Having opened the year on an unprecedented high, summer trade at the sport horse auctions has held up well. Encouragingly, the renewals at Goresbridge, Cavan and Clifden have all produced a lively market, and while the recent sale topping figures have not matched those from the spring, the demand has been more concentrated and the averages have remained similar.

As the year has progressed however, and most notably since another record breaking sale at Goresbridge in July, there has been a levelling which has been influenced by the worrying fodder crisis in the UK. With extortionate prices quoted for both hay and straw, both private and trade buyers became nervous which in turn has steadied the trade. This has particularly affected the demand for four-year-olds, but is also true to say that the quality of the age group has been mixed. As always, buyers are on hand for the better horses, but with a slowing of the middle market, the clearances have been poor.

Meanwhile and largely due to this, the trade buyers have focused their attention on quiet riding horses, competition stock and ponies with mileage – many with traditional breeding. These individuals have sold well all summer, appealing to all sectors of customers.

As a spin off, the slight weakening of the UK market has strengthened the home trade with an unusually high number of horses heading to private Irish homes.

The sale topper

Topping the summer sales at a healthy €26,000 was Brighid O’Connor’s five-year-old jumping mare CeCe. Passing through the Goresbridge ring in July, she was a beautiful individual by Cornet Obolensky out of the Holstein mare Canturada 2 Della Caccia by Canturo. Bred at Ballywalter Farms, she had been lightly campaigned last year under Paddy O’Donnell, while this season had been produced further and prepared for sale by fellow Co Waterford show jumper Gemma Phelan.

The tussle for ownership was unsurprisingly competitive, but it was the Gloucestershire-based Paul Jeary who finally out bid his compatriot Caron Nicol.

Four-year-olds

The surprise of the year has been the muted demand for the four-year-olds. So often the banker age group, they have struggled to make an impact this summer, with the result that a fairly modest €20,500 emerged as the top return.

This went the way of the highly successful Co Waterford/Co Wexford production team of MBF Sporthorses and Higgins Sport Horses whose MBF Right On Time was a gelding by L’Extreme BH, a KWPN registered sire by Canturo. The dam was the well related Wikita K by Corland, who has already bred the 1.50m performer Ferrari K as well as Kita K (1.45m).

An attractive sort, this gelding was bought in the UK as a two-year-old and, quietly produced in the interim, was sold to American buyer Danielle Huntsman from South Carolina.

Older horses

Overall sale topper aside, Catherine Jackson-Garrett’s homebred mare by Glasgow Van’t Merelsnest landed the next best return at €21,000. The five-year-old was out of the well related Kilcorrig Legacy by Sandro Boy, and selling at Goresbridge earlier this month was secured by Northern Ireland customer Darragh McMahon.

Three-year-olds

Despite some strong returns in the spring, it is still early in the year for the three-year-olds to make a real impact. With many vendors waiting for the specialist sales in the autumn, business has steadied but selling at the inaugural Cavan Exclusive sale in August, Camryn Clarke’s Serado landed the best return of the year so far at €23,000.

Sourced in Holland last year, the gelding was by the popular KWPN sire Eldorado Van De Zeschoek, out of the 1.35m jumping mare Haserania (Karandasj), who in turn is a sibling to Lethal Weapon (1.40m). Another to remain on home turf, he was knocked down to Termonfeckin man Michael Balfe.

Ponies

The success story of the year so far, trade for ponies has been both consistent and strong.

The sale houses of Clifden, Cavan and Goresbridge have all enjoyed a flying trade, with the top honours at €15,500 falling to Eugene O’Leary’s much admired Ballyvary Nocturne, a six-year-old 157cms hands dun gelding by Achill Jack out of Lowerybane Super Star (Macs Lad).

Selling during a record breaking session at Clifden in August, where eleven ponies made in excess of €10,000, Ballyvary Nocturne was knocked down to Ethine O’Connor.