Last Thursday night (18 September) was one to remember for Roscommon breeder Stephen Reilly, whose filly foal Creevyquinn Evangelia by Tangelo Van’t Zuuthoeve topped the Cavan Elite foal Sale at a spectacular €35,000.

Selling for almost double the next in line, her sale was the highlight of an outstanding evening, during which half of the 20 foals sold made five-figure returns. The success was illustrated by a notable increase in average to €11,385 (€8,950 in 2020), while the clearance of 77% was similar to that of 12 months ago.

As is now usual, the sale was conducted both online and in house, and while the former was influential in boosting prices, the vast majority of foals were snapped up by buyers in attendance. Breeders whose foals featured top end pedigrees reaped the rewards, and while those at the lower end of the tables may have been a little disappointed, there were certainly no shortage of customers.

Sale Topper

Although Stephen Reilly is no stranger to sale topping honours, Evangelia’s price of €35,000 far outweighed any of his previous returns. A daughter of Tangelo Van’t Zuuthoeve, the filly is out of the Dutch-bred mare Boraya VDL (Argentinus), who was sourced by Reilly in Holland as a three-year-old.

From the maternal family of the 2012 London Olympics standout Bubalu (1.60m) and Ferrari VDL (1.55m), she has already bred the highly rated six-year-old Creevquin Poseur (Jenny Rankin) as well as the promising four-year-old FF Tinos Uno.

The latter is owned by Trevor Gaffney’s Ohio-based Freestyling Farms, so it came as no surprise to see David Scally at ringside to secure this filly on Freestyling’s behalf.

“She already had the connection with Freestyling Farm. Having looked at all the foals before the sale, she stood out,” said Scally.

“This was a very positive sale, with some great prices, a great average and a fantastic crowd,” commented Cavan Equestrian Centre’s Stuart Clarke. “We were also delighted to see Trevor and Jill Gaffney’s Freestyling Farms in America supporting us yet again. A Sligo man, Trevor still retains his connections here in Ireland and we hope to see him in person next year.”