A Mystic connection rekindles Star partnership

Brett Howard of Randwick Bloodstock insists his Tasmanian Yearling Sale cameo is just a temporary return and he’s happy to make the 2026 auction at Quercus Park his farewell appearance.  

He rekindled the successful partnership with Star Thoroughbreds for one sale only and the pair purchased four horses, highlighted by a $100,000 three-quarter sister to Mystic Journey.

The Needs Further filly is out of Oh So Gold, a half-sister to Group 1 winner Mystic Journey.

Having sourced stakes-winning Needs Further horses Deroche, Durazzo and Mazzini for Denise Martin in the past few years, Howard hopes he may have found another gem from a sire which he brought to Tasmania.

“I think she was right up there with Deroche on type. Deroche is probably the benchmark, in terms of these fillies, and I think this filly was right up there, equivalent to a filly like that,” he said.

“She was a tall filly, but she was so well balanced and had beautiful substance, a lovely deep girth on her, good brain, good bone, the conformation was good. She was a hard filly not to like.”

Given Mystic Journey’s breeding career is off and running at Northern Farm in Japan, the possible residual value was another factor in Howard’s decision.

Martin said she was rapt to have secured the filly with the involvement of Howard.

“When Brett told me that he wanted to retire at the end of last year, Tasmania was the first place I thought of. I thought, ‘well, we can’t go there anymore’” she joked.

“But he very kindly came back to say that he and Rachel would love to come down and be involved, and it couldn’t have been better. We love the filly. As Brett said, she’s a big, rangy filly, in the same way as Invincibella was when I bought her as a yearling.

“So, we’re very happy to buy a filly of this quality, with a great page, and fingers crossed we can have ongoing success as we’ve had the last couple of years here with Brett’s input very much a big part of that success.”

Howard’s Randwick Bloodstock and Star Thoroughbreds also purchased a Needs Further filly out of Fuji Spirit for $67,500, a Needs Further colt out Gee Gees Pure Gold for $87,500 and a Stratosphere filly for $45,000.