Skilled: Surprisingly Good Value

Looking for value in Australia's saturated stallion market can sometimes feel like searching for a needle in a haystack. One farm with a better reputation than most for delivering breeders value is Darley and their second season sire Skilled (Commands - Dextrous by Quest For Fame) looks well priced this year at a service fee of AUS $6,600.

For a stallion with the record of Commands it's surprising to realise that Skilled is his first group 1 winning son to retire to stud. The winner of the Group 1 AJC Champagne Stakes defeating four group 1 winners; only a nose and a half head seperated Skilled from further group 1 success in the AJC Sires Produce and the Randwick Guineas respectively.

Skilled was retired at the end of his three-year-old season with a record of three wins and seven minor placings from 18 starts for career earnings of AUS $581,000.

Dextrous, the dam of Skilled is a group 2 winning daughter of Quest For Fame. From just five foals of racing age, Dextrous has already left Ambidexter, a full brother to Skilled, who won the Group 2 Theo Marks Stakes and finished runner-up to Fat Al in last year's Group 1 Epsom Handicap. And her two-year-old Exceed And Excell colt Sidestep won this season's Group 2 Pago Pago Stakes and was runner-up in the Group 1 Golden Slipper to Overreach.

Skilled's third dam is a half sister to the great racemare Emancipation. Other prominent members of the family include group one winners Virage De Fortune, Rumya and Railings, as well as recent Group 2 Travis Stakes winner Pimms Time.

Skilled's performances in the proven stallion making cauldron of Australia's two-year-old Triple Crown, combined with a pedigree containing the male line power of Danehill and a quality stakes producing distaff tracing to Emancipation, make him one of the better value for money options in the Australian stallion market this season.

To put it into perspective: what would a winner of a leg of Australia's two-year-old Triple Crown with a commercial pedigree such as Skilled's stand for in N.Z.?

A good friend has acquired a service to Skilled and is interested in doing a foal share for the new season. If anyone would like more information they can email me on john.duncan@ihug.co.nz