A handful of trainers can hit it with the big guys at the major yearling sales. Others have to operate in the margins, sniffing out a bargain at smaller auctions. And others, like the boys and girls from the bush, often have to try a third way. Riverina trainer Gary Colvin likes to take a... Read More

In the space of 80 minutes one day at Randwick a few years back, descendants of remarkable blue hen Denise’s Joy won three races in a row. That’s fairly astounding. But wait, there’s more. One of them was a Group 2. The next two were Group 1s. Jeez, Denise. No need to show off. That... Read More

Breeding, as we know, is all about meticulous planning, searching through the generations for that magical mix of the heavenly connections, and matching mare with stallion on type. And then there’s Yonce. Sometimes fortune favours the brave, and sometimes there’s dumb luck. This budding star of the Australian turf, the mare who’s won six from... Read More

There are some extraordinary figures behind Newmarket Handicap (Gr 1, 1200m) winner Roch ’N’ Horse (Per Incanto), and we don’t just mean her breeders, Little Avondale Stud’s Sam and Catriona Williams. For a starting point there’s the starting price – the classic hundred-to-one in the old school, making the five-year-old daughter of Per Incanto (Street... Read More

With a second Group 1 in Saturday’s Canterbury Stakes (Gr 1, 1300m), outstanding mare Forbidden Love (All Too Hard) added another highlight to a twisting, multi-national breeding tale which has taken in England, Argentina, the USA – and even a dash of Scandinavia. The four-year-old, who broke through at the top level a year ago... Read More