SATURDAY, 24 FEBRUARY, 2018 SMALL BATCH SUCCESS 'SENSATIONAL' MILL REEF REMEMBERED ON HIS 50TH BIRTHDAY By Emma Berry FROM WOODCOTE STUD Visitors to the National Stud can't fail to notice John Skeaping's commemorative bronze of Mill Reef, who spent his entire stud career in Newmarket and is buried at the farm. Only those of a particularly stoic nature wouldn't be moved to tears by the words on the plinth of the lifesize statue, written by Mill Reef's owner-breeder Paul Mellon as part of his Gimcrack Speech given in 1970. They read as follows: Swift as a bird I flew down many a course. Princes, Lords, Commoners all sang my praise. In victory or defeat I played my part. Remember me, all men who love the Horse, If hearts and spirits flag in after days; Though small, I gave my all. I gave my heart. To watch a replay of Mill Reef's Gimcrack win is to understand at once why Mellon reached for the flight analogy. The only Barry and Fiona Reilly | Tattersalls movements made by jockey Geoff Lewis are two exaggerated glances over each shoulder, first right, then left, to ensure that By Tom Peacock no rival is closing in on Mill Reef, still barely out of a canter as he Most of racing=s bloodstock powerhouses will be well aware of crossed the line some 10 lengths ahead of subsequent champion the fertility of Barry and Fiona Reilly=s Woodcote Stud. It might sprinter Green God. come as more of a surprise to the casual observer that an Fifty years to the day after Mill Reef--a son of Never Bend and operation set on 70 acres just a mile and a half from Epsom the Princequillo mare Milan Mill, was born at Mellon's Rokeby town centre would be capable of producing six top-level Stables in Virginia on Feb. 23, 1968--his trainer Ian Balding was winners, with the genuine prospect of a seventh to come this in Newmarket to mark the opening of a temporary display at the year. The couple have turned Woodcote into a bespoke British National Heritage Centre for Horseracing & Sporting Art at breeding business over the last 29 years, producing small Palace House. batches of foals along traditional Classic lines whilst remaining Not quite 30 by the time Mill Reef was born and only five years profitable. Its biggest name so far is Kingston Hill (GB) into his tenure at Park House Stables when the yearling colt was (Mastercraftsman {Ire}), who finished second in the Derby just assigned to his yard at Kingsclere, Balding can be forgiven for up the road and won the G1 St Leger S in 2014. shedding a few tears himself while reminiscing about the horse With Kingston Hill at Coolmore and his dam no longer with us, who would define a training career that included such chief hopes now rest upon Poet=s Word (Ire) (Poet=s Voice {GB}), luminaries as Selkirk, Lochsong (GB), Tagula (Ire), and Mill Reef's runner-up in the G1 Qipco British S. and G1 Qipco Irish sons Glint Of Gold and Diamond Shoals. Cont. p4 Champion S. and a potential improver at five for Sir Michael Stoute, who has entered him for the Dubai Sheema Classic. Poet=s Word, who was known as >Parker= - Ait=s a nosy family,@ IN TDN AMERICA TODAY Barry Reilly explained - is out of Nashwan mare Whirly Bird (GB). TDN Q&A: JOSH RUBINSTEIN She was also bred by Woodcote out of Inchyre (GB) (Shirley David Ross has a Q&A with Josh Rubinstein, who has taken over Heights {GB}), part of a fine Oppenheimer family that Reilly had from Joe Harper as the president of the Del Mar Thoroughbred bought into. Club. Click or tap here to go straight to TDN America. TDN EUROPE/INTERNATIONAL • PAGE 2 OF 10 • THETDN.COM SATURDAY • 24 FEBRUARY, 2018 Small Batch Success From Woodcote Stud cont. from p1 All of a sudden, he takes a gun out and puts it on the desk. I AWhirly Bird was born very late and we found at the end of her don=t know if it was real or loaded but we had to be confident 2-year-old career she had little greenstick fractures in the and walk away.@ bottom of her fetlocks,@ Reilly said. AShe ended up going to Reilly has worked privately for John Magnier and had a Amanda Perrett, who managed her really well and she won five productive spell in the stud fencing business but was most on the bounce. She=s not a big mare, and there probably aren=t influenced by his first job for Charles Powell of Shanbally House many Nashwan mares around, but Parker was very different.@ Stud in County Tipperary. AHe was just beautiful, such a strong colt,@ he added. AFrom a sales point of view, we were going to Tattersalls in a good position as his half-sister Malabar (GB) (Raven=s Pass) had just won a Group 3. I did say to Fiona that I might end up bringing him home but the market for Poet=s Voice was incredible. Charlie Gordon-Watson gave 300,000gns for him and I think another at the sale reached 525,000 and hasn=t done much on the track. Sir Michael obviously rates him and it would be great if he could get that Group 1.@ Since Poet=s Word there has been a Kingman (GB) filly, who reached 200,000gns at Tattersalls Book 1. Whirly Bird is in foal to Banstead Manor=s stallion again. AI just think Kingman offers some value,@ he said. AIf there=s another stallion that has got the chance to be another Frankel, it=s him. The filly was lovely, she=s called Incharge and has gone The Woodcote Stud-bred Poet=s Word | racingfotos.com to Charlie Hills. She just could be the next star.@ Reilly, 61 this year, bounds around the stud with much the ABasically I=ve tried to base the farm on that; they had more same vigour as one imagines he did when he took it over from acreage but about 15 mares, a few yearlings and lots of good airline tycoon Freddie Laker. ones. He outperformed, he was self-taught dealer-cum-farmer and he taught me every single thing I know, I suppose.@ Reilly=s office is festooned with photographs of all his success I THINK KINGMAN OFFERS SOME stories. They include G1 Queen Elizabeth II S. winner Where Or When (Ire) (Danehill Dancer {Ire}), whom he pinhooked, and My VALUE. IF THERE’S A STALLION THAT Best Valentine (GB) (Try My Best), who landed the G1 Prix de HAS THE CHANCE TO BE ANOTHER l=Abbaye. Woodcote has kept many fillies to race and ultimately breed FRANKEL, IT’S HIM. from, through an enduring partnership with trainer Elie Barry Reilly Lellouche which began by chance. AWe bred Danseuse Du Soir (Ire) (Thatching {GB}), who was sold to the Wildensteins,@ he explained. AShe was originally bought by a French agent and was sent to Andre Fabre. He claimed he didn=t want her but to send him to the man down In the days before pedigree updates and results at the laptop the road, as his horses were always looking well.@ user=s fingertips, he would act as something of an equine bounty That man down the road, Lellouche, won the 1991 G1 Poule hunter, flying to Boston for the day to secure a horse for a client d=Essai des Pouliches and Prix de la Foret with her. or brokering a deal with travellers in a field. AThe year after, I couldn=t sell the sister, Danseuse Du Nord On another occasion, having located a well-bred mare who (Ire) Kahyasi {Ire}), so I sent her to Elie. I think I had 17 winners had resurfaced in Tel Aviv, his charge went missing in transit. with him, and six or seven got black-type of some description. AWe ended up going somewhere just a few miles away from AMy French isn=t very good and neither is his English but we the West Bank,@ he recalled. AThe guy knows what we=ve come somehow get along with sign language,@ Reilly explained of the for and says he wants 25,000 for her. We said >we don=t want to decorated trainer who announced his retirement this month. offend you but our valuation and yours are a long way apart=. Cont. p3 TDN EUROPE/INTERNATIONAL • PAGE 3 OF 10 • THETDN.COM SATURDAY • 24 FEBRUARY, 2018 Woodcote Stud cont. AI think it must have been difficult for him after the Wildenstein family stopped and you=re suddenly looking at all those empty boxes.@ He returned to the family, buying Danseuse Du Soir back, and she has produced the classy Scintillo (GB) (Fantastic Light) and Jumbajukiba (GB) (Barathea (Ire). Woodcote has also used its yellow and black silks in Britain regularly and can be optimistic about several homebred fillies. Thresholdofadream (Ire) (Camelot {GB}) is expected to be Vice President, International Operations much-improved for her debut in a back-end Newbury maiden Gary King while Lubinka (Ire) (Mastercraftsman {Ire}) could aim to end Twitter: @garykingTDN what has been a frustrating relationship with their local Epsom [email protected] course. + 1.732.320.0975 Most are sure that Inchila (GB) (Dylan Thomas {Ire}), who died International Editor after complications from an injury in the G2 Ribblesale S., would Kelsey Riley have been second rather than fourth to Taghrooda (GB) (Sea Twitter: @kelseynrileyTDN The Stars {Ire}) in the 2014 Oaks.