The St Leger Festival Sales, held under lights at the DBS Sales Complex following racing at Doncaster on the first two days of the St Leger meeting, returned a solid trade for the horses on offer and returned an average price of £8,198 that was coupled with a clearance rate of 70%.

A son of Haafd realised the highest price of the two days when selling to Kevin Ryan for £35,000. The half brother to the multiple Listed winning Party Boss was offered by Mocklershill Stables and is out of a half sister to the Group 3 winning Passion For Life. There was plenty of interest for the March born offering, with Ed Sackville bidding with Michael Owen and Tom Dascombe, but it was Ross Doyle and Richard Hannon Jnr who made the biggest play for the colt before the hammer came down in favour Ryan.

Bobby O'Ryan was forced to pay the second highest price of the two days when successfully bidding for a colt from the first crop of Sleeping Indian. Consigned by Cloverdale Bloodstock, the March born colt is out of an own sister to the Listed placed Salcombe and a half brother to the Listed winning Polzeath and attracted bidding from around the ring before the hammer came down in favour of O'Ryan at £25,000.

A Striking Ambition filly offered by Trickledown Stud was always thought to be popular when coming under the hammer and did not disappoint her connections. She attracted bids from around the pavilion but it was Rod Millman who was left to fight it out with Ed Sackville, who was bidding on behalf of Tom Dascombe, before the hammer came down in favour of the Kern/Lillingston agent at £24,000.

Harry Beeby looks for a final bid before the hammer comes down at £24,000 for Lot number 100

Ballyhane consigned two colts that realised over £20,000. A racey son of Captain Rio realised £22,000 when bought by Tim Easterby whilst an Exceed and Excel colt from the speedy family of Resplendent Glory was bought by R O'Sheen bloodstock for £20,000.

The Ballyhane consigned Exceed and Excel colt realised £20,000

Following the conclusion of the sale, DBS managing Director Henry Beeby said:

'Our comments of two weeks ago following the St Leger Yearling Sales certainly rang true again tonight and this end of the market is where it was always going to be the hardest work in the current economic climate.

Again the clearance rate is of some comfort but again the statistics tell us that the middle market horse is the type most affected when money is scarcer. Quality will always sell and we had plenty of interest for the most popular lots but further down the scale it was tough. And again Day 1 of the sale felt and was stronger than the second session which is something of a mystery as they were catalogued to be even.

There is no denying or disguising the hard facts but we are more than confident that the St Leger Festival Sales will continue its excellent race track results next year and we will look back on this sale as providing real value. But for the time being it is very much a buyers market particularly in the sub £20,000 division although I would continue to urge a positive and pragmatic approach as the best way to get us through these tougher times.

It may be that we will revisit the format of this sale in due course but we will watch the remaining yearling sales this autumn with great interest before making any finite decisions.'

Click here to view the reults