Strong Swettenham contingent at Oaklands

Swettenham yearling manager Tim Jones believes the Stud’s draft for the Inglis Melbourne Autumn Sale is the strongest since the Nagambie nursery started selling at the Autumn sale in 2009.

The Sale will be conducted at Oaklands Junction this Sunday and Monday, April 29 & 30.

The star graduate of Swettenham’s initial Autumn draft was Statue Of Liberty filly Broadway Harmony.  She made $18,000 before going on to win the Listed Dequetteville Stakes in Adelaide.

With the Autumn Sale being the last yearling auction conducted in Victoria for the year, Inglis introduced a supplementary section to the sale in 2011 to allow vendors a last minute opportunity to sell yearlings that had not been originally catalogued.

It proved very successful with two of the eight top priced lots being late inclusions into the catalogue.

This year, Swettenham will offer one of the better credentialed yearlings in the supplementary catalogue and, for that matter, the entire sale.

Lot 448 is the yearling in question and she is by Lonhro from the family of Might And Power and Mosheen.  Lonhro is Australia’s reigning champion sire and his latest crop includes Golden Slipper winner and champion 2YO elect Pierro.

Lot 48 is a Dash For Cash three-quarter brother-in-blood to the very tough Group 1 performer Bank Robber.  Peter Moody has this colt’s full brother in his care while Andrew Noblet’s very smart Econsul filly Trading Halt won at Sandown in April.  She is a half-sister to his dam Misura.

Lot 49 is a filly by Written Tycoon who was Australia’s Champion first-season sire in 2010-11.  The filly is from a half-sister to the dam of last Saturday’s Australian Oaks winner Streama.

Lot 99 is a Bianconi filly from Princess Poppi.  The dam is a half-sister to the ultra consistent galloper Chasm (Umatilla) who has won just under $800,000.  This flashy type is sure to catch the eye of all the good judges.

The Swettenham draft boasts a good spread of yearlings by up-and-coming and proven sires including Host, Econsul, Kaphero, Floral Pegasus, Hidden Dragon, Soldier’s Tale, Keep The Faith, Not a Single Doubt, Reset, Bianconi, Statue Of Liberty and Dash For Cash.

The 2011 Autumn sale averaged just over $11,500.  With the introduction of the new Vobis GOLD scheme next season with $20,000 bonuses on up to 350 races in Victoria, getting a positive financial return on an Autumn yearling becomes an attainable likelihood.

The majority of the 30 plus yearlings catalogued by Swettenham at the Autumn Sale are Super VOBIS qualified and eligible for Vobis GOLD.

Yearlings offered at the 2012 Inglis Melbourne Autumn Yearling Sale are also eligible for nomination into the $5 million Inglis Race Series, which includes the $100,000 Inglis Plate which is restricted to Melbourne Autumn Yearling Sale graduates.

For seasoned buyers as well as those looking to get into their first horse, an inspection of Swettenham’s Barn G consignment is a must at Oaklands Junctions this weekend.