Sadler's Wells filly brings €2 million at Goffs

Sadler's Wells filly brings €2

million at Goffs

Goffs rounded off its flagship Million Sale in style Thursday when two lots

reached beyond the magic million-euro mark. Topping the session and the sale

overall at 2 million was Hip No. 627, a sister to this year's Epsom Derby

(Eng-G1) runner-up Dragon Dancer (Sadler's Wells). Despite her obvious potential for the track, the

May-foaled daughter of Sadler's Wells consigned by Kirsten Rausing's

Staffordstown Stud has significant residual value as a broodmare prospect.

Her

third dam is the outstanding Alruccaba (Crystal Palace), who has established a dynasty of

top-class performers in a short space of time. Among her progeny is the 1996 Nassau S.

(Eng-G2) and Sun Chariot S. (Eng-G2) winner Last Second (Ire) (Alzao), who is the dam of this

year's Poule d'Essai des Poulains (French Two Thousand Guineas) (Fr-G1) winner Aussie Rules

(Danehill)

and the 2001 Doncaster Cup (Eng-G3) scorer Alleluia (Caerleon), who has produced

this year's Lancashire Oaks (Eng-G2) winner and Yorkshire Oaks (Eng-G1) third Allegretto (Galileo

[Ire]).

Alruccaba has also produced the full sisters Alouette

and Jude, both by Darshaan. While Alouette is herself the dam of dual Champion S.

(Eng-G1) winner Alborada (GB) (Alzao) and three-time Group 1 heroine Albanova (Alzao),

Jude's progeny include Ballydoyle's top-class fillies Quarter Moon

(Ire) and Yesterday (Ire), both by Sadler's Wells.

It was Barouche Stud's owner Barbara Facchino who had

the final say on the sale topper after outlasting John Magnier.

"I think this was one of the picks of the catalog from a family that Barbara was keen to get

into," the stud's manager Rory Matthews explained. "I hoped that I wouldn't have

to go that far, but she is one of the nicest Sadler's Wellses I have seen in a

long time. She was bought for her pedigree, but hopefully she will do well on

the track."

Earlier in the afternoon, the ongoing influence of Sadler's Wells was keenly

felt when Hip 591, a daughter of Pat O'Kelly's excellent producer Welsh Love

(Ela-Mana-Mou) was sold for 1.3 million. Kilcarn Stud is accustomed to realizing

million-plus sums at the old-style Orby -- this filly's half-brother Balestrini

(Ire) (Danehill) reached Ir2.1 million guineas five years ago. Johnny McKeever signed the

docket for the three-parts sister to Ireland's champion juvenile of 1997, Second

Empire (Ire) (Fairy King), from the family of Salsabil (Ire) (Sadler's Wells),

Sahm (Mr. Prospector) and Marju (Last Tycoon [Ire]).

McKeever

revealed that the filly was heading back to Kilcarn.

"She has been bought for

Miss O'Kelly," he explained. "She was a foal-share with Coolmore and is a lovely

filly, so she wanted to buy out her partners and keep the family."

Kilcarn was

also responsible for the same family's Hip 518, the joint-highest priced colt of

the session bought by Shadwell. By King's Best, the half-brother to this year's

dual Group 3 scorer Echo of Light (Dubai Millennium), who also topped the sale at 1.2 million three

years ago, is out of a sibling of Sheikh Hamdan bin Rashid Al Maktoum's past

luminaries Salsabil and Marju.

Derrinstown Stud's General Manager

Stephen Collins paid 600,000 to ensure that the colt would race in the famed

blue and white, as his close relatives Akarem (Kingmambo) and Multazem (Kingmambo) have done.

"We

know the family exceptionally well and this colt stood out," Collins said. "He

has a lot of quality about him and we loved him."

During the frenetic period between the selling of the two toppers, Dermot

Weld paid 600,000 for Hip 634, a son of Medicean, who is the sire of Nannina and

Friday's Middle Park S. (Eng-G1) hopeful Dutch Art. From Denis Brosnan's Croom House Stud, the 105,000gns Tattersalls December weanling

acquisition is out of a half-sister to the group scorer Rum Charger (Ire)

(Spectrum) and Pakhoes

(Ire) (College Chapel), two runners sent out from Weld's Rosewell House base.

That transaction

came hot on heels of bloodstock agent Gill Richardson's 550,000 purchase of a

filly by Galileo (Ire). As it was on the first two days, demand for the Coolmore

stallion's progeny was strong. Hip 631 is from the immediate family of this

year's Hardwicke S. (Eng-G2) winner Maraahel (Alzao). Consigned by Abbeville and Meadow

Court Studs, she is also from the family of the talented Shadwell performers Muhbubh

(Blushing Groom), Sayedah (Ire) (Darshaan) and Istintaj (Nureyev).

Early in the session, first-season trainer David Myerscough went to 380,000

to secure Hip 457, a Green Desert close relative to the 1997 Irish Two Thousand

Guineas (Ire-G1) and Irish Derby (Ire-G1) winner and sire Desert King (Danehill).

The Irish National Stud's offering is also a half-sister to last year's Mooresbridge S.

(Ire-G3) winner Cairdeas (Darshaan) from the family of the 1994 Queen Elizabeth II S.

(Eng-G1) winner Maroof (Danzig).

"I've bought her for Frank O'Malley, who has a nice two-year-old with me

called Isola Star," the trainer's son Philip Myerscough commented. "She has a

great pedigree and is an individual to match. She looks a strong filly and a

two-year-old type and hopefully she'll be one for the Million."

Another to grab

a slice of the Sadler's Wells action was Glenview House Stud, which paid 355,000

for a daughter of the 1998 Irish One Thousand Guineas (Ire-G1) winner Tarascon (Tirol). From the

draft of Thomastown Castle, Hip 546 is from the immediate family of the

ill-fated 2004 Prix Guillaume d'Ornano (Fr-G2)winner Mister Monet (Peintre

Celebre) and Mala

Mala (Brief Truce), who was third in the Cheveley Park S. (Eng-G1) six years ago.

Danehill

Dancer has produced healthy returns again. His colt consigned as Hip 497

by Paul Shanahan's Ashtown House Stud was knocked down to Charlie Gordon-Watson

for 350,000. He is closely related to the 2000 Queen Mary S. (Eng-G3) runner-up Al Ihsas (Ire)

(Danehill) and the useful sophomore Anna Karenina (Green Desert).

"I had an order to buy

a Danehill Dancer and he looked the best of them," Shanahan explained. "He'll

stay in Ireland."

Michael Morrin's Pier House Stud provided another highlight in

Hip 525, a Mr. Greeley filly who was snapped up by Peter Doyle for 340,000 on

behalf of Plantation Stud. Dermot O'Rourke's establishment will race the

half-sister to the stakes winner Limelighting (Alleged) from the family of Sky Classic

(Nijinsky II).

"She's a gorgeous filly, with a broodmare's pedigree and has been bought for

Plantation," Doyle said. "She is by one of the top sires of our time of both

colts and fillies and will go into training with Mick Halford."

Goffs Managing Director Matt Mitchell heralded a highly successful sale,

which returned a near 17-percent increase in average on 12 months ago and a rise

in the median from 65,000 to 70,000. Despite these figures, Mitchell admitted

that the market had been "selective" and that horses had to have all the

ingredients to satisfy the criteria for buyers.

"We are very happy with the sale

and the increases on top of the huge increases last year," Mitchell said. "The

real key is the median, which is also up by nearly eight percent and the races,

which underpinned the sale and saw this year's winners reinvesting. A feature of

the sale was a demand for fillies and the increase in quality has driven

breeders to invest in pedigrees. The top end of the market is very healthy, but

the market is selective and animals that don't have the conformation and

pedigree are punished. There was a very good cross-section of buyers, with

buyers from Japan, which was encouraging and we hope to build on that. There was

also a Russian presence for the first time. The progression of the Million Sale

should be seen in the context of three years, and the trends shown this week,

building on the success of the inaugural Million in 2005, are very positive."

There is a change of direction Friday, when the Sportsmans' Sale is hosted.

Full results can be viewed online at www.goffs.com.