By Brian Sheerin
It was at the November Foal Sale at Goffs in 2015 when Ghaiyyath (Ire) (Dubawi {Ire}) shot the lights out at €1.1 million and the wheel will turn full circle this week with the Kildangan Stud-based sire represented by 14 foals in what promises to be another high-class edition.
The sale takes place from Monday, November 14 at 10am to Thursday, November 17 and will be immediately followed by the two-day November Breeding Stock Sale.
It was at that sale when Chicquita (Ire) (Montjeu {Ire}) was sold for €6.6 million and Goffs chief Henry Beeby is looking forward to what he thinks will be another productive week.
He said, “The Goffs November Foal Sale is the preferred choice for the majority of the foals who come to the market in Ireland. We have the cream of the Irish foal crop and there are some very special pedigrees in there. It's a very big and exciting entry.
“Anyone who is interested in buying a foal, be they pinhookers or end users, they will be here at Goffs. We're looking forward to it.”
Asked what he is most excited about at the foal sale, Beeby added, “There's a Kingman (GB) half-brother to Skitter Scatter, the Teofilo (Ire) half-sister to Dawn Approach (Ire), the Churchill (Ire) half-brother to Sonnyboyliston (Ire) and the own brother to Sea The Moon (Ger).
“There's also a Sea The Stars (Ire) brother to Sea Of Class (Ire), a couple of Wootton Bassetts (GB) and a half-brother to Arrest (Ire). You could go on and on. There are so many commercial sires in there and this is a very successful sale for pinhookers. Everyone comes here with fresh order books as this is the first major foal sale and we have something for everybody.
“The days are graded. Monday and Thursday would be at the commercial end and Tuesday takes a step up. Wednesday is when the real blue bloods will be sold.”
Along with Ghaiyyath, Arizona (Ire), Circus Maximus (Ire), Earthlight (Ire), Far Above (Ire), King Of Change (GB), Shaman (Ire) and Sottsass (Fr) are just a number of the stallions represented by their first crop of foals at the sale. But it's not just the first-season sires that Beeby is looking forward to.
He said, “We have seen a fair few of the foals by first-season sires and are guided by the breeder. We will start looking at them in more detail alongside the buyers from Saturday onwards. It's from Saturday when the excitement really starts to build.
“It's always fascinating to see the first crop of sires that you were familiar with on the racetrack. We've the last Galileo (Ire) foal being offered at public auction and the first-season sires. The great thing about the November Foal Sale is that it is all about potential.”
The major talking point from the Orby and Sportsman's Yearling Sales at Goffs last month was the presence of international buyers. While the foal sales are predominantly attended by a domestic market, Beeby is expecting international players to turn out in force.
He said, “One of our most famous lines is, 'Goffs is the gateway to the world for Irish breeders.' Of course, the biggest group of buyers at this sale will be the Irish pinhookers. The majority of the buyers don't have to travel very far and they certainly don't have to get on a plane. But we will have a lot of British-based pinhookers and we will have a fair few French, European, Scandinavian and American buyers as well. We have some Japanese buyers engaged and some will be bidding online. It will be another international gathering, that's for sure.”
Chicquita may be the poster girl of the November Breeding Stock Sale but top-class producers have gone through the ring at Goffs in recent seasons.
Beeby explained, “This sale has really punched above its weight. As per all of our marketing, the fact that we have had the dams of Saffron Beach (Ire), Blackbeard (Ire), Little Big Bear (Ire) and Alcohol Free (Ire) come out of this sale says a lot. Ghaiyyath and Alcohol Free were also sold here as well. We can go to people and say, 'look what you can get here.'
“We probably don't have another Chicquita this year but we have a really good bunch who will appeal to an international audience. If there are breeders looking to invest in broodmares, this is a sale they simply cannot afford to miss.”
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