The Curragh has proven to be an exceptional venue for the Red Lily Racing syndicate, delivering two significant victories across separate race meetings within a seven-day span that left members feeling extraordinarily fortunate.
We spoke with syndicate agent Brian O'Riordan to discuss the achievements and the narrative surrounding the syndicate's formation and operations.
Who's involved in the syndicate and how did it get started?
We made our first purchase for the syndicate about four years ago at the Goffs yearling sales, and that horse happened to be King Cuan. Originally the idea was to get forty people together to form the syndicate, but as it happened we filled the syndicate with twenty members which were all mainly family or friends. We had great luck with our first purchase King Cuan, he won three times for us including the Goffs Sportsman's at Naas which was worth €50,000 to the winner, he then backed that up a month later by winning the Irish EBF Auction Series Race Final at Naas again pocketing another €70,000 in prize money for the syndicate. We bought him for €27,000 at the yearling sale and he won us over €140,000 in prize money in our first season with our first horse, it was crazy! He then went on to win the Coolmore Sioux Nation Listed Concorde Stakes last Sunday. He’s been a magic horse for the syndicate.
Have you always been involved in horse racing?
I've always had an interest, I was bought up around the point-to-points, that's where I came from and it's all I knew. I've worked in bloodstock all my life and now I'm involved with Naas Racecourse as the Finance Manager.
What was the draw to Paddy Twomey as your choice of Trainer?
We've been friends for over twenty years now I’d say at this stage. He's one of the best in the business, and he's the key man in the whole syndicate operation. He's bought all the horses we've had, that have been involved in the syndicate, he would be prominent at the sales and would advise us on the type of horse we are looking for.
Is there a story behind the name and the colours for the syndicate?
I'm from Cork, so that's what the red stands for and I live in Kildare now, so that's where the Lily comes in, for the lily whites of Kildare. The colours happened to be a spare set we found, they were nice, and instead of paying for a set to be made and registered we thought we would make use of these ones instead. They have been very lucky for us over the past four years anyway!
What would you say the Ownership journey has brought you and the members?
It's opened up so many doors for us; we've made friends for life. We've done so much travelling through being involved in the syndicate, we've been to York, Ascot, we could be going to France at the end of the month all being well. We've travelled widely and socialised a hell of a lot over the past few years. I think Galway might have been the standout; we bought the winning trophy on tour around Galway town after winning the maiden in Galway with Trean this year. We made a lot of new friends that evening and a lot of fun was had.
Talk me through the Goffs Millions Success.
It was absolutely unbelievable. We obviously knew the Corbett’s well who were second in the race with Hi Corbett Court as they are owners with Paddy Twomey and the horse bought up the 1-2 in the race for Paddy. One of my syndicate members had actually worked for the Corbett’s back in the day, so that was a nice touch as well and they were all delighted for us. It just shows what a small world racing is. We fancied our chances with him on the day, we knew he was in good shape. I was only nervous when I saw the wall of horses in front of him 3 furlongs out, luckily Billy got the gap at the right time and won cosily in the end. It was a huge race to win with over €500,000 in prize money won, that was unbelievable for a syndicate, we paid €20,000 for him at the Goffs yearling sale, he's more than paid his way for the syndicate. The phone still hasn't stopped, I think I've done more interviews than Simon Harris this week!
Costs are a huge misconception around Ownership, could you tell me what the members expect?
I think it's all about having a group of people that you get along with that's number one priority. If you bought a horse for €40,000 you would sell the shares for €50,000 and have that €10,000 buffer fund sitting in the account that will cover any outside or unforeseen costs that might come down the line. We would then have a €3,000 budget for monthly training fees which allows to cover any eventuality. Depending on the cost of the horse, for example a 20-member syndicate each member would put in around €2,500 as an initial cost to cover the purchase of the horse and then each member would pay €150 on a monthly basis. Obviously, we have been lucky with our horses and the members would see a return on investment. Some syndicates let the money keep rolling, we prefer to split up the prize money, and each member gets their share at the end of the year.
What's the buzz been like in the syndicate?
Everyone is over the moon. There are twenty-seven members involved in the syndicate at a 10% or 5% share and I'd say sixteen of those have never owned a racehorse before. Trean would have been their first horse, and it’s safe to say they have had a ball with him this year! It's fantastic for everyone involved but it's special for all the members that are involved for the first time to have such a fantastic year, and they will be getting money back from the winnings as well.
What advice would you give to anyone thinking about getting involved in a syndicate?
It's an affordable way of getting involved in racehorse ownership, being part of a syndicate. But I would advise anyone to have the contract in place and all the paperwork done. A good agent is key to the whole workings of a syndicate, and it keeps the operation running smoothly, once all members are involved in the process and are kept up to date there isn't usually any issues. There's an expo at Goffs on January 7th & 8th 2027 organised by the ITBA which will have tradestands and talks and there will be representatives from different syndicates in attendance. It will be open to the public but it will be a good place to start for anyone thinking about getting involved in the industry.
If you're interested in exploring racehorse ownership opportunities and discovering the stories behind the sport, contact us on [email protected] to find out how to get involved.
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