One of the final yearlings of the day took home the biggest price tag of $150,000 at this year's Magic Millions Yearling Sale.
It was a big day at Carrick for Tasmanian breeders, with the top six yearlings selling for more than the biggest sale in 2020.
Carrick's Armidale Stud pipped the post for the biggest sale with its lot 104 colt, sired by racehorse Impending and damed by racehorse Dream Food. It was sold for $150,000 to CRT Racing.
Next up was Hagley's Alva Stud and its lot five filly, sold for $120,000 to Vandyke Racing. The yearling's sire was Deep Field and dam was Medusa.
Alva Stud breeder Catherine Hills said it was great for the market to recognise the quality filly, which was born in the second-half of 2019.
"It was just a wonderful feeling to have everything all come together," she said.
"Because there are so many things that can go astray along the way."
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Ms Hills also bred Still a Star, a mare purchased for $13,000 as a filly and has gone on to win her owners more than $411,000 in prize money.
She had six yearlings listed in this year's sale, five with the stud and one with a private client.
The Hagley breeder thanked her team and said mainland buyers were beginning to recognise the perfect conditions in Tasmania for horse breeding.
"We've got the perfect climate, location, soil, all the right things to breed champions as proven with some of the champions that we have bred," Ms Hills said.
"I think the mainland market is recognising that now."
In 2020, the highest priced yearling sold for $95,000, with the average price for the 112 sold reaching $30,441. However, in 2021 the average price for the 94 yearlings sold rose to $35,872 and six yearlings sold for more than $95,000.
The gross price of sale reached $3,379,000 in 2020 with 112 yearlings sold and just beat the 2021 figure of $3,372,000 with 94 yearlings sold.
Magic Millions managing director Barry Bowditch said with the yearling so well received in the market, it gave confidence the industry would continue to thrive in the state.
"To come back to Tasmania and again take the sale to a new benchmark with an outstanding average, record gross and healthy trade is fantastic," he said.
"For the Tasmanian breeders who continue to support this sale it's a tremendous result. Having a record number of six figure horses is a huge achievement for the sale and having participation from both local and interstate buyers was great to see."
The Armidale Stud also sold the third highest yearling with its lot 68 colt at $110,000, by sire Alpine Eagle and dam Testamarriage.
Isobel Cootes
Sports reporter at The Canberra Times. A Novocastrian with a passion for football (or soccer as they call it in the capital) via The Examiner and The Port Lincoln Times.
Sports reporter at The Canberra Times. A Novocastrian with a passion for football (or soccer as they call it in the capital) via The Examiner and The Port Lincoln Times.
