THERE was a disappointingly small entry for the three open arena eventing classes, run in conjunction with the fourth leg of the 2023 Horse Sport Ireland eventing autumn development series, held at Wexford Equestrian last Saturday.

In the 1m competition, Cathal Daniels finished first and second, on his dressage scores, with two six-year-old mares of his own, CDS Bikni (31.75%) and Casallnetta PS (35). The winner, a home-bred grey, is by Good Luck VDL, out of the unraced Great Palm mare Callatra Lily, who Daniels competed at EI110 level.

The German-bred runner-up, who has 14 Showjumping Ireland points, is by Casallco, out of the Balou du Rouet mare Dalenetta.

Welsh native Lucy Morgan won the 90cms class on Jake, a five-year-old gelding by Flashpoint, out of a Burggraaf dam.

He has been slowly produced by Morgan this year, mainly jumping, but also schooling across country. According to owner Steve Smith, “he will be a lovely horse for next year if not sold”.

County Wicklow’s Sarah Curry won the 90cms class on her mother Emma’s thoroughbred gelding Barberton. This 2009 chesnut gelding by Johannesburg, who cost 100,000 guineas as a yearling, was unplaced in six runs on the flat when trained initially in Britain by Jeremy Noseda, and then in Co Meath by Paddy Rogers between August 2011 and July 2013.

Barberton was first produced on the Eventing Ireland scene in this country in 2016 by Michael McNally. For the following three seasons, he was campaigned by junior rider Kara Stanbridge, the combination finishing fourth in the 2019 EI100 (J) national championship. The chesnut appeared twice under Lucie Glynn the following season, but did little since then until Curry took over the ride this year, the new partnership competing under both EI and SJI rules.