COSHLA Stud is located on Boreen Sprat in Coshla, Athenry, Co Galway and, more recently, also has an overseas location in Bath, England about 10 miles from Badminton.

I grew up in Coshla, of course, on a small dairy farm and horses were around from the word go. Dad, Mícheál, always kept a hunt horse or two, a few “half-bred” and Connemara mares and various stallions over the years.

Most weekends saw us on the road to one show or another and, with horses and ponies simultaneously in different rings, I had to learn the ropes quickly. We ran a show jumping gymkhana in Coshla every year and were also heavily involved in Athenry Show.

Early years in the 1970s saw ponies like Coshla Bobby (Carna Bobby x Cregmore Dun) and Coshla Hero (Hillside Hero x Aura Dun) exported to France as stallions to play their role in that daughter society. Even today, there are Coshla ponies and horses in most parts of Europe and the USA.

I got my first Connemara pony, Sprat Lady (Kilgreaney Lad x Dun Aengus), as a foal with my dad from the Finn brothers in Athenry. She went on to be a Clifden Archbishops Cup winner and bred a line of ponies that included RDS 138cm and 148cm show jumping winners and a French Grand Prix winner.

Meanwhile, the horses were bred with 80%+ thoroughbred for the show ring and ultimately for show jumping and eventing.

The late ‘80s saw me move to Dublin to study and follow a career in the tech industry that took me all over the world. At that point, Dad did less showing and became more involved in judging and also with the performance committee of the CPBS council.

Sadly, Dad passed away in early 2020 and pandemic restrictions led to needing to sell the youngstock and most of the mares.

With the legacy of the ‘Coshla’ name, three remaining pony mares, very selective stallion matching and the principles of breeding talent, temperament and type, we have rebuilt our broodmare base to breed what we believe are top quality Connemara sport ponies fit to challenge in any sphere.

I still love a good class of show ponies but am more focused now on the job they do longer term.

The Coshla Stud-bred Coshla Paddy and Ruben Foley, winner of the 148cm six/seven-year-old RDS qualifier at Barnadown in June 2024 \ Laurence Dunne Jumpinaction.net

1. Proudest breeder moment?

Every time I see or hear of a pony or horse from our Coshla mares making an impact for someone. This can be like the pony [Shannon’s Joy] that won the Nations Cup Grand Prix in Linz, Austria last week, but can also be a pony giving a child a great introduction to the equine world.

2. How many broodmares do you have?

More than I should have… We have some older mares set to retire and have been replacing them and the ultimate goal is five of the best mares we can find/breed. I feel really fortunate to have a group of mares at the moment who not only have great performance pedigrees, but who also have either siblings or progeny performing at a really high level.

Some examples are White Hill (Mac Owen x Coosheen Stormboy), the dam of Shannon’s Joy, a two-time European show jumping finalist and winner of multiple 1.30m classes, including last week’s FEI Nations Cup Grand Prix in Linz, Austria with UK rider Daisy Day.

Then there’s Coshla Lucy (Drimcong Owen x Westside Mirah), a sister of prolific eventer Coshla Sparrow (Bobby Sparrow Blue x Westside Mirah) and dam of Coshla Paddy, RDS 148cm six/seven-year-old finalist last year and ridden by Ruben Foley.

Coshla Jane (Park Ronan x Ormond Bobby) is the dam of British show jumping pony Coshla Philippa, ridden by Amelie Bearman, sister of F1 driver Oliver Bearman. We also have a couple of sisters of FEI 1.30m national team ponies.

3. Badminton 2025 - impressions?

We always hope for an Irish-bred win and Cooley Rosalent went really close. It was also great to see Austin O’Connor take third place.

We live nine miles from Badminton and try to make it for at least the cross-country phase each year. I’ve always been fascinated by the eventers… the decathletes of the horse world who have to be good at everything.

We’ve never bred a Badminton horse (maybe a goal for the future) although we did have a Barbury International novice winner in 2022: Cu Chulainn (Watermill Swatch x Colourfield) ridden by Italian team rider Vittoria Panizzon. I was glad to see her FEI appeal upheld last week.

4. “Fools breed foals for wise men to buy.” Agree/disagree?

Probably true! If you could line me up some of those wise men, I’ll be happy to help them buy some more.

It is true you can buy exactly what you want and often cheaper than the total cost of producing that foal. However, if that foal goes on to do something significant later in its career, I believe the buzz the breeder gets far exceeds that of someone who just bought the foal.

5. Famous horse/pony you would like to have bred?

For a Connemara stallion: Ashfield Bobby Sparrow or Westside Mirah and for a mare: Coosheen Nutmeg or Gloves Misty.

6. Prefixes, your thoughts?

Prefixes are essential for traceability or even for tracking past ponies or horses in the social media galaxy. Too often, I’ve seen them modified with producer prefixes or just replaced. The better the horse or pony, the more likely it seems to be.

7. How do you market your horses?

I use the internet. It’s tricky though… If you don’t produce them as a breeder, you are incredibly dependent on the youngstock finding the right producer to tap their potential.

I’m convinced some of the most talented stock I’ve bred never found that opportunity and nothing markets horses or ponies like older siblings achieving success.

A recent example is a pony called Coshla Bob (Westonhouse Straboe Bobby x Coshla Eithne) turning up in Sweden this year and jumping at 1.20m there after spending years in France as a Pony Club mount.

8. It takes a team. Who’s on yours?

The whole family really; my long-suffering wife Sammy who loves horses but hates the stress of foaling season, my son Hal (24) and daughter Freya (21) but the real partner-in-crime is probably my youngest daughter Hope (18). In Galway, my sister Ethna still likes to get involved and my cousin Pat Higgins is a major part of the team.

Add to this all the vets, transporters, fellow breeders, friends and the CPBS who create a matrix of support for each other that enables us all to keep going.

9. Breeding/owning horses/Connemaras would you do it all again?

Not sure I ever stopped! Even when I was a global nomad.

10. “Horse-bred ponies”. What’s the verdict?

In an era where competitive show jumping has become more of the norm, it’s difficult to strive to breed Connemaras who can compete, but year after year they do. And for rideability and longevity they are difficult to beat.

If you can breed them, they have potential to breed further generations unlike the more unpredictable ‘horse ponies’.

I feel it might be time to have a supported initiative for breeders of those very top Connemaras to keep that outstanding ‘Connemara Plus’ gene pool for further generations of Nations Cup pony teams.