Leading WA breeder Ellie Giles wasn’t in Melbourne or Perth on Saturday: she was too busy taking care of mares and foals.

 

She did however take time out to watch the telly as Man Booker won the G3 Northerly Stakes (1400m) at Ascot.  Although Ellie’s family has been breeding racehorses for three generations, it’s been a truly remarkable 18 months with four stakes horses coming off a relatively small base at Korilya Stud.

 

The Andrew Noblet-trained Silent Sedition (War Chant) won the G1 William Reid Stakes; Quilista (Scandal Keeper) won successive Group races in Sydney in the autumn, including the G2 Sapphire Stakes; Man Booker (Discorsi) has currently won 6 stakes races and Achernar Star (Gingerbread Man) resumed with a Bunbury win on October 13 after having previously run placings in the G1 Kingston Town Classic, G2 WA Guineas and G2 Karrakatta Plate.

 

Incredibly, all of them are by stallions who stand, or have been based, at Yarradale Stud. 

 

“It was great to see Man Booker win the Northerly,” Giles (pictured) said.  “I was with the owners at Moonee Valley to see Northerly win his first Cox Plate – ridden of course by WA jockey Damien Oliver! – and it’s terrific to win a race named in his honour.”

 

Yarradale Stud owner Ron Sayers had an interest in Northerly and, apart from all the thrills, the prizemoney would have been like sharing Lotto.  He won 19 races in Perth and the Eastern States for earnings over $9.34 million and this week is the anniversary of his memorable Caulfield Cup - Cox Plate double in 2002.

 

Sayers and the Yarradale team would also be chuffed to learn Silent Sedition (War Chant), Quilista (Scandal Keeper), Man Booker (Discorsi) and Achernar Star (Gingerbread Man) are the best runners in Australia for each of their sires.

 

Man Booker is by the Galileo stallion Discorsi from Danetime mare Morine who was bred by Wally and George Daly of Vega Magic fame.

 

“I’ve looked after a lot of the Daly horses over the years and, at one stage, I had Silent Sedition, Man Booker and Vega Magic all in the one stable!” Giles told Aushorse.  “Morine was only a small mare, whereas Discorsi was a leggy, very good looking stallion and, besides, the mating brought in that tremendous Galileo - Danehill cross.  It’s definitely worked in Man Booker’s favour.”

 

Unfortunately, both Discorsi and Morine have since died, but the mare’s last foal is Achernar Star.

 

After originally being passed in for $20,000 at the 2014 Perth Magic Millions, Man Booker was eventually sold to Dan Morton – trainer of Scenic Blast – for $25,000 at the Perth Winter Yearling Sale.  Two years on, Achernar Star was sold for $75,000 in Perth. Man Booker has won $919,080, while Achernar Star’s bank sits at $616,046.

 

Silent Sedition was knocked down for $45,000 as a yearling, went on to win over $1.1 million, and would be sold by her owners for $1.5 million at this year’s Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale, while Quilista ranks as one of the truly great sale ring bargains: sold for $10,000 as yearling and currently returning nearly $600,000 on the track.

 

“Korilya Stud is located at Busselton and I had up to 70 mares a decade or so ago, but was down to about 25 when Silent Sedition and co. came along,” Giles points out.  “I’ve scaled it right back to eight mares at the moment.”

 

After watching on as her leading lights went through the yearling sale ring fairly cheaply, Giles sold Silent Sedition’s dam, Fiorentina, for $850,000 at the 2018 Magic Millions National Broodmare Sale and will offer a couple of fillies by Mungrups Stud’s Group winning first season sire I’m All The Talk at the 2019 Perth Magic Millions Yearling Sale.

 

Giles also foaled down a War Chant filly from Brocky’s Ace last month.  The dam is a three quarter sister to Quilista – which will be sold in Perth in 2020.  One imagines it will sell for considerably more than $10,000!

 

 

MAN BOOKER / Photo: Western Racepix