Hassett: 'Get In The Game Is My Way Of Giving Back To People'

News that Johnny Hassett was diagnosed with cancer last year was met with widespread support and generosity in the bloodstock and racing world and now the man behind The Bloodstock Connection and more recently the Get In The Game Syndicate is hell-bent on giving back to those who supported him when he needed it most.

So, how is he going to do it? By doing what he does best; sourcing good horses. This season, every yearling that Hassett sources for next year's breeze-ups will be offered up for sale in the Get In The Game Syndicate, one of the only micro share syndicates involved in trading horses in that sphere.

Hassett added a Sioux Nation filly–lot 741 for €90,000 on Thursday–and Friday's sale topper, a Magna Grecia (Ire) colt for €145,000 [lot 897], to this year's string from the Sportsman's, and is in little doubt that he got value for the syndicate members.

“I think I got the nicest filly and the nicest colt in the Sportsman's and, in my opinion, they are great value. We'll spend 25 to 26 grand getting a horse from sale to sale. No bother. Costs have gone up and they are not coming down.”

As has the price of the raw material. The demand for yearlings have sky-rocketed this autumn, which was evident in a buoyant Orby Sale in which the American buyers made their mark, and also in the Sportsman's where turnover climbed by 49% on last year's figures to €10,360,000. The average was also up 21% to €25,085 while the median climbed 31% to €21,000.

Asked if such a strong market has caused Hassett to adopt a more cautious approach to selecting yearlings, he said, “This is me being cautious. If you look back through the results, the best colt in the Sportsman's is just as good as the best colt in the Orby. A hundred and fifty grand in the Sportsman's will get you a nicer colt than if you went and spent half a million in the Orby.

“The Magna Grecia is a nice colt. Ken Condon had the sister [Rhea Moon (Ire) (Starspangledbanner {Aus})] and he told me that she was graded-class in Europe. They got good money for her to go out to America and she won quite easily and was entered in the [GI] Del Mar Oaks but got scratched so that pedigree could look a lot better in a few months' time.”

He added on the colt, that was signed for by Getinthegame.ie/Archdale BS, “As well as that, he's a May 28 foal, so he is five months younger than most of the horses in the sale. Funnily enough, this fella has the same birthday as Northern Dancer who was technically two when he won the Kentucky Derby.”

Hassett has become something of a social media sensation through his behind-the-scenes documenting of what goes into preparing a horse for the breeze-ups and boasts over 5,000 followers on Twitter. But does that translate to take-up in the syndicate?

“Take-up has been great. The Twitter thing really worked and 80% of the people who got involved last year made money. The average profit was almost 20%.

“I only did two videos last year, didn't promote it properly at all, because I got sick again. I got the diagnoses–15 brain tumors, one of them an inch in diameter and the stuff in the lungs back and new stuff in my stomach as well. The last two scans have shown that everything is reducing in size. Diet is a major part of that.

“But people were extremely good to me when I got sick and this whole Get In The Game Syndicate is my way of giving something back. If I can get people into racing and give them a good experience, and we can produce a good horse, well then I'll consider that a job well done. I am delighted with the 16 yearlings we picked up this year and there are shares available.”

Strong Trade Continues

Henry Beeby was spotted signing his way out of the sales house on Friday evening and few would blame the Goffs chief executive after a bonanza of a Sportsman's Sale following on from the Orby.

The work of Irish Thoroughbred Marketing and the team at Goffs did to attract the buyers at every level came in for special praise by Beeby.

He said, “On Wednesday we reflected on a record breaking edition of [the] Orby headed by the world's highest priced yearling of the autumn at €2.6m and Sportsman's only continued the theme with a vibrant trade driven by domestic and overseas buyers. Once again we are indebted to our vendors for entrusting us with two big days of yearlings that held huge appeal and allowed us to shout wide and loud about the strength of the catalogue.

“Like Orby we have broken records, not least for top price with Abbeville Stud's superb colt selling for €300,000 which has proved to be the highest priced yearling ever sold in Ireland outside the Orby Sale, so demonstrating that Sportsman's very much lives up to its billing as Part 2 of the Irish National Yearling Sale.”

Beeby added, “International participation has proved key throughout the week and we salute the work of ITM who work so well with our vibrant Buyer Recruitment Team and the network of Goffs International Agents, all of whom have played a significant part in the week's successes.”

Elliott Swoops For Well-Bred Phoenix Of Spain

Phoenix Of Spain's progeny were well-received in the Orby, with eight of the 10 offered selling for an average of €69,000, including the half-sister to Twilight Gleaming (Ire) (National Defense {GB}), who Ben McElroy snapped up for €200,000.

The Irish National Stud resident played a leading role on day two of the Sportsman's, with Gordon Elliott going to €82,000 to secure a half-sister (lot 833) to talented hurdler Zanahiyr (Ire) (Nathaniel {Ire}) on behalf of Noel and Valerie Moran's Bective Stud.

Elliott said, “The family has obviously been very good to us. I'm delighted to be able to buy her for the Morans and we will get her home and get her broken. We'll bring her along steadily and she is a filly with a lot of options.”

 Perfect Pinhook

Nothing inspires quite like a good pinhook story and Harry Swan, Sam Baker and Pat Taaffe turned their €15,000 Zoffany colt foal purchase into a €42,000 yearling (lot 815).

The hike in share price was helped in no small part by the emergence of the Sioux Nation half-sister Sydneyarms Chelsea (Ire) who landed a Group 3 at Deauville last month.