Creating the best value for syndicate owners: how we price our shares

When the catalogue dropped for the one day Tattersalls March sale there was one lot that really caught out eye. Lot 67 – an unraced daughter of the Champion Sea The Stars out of a stakes placed Manduro mare from the family of our very own Ellen Kelly. The logic? We wouldn’t be able to buy a type like her at the upcoming store sales for anywhere near her price and we’d have to give many multiples of what we paid if we were to try buy her as a yearling. So for 28,000gns we simply couldn’t leave her behind.

As a physical she is very much in the shape of a lovely jumping prospect. She appears to have taken the best bits of both of her sires with her big deep girth really grabbing the eye. The beauty of buying from HH Sheikh Mohammed’s Godolphin Stables is that there is full transparency when selling so we get a glance at the horses entire history. We also have some very good friends in the Godolphin set up and she was highly recommend as a lovely jumps prospect.

The pandemic gave us many things, mainly bad, but some good. One of the main positives that came from the pandemic was the adaptation of online sales and buying. Given our busy lives its very difficult for Jack or I to attend every single sale in the calendar year. We go through pretty much every catalogue that comes out so we can spot opportunities such as Eastern Whisper when they come along. With pictures, videos and notes from Godolphin it helps us make an educated decision from afar whilst getting a bit of assistance from friends on the ground as a second opinion. It also helps when it’s a family we know well.

Ellen Kelly who is in training with Willie Mullins is out of an Authorized half sister to Eastern Whispers dam, Jolify. Ellen is nearing a debut and according to an update from Patrick Mullins we’ll be hopefully anticipating her debut in the coming weeks hopefully providing us with a timely pedigree update! We haven’t decided a trainer as of yet but we’d love your input. If you’d like to register your interest please do so at the button below.

Not Above Murphy’s Law

Murphy’s Law states that anything that can go wrong will go wrong and that is exactly what happened to debutant Far Above The Law in Chelmsford on Friday. He stumbled out of the stalls and was rushed up on heels ultimately lighting him up and racing completely the wrong way around. He had nowhere to go and was lucky not to come down. His race was over by the time he got to the bend and he coasted home to finish 4th. He’s still a colt of considerable ability and we’ll look to get him back on track in the coming weeks.

C’est magnifique

Far Beyond put in an eye catching piece of work on the Chantilly turf during the week receiving high praise from his trainer, Tim Donworth. Nearest the camera in the first group of four he was hitting the line hard after a 4f breeze showing a beautiful attitude and stride length.

Blink and you’ll miss him 🚀 Far Beyond (near side) building nicely towards an April debut with @TimDonworth94 pic.twitter.com/PPeBgqPpwP

— Syndicates.Racing (@SyndicatesHQ) March 31, 2024

Tim was quoted as saying “he’s a nice horse, precocious. Still learning his job, still needs to get more balanced but if he keeps going the way he’s going and we have no problems he’d be ready to go to the races after two more breezes. April, maybe 3rd or 4th week. I think we’re in a good spot with him, he’s an early type, he’s pretty quick and shouldn’t have any problem winning a 2yo race with him. Couldn’t be any happier with him, I think we’re in a good spot and I’m very, very happy with him.” High praise from his young trainer and we can’t wait to take aim at some of those lucrative French prizepots.

Jeu St Eloi’s stock continues meteoric rise

Barely a week goes past at this stage that there’s not a mention of Rathbarry new boy Jeu St Eloi. Alex Elliot and Nicolas Bertran de Balanda, two of the sharpest minds in the game who have teamed up to purchase the likes of Stayers Hurdle winner Teahupoo, Gold Cup Champion A Plus Tard and Grade 2 Juvenile Kala Conti, were on the scoreboard for the Arqana Online sale bringing a session topping €300,000 winning bid for the 4yo Kilgame.

Bred by the Cypres family the Jeu St Eloi gelding was second on his only start in France for the same connections who produced Teahupoo. He’ll likely be for either Cheveley Park of Robcour and is a name to keep an eye out for in the future. It continues a good spell for the sire after his 4yo filly, Kargese, ran a stormer to be 2nd in the Grade 1 Triumph Hurdle at the Festival.

We have a knack of getting in on a sire just before they get very hot or proven sires who have hit a dip before they resurge. We managed to secure the only filly by Jeu St Eloi for sale at public auction last year and in my opinion she’s up there as one of the best physicals we have ever purchased. Throw King Willie into the mix and it truly is a mouth watering combination for the unbeaten team.

Thank you

Thanks for reading. We’re in for a hugely busy Spring over both codes by the looks of things so if there’s anything we can do for you please do get in touch john@syndicates.racing.