WITH the Croker Cup back on the schedule, Ring 1 on Friday afternoon has now become a haven for many breeders. Immediately after The Irish Field Breeders Championship, the seven thoroughbred entries are set to parade before the judging of the Irish Draught stallion class, so once again ringside seats will be at a premium for the day.

Several changes have taken place in this year’s final with the RDS reducing the prize money, from €5,000 to €2,500 for this year’s winner. Special prizes will be awarded to the three highest-placed foals with a minimum of 60% thoroughbred blood in their pedigree, with an additional caveat being that the foals must be placed in the top eight to qualify.

This year’s judges are Joachim Winter from Germany and Marcel Beukers from The Netherlands, who will assess 18 finalists from six qualifier held around the country since June.

Armagh

Southern raiders took the three qualifying places at the first opportunity at Armagh and all three mares from the northern qualifier are previous finalists.

Armagh is a lucky hunting ground for John & Mary Margaret Roche’s Assagart My Only Hope, their 2014 and 2017 winning mare. By Big Sink Hope and going back to the Anglo-Arabian sire Filice de Champeix, she has a filly foal at foot, another by the Holsteiner, Castleforbes Lord Lancer. This makes Assagart Hopes And Desires, their latest hope, a full-sister to their previous Dublin final winning foals, Assagart Lord Lancer and Assagart High Hopes.

Also securing an early ticket was Derry Rothwell’s Greenhall Catwalk with her second foal by Dignified Van’t Zorgvliet. Third last year on her Breeders Championship debut, Greenhall Catwalk is by the Dutch-bred Mermus R and out of Millennium Cruise, the only finalist to ever win the Dublin final as a foal and dam.

Black Tie was not only a previous Breeders’ Championship finalist for her former owner Kate McMahon but was also the ridden hunter mare reserve champion with her daughter Amory in 2011. Now with the Glynn family in Athlone, the Silvano mare was another to secure her Dublin place at the outset with her Sligo Candy Boy colt foal, Crannaghmore Candy.

Cork Summer Show

Down to Cork next where the Rothwell tally of Dublin finalists increased to two when show ring newcomer Greenhall Kay and her foal by the Tinahely family’s home-bred stallion Greenhall (by Crosstown Dancer out of the prolific Cailin Deas) qualified here. Her name is a nod to Kay Bowe whose husband Jay stood Greenhall Kay’s sire Ghareeb, and she is a full-sister to Rodney Powell’s three-star event horse Greenhall Jay.

Declan Daly qualified again here with his mare Floating Valley, by Brookfield Floating Lux. Sixth in last year’s final with another of her foals by the local thoroughbred Munther, she has consistently been in the Breeders’ Championship ribbons, having also placed third in 2016. Her Lux Z sire is a full-brother to Kieran O’Gorman’s successful Breeders’ Championship winning foal duo back in 2009 and 2010.

Also booking another Breeders’ Championship appearance was Kieran Fahey’s consistent winner Kings Master mare Madame Noir, the Coote Cup broodmare reserve champion in 2015. Her Womanizer colt foal was the champion foal at Cork, matched that day by his dam’s broodmare title win.

Gorey

The Wexford show campaigned hard to get their Breeders’ Championship qualifier back and at the halfway point, three more combinations qualified here, headed by Margaret Jeffares’s Ballykelly Notalot. The only filly to win the All Ireland three-year-old final at Bannow & Rathangan in her youngstock days with Rebecca Monahan, the Lancelot mare returns to Dublin where she was also the young horse champion in her Bannow epic year (2015) and with her O.B.O.S Quality colt.

Longtime showing supporter, Waterford man Richard Drohan’s hopes are pinned on Lucy’s Princess, by the 2005 Croker Cup champion Power Blade. Her latest foal is by former Stallion Owners Society Michael Murphy’s thoroughbred stallion Move To Strike. Lucy’s Princess is one of 14 previous mare finalists in this year’s field.

Another making a return to Ring 1 is Patrick Wafer’s Parkmore Evita. The 2017 Coote Cup broodmare champion took a year off but is now back in the show ring with her Tyson colt, champion foal that same day at Gorey. Her Carnew owner-breeder won the Dublin final back in 1990 with his Parkmore Jewel and Parkmore Chance, the sole Irish Draught combination to win the Breeders’ Championship.

Athlone

Topping the midlands qualifier was John Mulconroy’s Able Mistress, bred by his Tulla neighbour and horseman Willie Boland. From his famous ‘Chip’ line, the grey discovery is a relative newcomer to the showring having made her Dublin debut last year and has a Future Trend filly foal at foot. The mare will be shown by John’s daughter-in-law Caoimhe McParland, whose mother Caroline led Violet Scott’s winning mare Ballysheil Queen in the 1989 final.

Tipperary exhibitors have been longtime supporters of the Breeders’ Championship and flying the Premier County flag next Friday is the second from the Athlone line-up. A delighted Adrian Shoer qualified his first-time finalist Castlecomer Clover, a six-year-old mare by Castlecomer Q and her Chacoa colt foal.

Another former champion looking to reclaim her title is the third of the Athlone combinations and the 2012 Breeders Championship winning mare, Derry Rothwell’s Greenhall Dot. A half-sister to Greenhall Diamond Lady, the dam of last year’s Laidlaw Cup champion Greenhall Treasure Island, she is the second of their qualified trio with a Dignified Van’t Zorgvliet foal at foot.

Charleville

The penultimate qualifier was at this major North Cork fixture where Stephen Culliney’s Kilkeany Mystic booked another Dublin trip with a foal at foot by Lord Lancer. A model of consistency for her Banner County owner, the Ghareeb mare earned her Kilkenny breeder Margaret Walsh a Horse Sport Ireland breeders award in 2015.

The most recent HSI show mare of the year award (2018) was won by the next in the Charleville line-up, P.J’s Delight and her Munther filly. Home-bred by her Clonakilty owner, she has won several Dublin and All Ireland titles in her youngstock days and now more than pays her way in the HSI broodmare championship series with a number of wins in this showing series.

The second Clare owner to qualify was Dermot O’Sullivan with his Glynwood Dawn, by Je T’aime Flamenco, the same sire as his 2015 champion Aidensfield Flamenco. O’Sullivan also previously owned the Roche family’s 2014 champion Assagart My Only Hope too. Glynwood Dawn’s foal is by Sligo Candy Boy.

West Clare

Although two of the Banner County contenders secured their Dublin places at Charleville the previous weekend, the standard was still high at the final opportunity to qualify at the West Clare Show, near Kilrush.

This time it was two Mayo combinations that dominated the line-up with Martin and Mary Murphy’s Castlemeadow Mildred and her Near Dock colt getting through. This is the second time the Power Blade mare has qualified for the Breeders’ Championship and she, plus Richard Drohan’s Lucy’s Princess, are the traditional-bred combinations in this year’s final.

The second Mayo pair to earn their place for next Friday are Liam Lynskey’s Kioletta M and her VDL Harley colt. Lynskey, who has multiple entries in the sport horses, Irish Draught and Connemara classes next week, bought this Darco mare on his by now annual shopping trip to Holland in February this year.

There will be friendly sibling rivalry in the O’Sullivan households, as Brendan is a brother of the 2015 winning owner, Dermot who has also got a Breeders’ Championship entry. Brendan qualified his Cause I Love You Z, by the Cornet Obolensky son, Cornet Stern, and she was fourth last year. Her foal is a colt by the Heartbreaker son, Womanizer.

Which combination will be this year’s The Irish Field Breeders Championship winners? It’s an other intriguing championship this year as the continental judges assess a variety of bloodlines and types. The championship will also be without the meticulous stewarding of the late Harold McGahern, a strong advocate of this flagship class.

One thing is certain – get there early for a Friday afternoon ringside seat.