely broodmare prospect once she’s finished racing. Obviously, you never know how they are going to acclimatise but if she takes to the conditions down there and can win some nice races.”

Bred and raced by the Niarchos family’s Flaxman Stables, Terra Mitica is out of the US G3 winner Mississippi Delta (USA) (Giant’s Causeway {USA}).

Sea Speedwell to continue career in Australia

Silverdale Farm also entered the fray late on Monday evening, with Sackville Donald going to 80,000gns (AU$143,400) on their behalf for dual winner Sea Speedwell (GB) (Sea The Stars {Ire}), who was consigned as part of the Castlebridge Consignment.

The daughter of Sea The Stars (Ire) is out of Flower Market (GB) (Cadeaux Genereux {GB}) making her a half-sister to the G1 Australian Cup winner Spillway (GB) and stakes-placed pair Jake’s Hill (GB) (Mount Nelson {GB}) and Aalsmeer (GB) (Invincible Spirit {Ire}).

Purchased alongside Kenny and Maree Lowe and Richard Pegum, Sea Speedwell will continue her career in Australia.

“She is an outcross, which is obviously a massive positive. We bought her with Kenny and Maree Lowe and Richard Pegum who we raced Kinema with successfully at Royal Ascot, so it was actually Richard that put this mare forward to us,” Silverdale’s General Manager, Robert Petith told TDN AusNZ from Australia on Tuesday.

“I looked at the video and I liked the mare. She is an outcross and she satisfied the boss' requirements on pedigree and having that half-brother there, Spillway, with a bit of Australian flavour to it will hopefully help out too.

“She looks like a lovely, quality mare and the pedigree suited. Hopefully we can bring her back here to Australia and race on for a little while and then all going to plan, next spring we will look to go to the breeding shed, but we will be guided by her.

“She is very easy to mate and she looks like a lovely quality mare from the videos and the photos, she has a beautiful big shoulder and a lovely girth. We thought that at the money, she wasn’t bad value and hopefully we can have a bit of fun on the way to the breeding shed.”

Sea The Moon mare Speaks to Moroney

Bloodstock agent Paul Moroney has enjoyed significant success purchasing stock from the Tattersalls December Mare Sale in the past and he will no doubt be hoping he can strike again with Speak (GB) (Sea The Moon {Ger}), who purchased alongside his partner Catheryne Bruggeman and Perry Sambor for 50,000gns (AU$89,600).

In 2017, Moroney paid 65,000gns (AU$110,700) for a German-bred mare named Igraine (Ger) (Galileo {Ire}), who would go on to add five further victories to her record, headed by a win in the G3 Counties Cup and Listed Caloundra Cup.

Bruggeman told TDN AusNZ that Speak, who is by French Group 3 winner, Lixirova (Fr) (Slickly {Fr}) would continue her career in Australia, with a trainer yet to be decided.

“She was a good type, well-balanced, correct and she moved well. She will race in Australia. She has been bought for a private owner who has horses with a variety of different trainers and we leave that up to them,” said Bruggeman.

“The breeder, who owned the mare, is also planning on staying in her as well, so that’s always nice as well. The gentleman we bought her for we also bought for in July and at this sale last year. He really enjoys it.”

Bruggeman said Moroney, who did not make the trip to Newmarket on this occasion, did all the research on the form and had been impressed with her form.

“Paul (Moroney) did the form on her and it stacked up and he believed she would have the potential to be a stakes-classed filly in Australia. On type, she was really clean and there really wasn’t anything that put us off her.

“At that price, if she can win or be stakes-placed that will look like good value and she obviously also has residual. It is a bit of fun, everyone has a good time and if you kick a goal fantastic and obviously her future is in the breeding shed, which is the plan in the end anyhow. It has been a great process and there is a lot of upside for very limited risk.”