Not all chocolates at Easter

The absence of the big players certainly had an effect on the results of Inglis’ Sydney Easter Yearling Sales.

The moment Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum’s head-buyer John Ferguson decided against catching a plane from Dubai to Sydney was the moment some of the vendors with the top-bracket yearlings would have taken to a stiff whiskey.

With Darley’s Ferguson at home, the international conglomerate bought only two yearlings. In 2008, Darley, Bob Ingham and Patinack Farm spent more than $40 million between them; this year the leading buyer (Hawkes Racing) spent only $4 million.

Ingham Racing spent $3 million and Patinack Farm $2.5 million in a much more subdued piece of buying.

But also noticeable was the fact that the South African and Hong Kong buyers were not playing at the high end. Of course, the Hong Kong Jockey Club kept its word and boycotted the NSW sale over Racing NSW’s decision late in 2008 to license jockey Chris Munce before his HK ban ran out.

The Easter sale concluded with an average of $220,975, down 8 per cent on 2009 – not bad considering the fact that the international buying bench was down.

There were rumblings from a number of trainers and prospective buyers that the quality of the yearlings didn’t match the pedigrees. “Too many ordinary types with faults, and too many with x-ray issues for a sale of this type,” one leading trainer said.

The fees are still too high: Of course, many vendors were not happy – and why should they be considering this crop of yearlings came from a year of ridiculously high stallion fees. It’s incredible that Easter quality yearlings were being passed in short of the stallion’s service fee.

The cry has been for some time that fees must come down, but the stallion owners have been too slow to react. There is no doubt that further cuts are needed, especially now that there is such a broad choice for broodmare owners in 2010.

If they can get the fees down, then broodmare owners should also campaign to force stallion owners to reduce the numbers of mares served by individual stallions.

Freedman’s filly: Lee Freedman will train the top-priced filly for owner Peter Carrick. The Zabeel-Gin Player filly cost Carrick $1.3 million. The plumbing contractor has been a major buyer at yearling sales in recent years, but never before has he opened the purse strings to this extent on one horse. It was a case of “she’s the one I want and this time I am going to get her” for Carrick.

Gerald’s colt: Gerald Ryan has been announced as the trainer of the top-priced colt for a syndicate of owners put together by stud farm Kitchwin Hills. The colt, by Redoute’s Choice from Regrowth (by Unbridled’s Song) was widely regarded as one of the most impressive looking yearlings to go through a sale ring in Australia. He cost Kitchwin Hills $1.875 million in another case of “I must have it” buying.

It’s fee time: Arrowfield Stud will announce their service fees for 2010 on Monday – and as usually all the other studs are hanging out for the release so that can set their fees. The word around the traps is that Flying Spur is in for a significant reduction in fee. The 18-year-old stallion stood at $82,500 in 2009 and attracted 112 mares. It will be very interesting to see what Arrowfield does with Hussonet, who last year stood at $71,500, after a heady increase from $38,500 to $137,500 the previous year on the back of Weekend Hussler’s wonder 3YO campaign. Hussonet covered only 78 mares last season.

Arrowfield’s young sires Starcraft and Snitzel are doing well with their first crops this season, but well enough for a jump in fee? Both stood in 2009 at $22,000. Certainly, Snitzel is getting the numbers (seven individual winners) and Starcraft has had the one “big” horse in Group 1 Blue Diamond Stakes winner Star Witness, but Arrowfield has been criticised for being too “trigger-happy” with Hussonet, so breeders will be hoping for a more measured approach this time.

Domesday for Victoria: The talk from Darley is that the promising Domesday (by Red Ransom (USA)) is “almost certain” to stand in Victoria at their Northwood Park farm. The almost black Domesday has been based at Darley’s Cootamundra farm, Twin Hills, has sired three winners from his first crop of only 30 named foals. His exciting maiden filly Divorces is one of the favourites for tomorrow’s Group 1 AJC Sires’ Produce Stakes. Domesday stood last season for a fee of only $5500 (inc. GST).

In the other hand, expect Darley to increase the service fees in 2010 of their rising stars Lonhro (by Octagonal) and Shamardal (by Giant’s Causeway (USA)). Lonhro had his fee reduced in 2009 from $55,000 to $33,000, but he has had exceptional results since then to become one of the most sought after stallions in Australia. Shamardal stood in 2009 for only $27,500 after starting at $55,000 in 2005 before dropping in $44,000 in 2008. His stocks have risen on the back of some exceptional offspring, including Group 1-winning star Faint Perfume, Shamoline Warrior and Marquardt.

The good news for breeders is that Darley is adamant that the books of the two stallions will be restricted to offset the rise in fee – last year demand for Lonhro was so great that he covered 212 mares.

The sales pitch never stops: As 5pm plane to Melbourne filled on Thursday afternoon, there was one distinct and familiar voice above all else – Troy Corstens getting a last minute phone call into a prospective owner for one of the yearling he had purchased in Sydney: “Bill” has 10 per cent, “Joe” has got 7 per cent, you can have …”

The best for Bester: Leading agent James Bester was in full swing buying for his new client, Ananda Krishnan’s Kia Ora Stud. The former long-time Coolmore employee paid $1.2 million for a colt by Redoute’s Choice from Asian Reef, a half-brother to Group 1 winner Bon Hoffa and two other Stakes winners. Bester’s new position has given him some firepower as he also bought the top-priced colt from the Karaka Yearling Sale in New Zealand – by Zabeel from Diamond Like (by Danehill) – for NZ$2 million for the same group.

At the Sydney sale, Bester was flanked by representatives of Kia Ora and well-known owner-breeder John Camilleri, who also has taken a slice of the Redoute’s Choice colt. offered by Kitchwin Hills on behalf of client Carl Holt. Ironically, it was Kitchwin Hills that paid $1.875 for the sale-topping Redoute’s Choice-Regrowth colt (sold by Segenhoe Stud) on day one.

Bester made a point that he felt his colt was the image of his sire, if not better quality. “He has remarkable pelvic length and a hind leg action (the swagger) as good as I have seen on a yearling in recent years,” Bester said.

The master is popular: Rodney Schick, from Windsor Park Stud, Cambridge, New Zealand, said new stallion Mastercraftsman has a book that is nearly closed. “We have about 70 outside mares booked to him,’ Schick said.

“In many ways, he’s a lot more suitable for New Zealand breeders than High Chaparral, who would have attracted a lot of mares from Australia.”

Coolmore Stud has decided that High Chaparral will spend the 2010 season in Australia, and sent the four-time Group 1 winner Mastercraftsman (by Danehill Dancer) to Windsor Park as a replacement. The grey stallion’s fee is NZ$25,000.