Derryn’s coming-of-age headlines big season for Grangewilliam
Richard Edmunds - Raceform • August 9th, 2025 10:00 AM • 5 min read
Grangewilliam Stud’s 2024-25 season began on a sad note with the loss of stalwart stallion Zed, but a successor stepped up to the plate and helped to make the ensuing 10 months some of the most successful in the Waitotara farm’s history.
Zed was put down in September following a bout of colic. With 26 stakes-winning progeny including champion mare Verry Elleegant and two other Group One winners, the 22-year-old left daunting shoes for the remainder of Grangewilliam’s stallion roster to try to fill. But Derryn picked up the baton with by far the best season of his career to date.
In his three previous seasons, Derryn had finished 139th on the 2021-22 New Zealand premiership with total progeny earnings of $72,255, then 57th in 2022-23 with $387,240 and 40thh in 2023-24 with $854,480.
The son of Hinchinbrook took a quantum leap in 2024-25, rising to eighth with more than $2.23 million in progeny earnings. His 24 winners in New Zealand were headed by top-class three-year-old filly Leica Lucy, who won the Gr. 1 New Zealand Oaks, Gr. 2 Lowland Stakes, Gr. 2 David & Karyn Ellis Fillies’ Classic, Gr. 3 Desert Gold Stakes and Gr. 3 Eulogy Stakes. Her five wins in the 11-race New Zealand Bloodstock Filly of the Year Series made her the clear-cut winner of the prestigious competition.
Derryn gelding Doctor Askar played a notable supporting role with victories in the Gr. 3 Easter Handicap and Listed Flying Handicap, while Spencer won the Gr. 3 Spring Sprint.
Derryn’s breakthrough was part of a noteworthy Group One haul for the Grangewilliam roster this season. Zed was represented by Ladies Man in the Mufhasa Classic (Captain Cook Stakes), while The Bold One sired the Arrowfield Stud Plate winner One Bold Cat. The remaining stallion at Grangewilliam, newcomer Hilal, will have his first foals arriving this spring.
“Derryn had a Group One winner, The Bold One had a Group One winner and Zed had a Group One winner,” Mark Corcoran told RaceForm. “Three Group One winners sired by three different stallions on our roster is a bit of an unusual achievement and one I’m not sure we’ll be repeating any time soon. So it’s been a very rewarding season in terms of our results on the racetrack.”
Corcoran takes particular satisfaction from Derryn’s rise to prominence, which includes finishing second behind Savabeel and ahead of Proisir, on the 2024-25 Sires of Three-Year-Olds table.
“He’s certainly gone to a new level and has really stamped himself as a quality sire, obviously headed by an outstanding three-year-old filly in Leica Lucy,” he said. “He’s emerged as our obvious successor to Zed.
“He didn’t serve a huge book last year, because he was in a bit of a wait and see stage of his career. But he’s kicked on now and done a fantastic job, so he’ll get a few more mares this year.
“He’s got real versatility as well. His progeny are winning all over the place, on all sorts of tracks and from sprint distances up to 2000 metres and beyond. He had Spencer and Doctor Askar over 1400 to 1600 metres, and obviously Leica Lucy in the Oaks. He’s even had a winner over jumps this season (Georgian Warrior), so you can’t accuse him of being one-dimensional.
“They’re good, tough, sound horses and they’re really doing the job. Derryn has just needed a little bit of time, but he’s on his way now.”
That distance versatility of Derryn’s progeny contrasts with his own racing career, which produced three wins between 1000 and 1200 metres including the Gr. 2 Arrowfield 3YO Sprint and Listed Darby Munro Stakes. He also placed in the 1200-metre Gr. 1 Doomben 10,000.
Derryn’s success this season has brought an understandable increase in his service fee from $5,000 to $7,500 plus GST.
“He’s been very good value the whole way through,” Corcoran said. “We didn’t want to go silly now and overprice him. But we’re showing a bit of faith in the horse, which he’s shown that he deserves.”
The support of small-scale breeders has underpinned the Grangewilliam business over the years, most notably with the late Don Goodwin, whose long line of horses bred from Zed included the great mare Verry Elleegant. That trend has continued with Derryn’s standout daughter Leica Lucy, bred by Taranaki couple Heather and Peter Crofskey.
“We’re very grateful for the huge support our stallions receive from all those breeders, and we get a lot of pleasure from seeing their success,” Corcoran said. “A lot of those long-time supporters shifted from Derryn to Hilal last year – they’d been to Derryn before and were keen to try the new horse. But the way Derryn’s been going, I’m sure there will be a swing back in his favour this season.”
Corcoran is eagerly awaiting the arrival of the first crop of Hilal’s foals. He was already excited about the Fastnet Rock stallion’s prospects, and his half-sister Marhoona’s victory in the Gr. 1 Golden Slipper earlier this year only added to that anticipation.
“Hilal had 137 mares in his first book and he’s a lovely horse,” Corcoran said. “Everyone who’s come and seen him has been impressed. Just about everyone who’s looked at the horse has booked a mare to him.
“Marhoona winning the Slipper was obviously a massive boost to his pedigree. It was already fantastic, but having one of Australia’s most prestigious races pop up under the first dam takes it to another level.”
Hilal will stand for $8,000 in the new season, while The Bold One completes the line-up with his $5,000 service fee. He is the sire of 34 winners from just 61 runners, with Group One winner Ladies Man backed up by Wellington Cup winner Mary Louise, Australian black-type winner Bold Mac and Group Three placegetter The Fearless One.
“He struggles for numbers, but he chips away really well,” Corcoran said. “He’s had a Group One winner and he consistently leaves those good, hardy, tough horses. He’s got enough of them out there. They’ll keep chipping away and will continue to pop up in the winners’ circle.”
