Why Arrowfield went outside its roster for Global Goal

Cover image courtesy of The Image Is Everything

Arrowfield had plenty of stallions at home to choose from when planning a mating for Tides but Jon Freyer wanted to add speed and substance so Pinatubo (Ire) was the choice, and Saturday’s G1 Flight Stakes winner Global Goal was the result.

Her victory brought another generation of Group 1 success to the family Arrowfield and Jonathan Munz bought into with The Broken Shore (Hussonet) in 2014. On a day when Maurice’s (Jpn) Cosmic Crusader won the G1 Turnbull Stakes and Snitzel supplied a stakes treble, the outside mating offered perhaps the most interesting insight into the breeding decisions behind the results.

An uncommon outside mating for Arrowfield, Global Goal (Pinatubo {Ire}) was co-bred by Arrowfield Stud and Jonathan Munz’s GSA Bloodstock, and was sold by Arrowfield at the Inglis Easter Yearling Sale where Munz bought out his breeding partner at $250,000.

“We've got a number of mares together and most of the time we offer the progeny for sale because we're a commercial operation. Anyone is free to bid on them, and Dean Hawthorne liked Global Goal and Munz brought us out,” Arrowfield Stud’s Jon Freyer said.

Tides (Fastnet Rock) was raced by Arrowfield Stud and Pinecliff Racing and she had a fantastic day at Randwick with two of her progeny first past the post.

“We bought the grandmother at the Teeley Dispersal sale, carrying Shoals at the time and then we bred Tides. Tides has bred Global Goal and she also had Columbus who won the first at Randwick and lost it on protest,” Freyer said.

Columbus (Dundeel {NZ}) was sold by Arrowfield Stud at the 2024 Inglis Easter Yearling Sale for $1.5 million to Dean Hawthorne Bloodstock and the Alpha Syndicate. Now a 4-year-old gelding trained by Les Bridge, he has five syndicates in his ownership including Arrowfield Pastoral and Pinecliff Racing. First past the post in race one at Randwick, Columbus lost the race to second-placed Philatelic (Street Boss {USA}) who was awarded the victory on protest.

A stunning family delivers again

The Broken Shore (Hussonet {USA}) was purchased by Dean Hawthorne Bloodstock on behalf of Arrowfield and GSA Bloodstock for $1.9 million at the Teeley Dispersal sale in 2014. Placed in her first three starts at two, she won her maiden in Sydney.

She’s a daughter of the blue hen mare Shantha’s Choice (Canny Lad) who is the dam of Champion Sire Redoute’s Choice, Group 1 winners Manhattan Rain and Platinum Scissors, as well as Group 3 winner Sliding Cube (Rock Of Gibraltar {Ire}), dam of Rubick, and Listed winner Echoes Of Heaven.

The Broken Shore’s first foal, Shoals (Fastnet Rock) won the G1 Myer Classic, G1 Surround Stakes and G1 Robert Sangster Stakes with seven victories in total. Shoals’ first foal is Group 3 winner Isthmus (I Am Invincible).

After Shoals came Tides, then Listed winner Groundswell, also by Fastnet Rock and a $2.3 million yearling sale. The Broken Shore has now produced seven winners from seven runners with unraced 3-year-old colt Intrepid (Maurice {Jpn}) her final produce. Her 4-year-old gelding Linghon Hero (Written Tycoon) was a $1.35 million yearling and is now in Hong Kong.

“It's an amazing family. The Broken Shore was a good, tough little filly and she's been an incredible producer and it looks like it's going to continue on through the generations,” Freyer said.

“Tides is turning into a very good broodmare. She was a very promising race filly that went wrong, we felt she was certainly up to black type standard in terms of raw ability.”

Tides won three of her eight starts, with her final run coming in the G2 WH Stocks Stakes where she ran third-last and was retired.

The chance to access Darley’s Pinatubo in his first year in Australia was all about introducing some speed and substance to Tides.

Tides’ first three foals were all by Dundeel (NZ), with O’Caldino winning three times, Lunar Tide is unraced and the aforementioned Columbus has won three of his eight starts. Lunar Tide’s first foal is a colt by Vandeek (GB) who was born in August this year.

“We send a few mares out occasionally if we think the mating suits and we thought it suited. He was a big substantial horse and a fast horse. Tides was a different type to Shoals, more of middle distance type, so we wanted to put a bit of speed into her and substance,” Freyer said.

“Global Goal was a nice yearling, very athletic. A little lightly framed. But very athletic, quite a sweet filly.”

Pinatubo now has 14 stakes winners, with a Group 1 winner in each hemisphere, and is a triple Group 1-winning son of Shamardal (USA).

Snitzel the constant star in the spring

Arrowfield's deceased Champion Sire Snitzel once again showed his class with a stakes treble. His ability to stand up at the big carnivals was why he is so successful as a sire and why his stock are highly sought after in the sales ring.

The Next Episode showed he was worth his $2.8 million price-tag in winning the G2 Danehill Stakes, Musandam won the Listed Maribyrnong Trial Stakes on debut and Wonka won the Listed Dulcify Stakes. Musandam and Wonka became Snitzel’s 176 and 177th stakes winners.

“He's amazing, isn't he?” Freyer said.

“The Next Episode was very impressive in what will be quite a strong race, as the second-placed filly (Natural Fling) is pretty smart. And he had the 2-year-old stakes winner, and then Wonka, who we bred.”

Chris Waller and Mulcaster Bloodstock paid $360,000 for Wonka at the Inglis Classic Yearling Sale from Arrowfield Stud’s draft. Widden Stud sold The Next Episode and Silverdale Farm sold Musandam.

“Wonka’s mother was very talented, Re Edit. She was a high-class filly that was pretty good from 1600 up to a mile and a half. I wouldn't be surprised if Wonka is very competitive in the Spring Champion.”

Wonka is a full brother to Group 3 winner Origin Of Love and they are the first two foals for Re Edit (Camelot {Ire}) who won three races and placed in the G2 PJ O'Shea Stakes.

The final crop for Snitzel will go to the yearling sales in 2027, marking a poignant end to the era for Arrowfield Stud.

“He’s on top of the Sires’ list again after the fabulous weekend with those three stakes winners, just incredible. In terms of performance, his quality hasn't dropped off one iota. He's got two really outstanding colts in St Gotthard and The Next Episode who are the top two picks for the Coolmore.”

St Gotthard was sold by Arrowfield Stud for $2.7 million and is already a Group 3 winner and placed in the G1 Golden Rose last start.

For Arrowfield, the focus on Snitzel will shift into his career as a broodmare sire, and Freyer fully expects him to thrive in that role too. Snitzel already has 61 stakes winners as a broodmare sire with seven of those successful at Group 1 level led by G1 Golden Slipper winner Mossfun (Mossman).

“We have a lot of broodmares by him and he’s doing remarkably well there. In terms of a broodmare sire, he’s probably the heir apparent to Redoute’s Choice and Fastnet Rock.

“He crosses well with everything.”

Three of Snitzel’s Group 1 winners as a damsire are by Written Tycoon – Velocious, Private Life, and Captured By Love. Arrowfield sire Dundeel (NZ) is the sire of Celestial Legend, while the other two Group 1 winners from Snitzel mares are Pinstriped (Street Boss {USA}) and Rodeo Drive (Jpn) (Saturnalia {Jpn}).

“As a stallion they're obviously precocious, but he's got plenty of horses that have been really tough, hard-knocking horses that train on. They've got soundness and toughness. He’s by a great broodmare sire in Redoute’s Choice and he’s out of a mare by a great broodmare sire in Snippets.

“He's got all the genetics. He’s got Valid Appeal in the family who was an unbelievably good broodmare sire in America. All that would suggest that he would be a good broodmare sire. Often when a stallion is very good, they make good broodmare sires.

“It's just natural because their fillies have lots of talent and ability is heritable.”

“It will be a sad moment when we sell the last of the Snitzels through the ring (in 2027) but what a wonderful horse he’s been and the impact he’s made on Arrowfield is profound.”

Maurice’s own ability is shining through

Six-time Group 1 winner Maurice (Jpn) arrived at Arrowfield Stud with an unfamiliar pedigree, being a son of Screen Hero (Jpn), a son of Grass Wonder (USA), but his own class has shone through with seven Group 1 winners among his 36 global stakes winners.

Among them are 2025 G1 Northerly Stakes winner Cosmic Crusader (NZ) who was sent to Victorian trainer Andrea Leek by owner Bob Peters for this spring and had many wondering if the West Australian form would stack up. The answer is simply, Yes.

Cosmic Crusader has been a model of consistency this campaign winning the G3 Bletchingly Stakes and G2 PB Lawrence Stakes before placing in both the G1 Memsie Stakes and G1 Underwood Stakes before Saturday’s G1 Turnbull Stakes victory.

“Maurice is going particularly well. He had obviously Cosmic Crusader, and then he had Vallice who was second in the Super Impose and Your Colour who we reared on the farm for Hermitage who was a nice third in the Dulcify,” Freyer said.

Your Colour won her maiden at Newcastle last start and placed behind Arrowfield-sold Wonka in the Listed Dulcify Stakes on Saturday.

“She'll go on to the VRC Oaks and a couple of those nice races in Melbourne. Paul (Messara)'s got Cormier running in the Gloaming next week and I think Icelady is going to run in the 1000 Guineas. So he's got a nice bunch of young horses.”

Cosmic Crusader is from Maurice’s third crop, covered in 2019 prior to him missing a season in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic.

“The trouble losing with missing a season is that they're building momentum and having good horses around and then suddenly you don't have anything coming through and they lose a little bit of momentum but he’s passed that hurdle now.

“He’s well established as a top 10 stallion now.”

As at Sunday October 4, Maurice is third on the Australian Sires’ Premiership with Snitzel leading. When he returned in 2021, he had triple Group 1 winner Hitotsu from his first crop as well as G1 Doomben 10,000 winner Mazu, who is still in work and took his earnings over $11.4 million when he won the G2 The Shorts two starts ago.

Arrowfield’s involvement in two of Saturday’s three Group 1 winners traced back to decisions made years apart: bringing Maurice to Australia and sending Tides to Pinatubo. Both paid off on one of spring’s biggest stages.