Andy Williams

With major racing taking place in Port Elizabeth this weekend we spoke to ANDY WILLIAMS about BELOVED BETTY, who takes part in the R350 000 Algoa Cup to be run over 2000m at Fairview on Sunday. Andy, and trainer Glen Kotzen, give her a great chance and she should give a good account of herself.  Andy Williams could be labelled a pioneer of South African bloodstock agents. He was in the forefront of agents, in the 80’s, making the trip to Australia to buy, mainly, yearlings. His trips, or they could possibly be called raids, were soon so successful that other agents, with their clients, were following in his footsteps. Andy did not restrict his buying to Australia but he also went to Britain and other places to find the best blood he could for his clients. He bought Foveros in Britain and not only did Forevos shine as a racehorse but became South Africa’s champion sire. Not afraid to take a chance Andy bought the great Rocket Man, who was by an unknown sire at the time. He sat with him for 9 months before deciding to send him to Pat Shaw to look for a buyer. The rest is history as Rocket Man earned the reputation as being, perhaps, the best horse in the world at the time. When this is read Andy will be in Singapore and then on to Auckland for the sales there. Andy Williams has been really successful but he has never lost the common touch, as may be witnessed when he visits some of his favourite watering holes around town and is enthusiastically greeted by all. Racing needs men of Andy’s calibre and we wish him well.   

What is your name and age?  Andy Williams and I am 65 years young.

What is your star sign and birthdate?  Aries. Born 25th March 1947.

Where were you born? Bristol U.K.

Where do you live?  Mount Edgecombe, Umhlanga.

Tell us about your family? I am married to Larianne and I have a daughter who lives in the U.K. I have three step children and four grandchildren.

Do you have a ‘nickname’? In the old days it was ‘Speedy’.

Favourite book? I am not a big reader but enjoy reading books on breeding and racing.

What are you currently reading?  The New Zealand catalogue on their “Ready to Run Sale” to be held at the end of November.

Favourite movie? Shawshank Redemption.

Favourite food? Pork sausage, mash and peas.

Favourite drink? Bacardi and tab.

Favourite music?  All the old 60-70 and 80s’ music.

Favourite sport? Playing golf and watching football.

Which is your favourite soccer team? Tottenham Hotspur. Have supported them since 1963 and have my own seat at White Hart Lane.

Favourite holiday destination? I have a few, but enjoy Bali and Thailand, also Croatia.

Who is the person you would most like to meet? Johnny Depp.

What is the quality you like most about yourself? I like to tell it as I see it and not beat around the bush, even if the risk exists that it might offend people.

As a young man, 11 years old in fact, you used to go to the stables at Newmarket with your step-father, Captain Byrne. Was it then that your desire to be involved with horses was born?  The seed was sown, at that early age.

You were brought up in Durban. Where did you attend school? St. Henry’s, Marist Brothers.

While at school did you follow horses and racing and did this interest interfere with your  school work?  Yes, to an extent. I used to watch from outside the course at Greyville, at the Peanut Ring.

What business were you involved in before starting to buy and sell horses on a full time basis?  I went into the airfreight business, and moved to Johannesburg in 1970. I went on to become the youngest sales manager in the world for this organization, which had 170 branches around the world.

Would you say that your friendship with Herman Brown (snr) was the reason for you getting your break into the bloodstock business?  Yes it was. Herman is a mine of information about owners and trainers and he taught me a lot.

You worked for a year for the late Chris Smith before going on your own. Chris was a legend in the game. What valuable lessons did you learn from him? Working with him, I learnt that I was capable of interacting with people of all levels and all walks of life.

To start with you bought and sold KZN horses to owners and trainers in the Cape and Gauteng. Was it always your ambition to eventually travel overseas in search of high quality bloodstock?  Yes, and the break came when Robin Scott invited me to go to the December Sales at Newmarket (UK) with him.

Would you consider meeting Clive Brittain, at a sale at Newmarket, to be one of the big breaks in your career as a bloodstock agent? Without a doubt. It probably shaped my career from then on.

At Clive Brittain’s stables you saw Foveros and fell in love with him. You immediately took an option on him and that was the start of a wonderful success story. Please tell us about Foveros’ success in South Africa? Apart from winning numerous feature races he was also a champion sire and a great broodmare sire.

In 1982 Foveros won the Met after winning the Germiston November Handicap, Hawaii Stakes and Queen’s Plate. Where did Foveros stand at stud and who owned him?  He stood at Jan de Klerk’s stud in the Cape for a few seasons and then moved to Scott Brothers for the rest of his life.

How much part did you play in Foveros’ mating or was that left to the breeder? That was left to the breeders.

At about the same time you brought over the great filly, Devon Air, who won the Republic Day, July, Gold Cup treble in 1984. How did you manage to scoop a horse of this class from the British? When I purchased her she had run in a group race at Ascot, the previous year, and had been beaten by Height Of Fashion, who ended up the champion filly of her year. I was present when she ran. The following year I was at the December sale and she was being sold, but she was still a maiden, which I could not believe, so I made an offer after the sale as she wasn’t sold. The offer was accepted and I bought her for Des and Robin Scott.

Some of your greatest success stories have come out of your travels to Australia. What made you decide to start buying in Australia when not many had seriously thought of the idea before? Firstly, it was because the pound had got so strong and secondly the Australian’s started bringing shuttle stallions into their country. As they breed Southern Hemisphere horses I decided to take a chance as we could not afford to purchase from Europe.

Why do you think Australian bred horses do so well in South Africa? They are reared professionally, with good bone and by champion stallions.

At the Magic Millions National Yearling Sale you bought Rocket Man for 60000 AUD for Mr Fred Crabbia. He went on to be recognized as one of the best racehorses in the world. What was it about him that made you buy him? He was an outstanding looking colt and he had a half-brother in South Africa, “Our Giant”. Being by Viscount, no one wanted him and I kept him for 9 months before sending him to Pat Shaw and asking him to find a buyer.

Did you ever travel overseas to watch him race?  Yes, on numerous occasions.

Did Rocket Man ever have any brothers or sisters, or near relatives, on the sales which you were tempted to buy? Pat and I purchased a colt by More Than Ready who was his half-brother and he went on to win races in Singapore. Unfortunately, he was never as good as Rocket Man.

Has Rocket Man had any relatives which have had a lot of success?  Other than Our Giant, I’m not sure.

You are one of the first to admit that there is a lot of luck involved in the bloodstock business. An example of this could be your purchase of Only A Pound. Tell us how this came about and the subsequent success of Only A Pound? When I travelled a lot to the U.K. I met a Lebanese doctor who owned him and wanted to sell him. We became very good friends and I bought him without a buyer. I then phoned an old friend. Owen Philpott, and told him what I had done. He said he would stand good for the money and that I must put the horse together when I got back to SA. I told him the horse was running the following week and that the stake money would be for us. After he won Owen decided to keep the horse and he went on to win 7 races in SA with the late Bertie Sage.

An owner you are very involved with is Mr Fred Crabbia. Apart from buying horses for him do you advise him on where to place his horses? No, that’s not my job. The only time that has happened was when I asked him to help Ivan Moore.

When buying horses here, or abroad, do you buy horses for buyers other than South Africans?  Yes, I have buyers from all over the world.

When looking for horses to buy do you select on bloodlines, and then look at them for conformation. Do you have a team helping you to do this and, if so, who are these people? I look at most horses at the sales. After that I then look at their pedigree to determine what value to place on the horse. I have a network of people that can view a horse on my behalf before I get to sales.  If they like the horses I will have a look at them myself.

Who were the first clients you bought for in Australia and are they still with you? I have many clients who have bought horses from me that are still with me. Unfortunately, one or two have since passed on. John Beekman and Des Scott would be ones who come to mind that are still with me.

Since you first went to Australia, on your buying trips, many more South African trainers and owners have followed your example. Do the South Africans ever get together to discuss what they would like to buy and decide beforehand which horses to bid on in order not to bid each other up unnecessarily? There were times when I used to take up to 30 clients and trainers over for the sales but as I am getting older I now just purchase and concentrate on a smaller group of select clients.

How many of your horses is Ivan Moore currently training? He has 7 horses of mine in training.

In 2011 Fighting Warrior won the Golden Horseshoe at Greyville. That was a win full of merit and his future seemed assured. Since then very little has been heard of him. What is the reason for this? He died of laminitis. We will never know how good he would have been.

Did you buy Ottimo? Yes, I bought him at the Magic Millions sales in Australia.

What convinced you to buy Ottimo? I like the stallion, Oratorio, and I thought Ottimo was a very nice horse.

Where does Oratorio stand? He stood in Ireland and Australia but from next year he will be standing at Avontuur Stud, Stellenbosch, where he will join the likes of Var.

This Sunday you have BELOVED BETTY running, in partnership with W.J Laird and M.E.Leaf, in the R350 000 Algoa Cup in Port Elizabeth. What chance do you give her? My trainer, Glen Kotzen, thinks she has an outstanding chance. We have always rated her and I am hoping that she will show just how good she is here.

How did you acquire a share in her? I was with Glen at a sale and he said he liked her and would like to buy her. I also liked her so Glen went ahead and bought her and I took a share in her.

How many horses do you own, either on your own or with partners? I have sold a lot recently but still have babies that are coming along and I have 30 horses in training.

How many different trainers do you have horses with? Sage, Moore, Rugg, Rivalland, Kotzen, Howells,Tarry, Snaith and Bosch.

As an owner do you like to become very involved with the horses’ progress and keep in constant contact with the trainer?  No, but I want the trainer to let me know how things are going at least once a month and prior to races.

Your job requires you to travel a great deal. Does your wife come along with you and how much interest does she take in the breeding business and in the sales?  She takes an interest and comes along to most sales. She is more involved with the admin side.

After many years as a bloodstock agent, all around the world, what would you say are some of the major changes you have seen in racing-especially in South Africa? That certain people are trying to monopolize the game but at the end of the day this game tames lions.

You have had many ‘highs’ in racing. What are some that stick out in your memory?  Winning the group 1 Golden Horseshoe with Fred Crabbia last July, as we are partners. Rocket Man’s wins and Foveros’ career. Palace Line and as you state, “Many Others.”

Do you have one particular memory or achievement that sticks out above all others?  Buying ‘Vance’ for next to nothing and sending him to Joe Soma. Between us we got the horse right and then won 7 races with him.

The saying goes, “Behind every successful man is an even more successful woman”. Does this saying apply to Andy Williams? Without a doubt. My wife should have more medals than a dictator!!!