CATHAL Daniels had a busy weekend and, just like the old days, spent plenty of time on the road as he competed five horses at both legs of the Kilguilkey House fixture, returning to his yard on The Curragh on Saturday evening to swop mounts.

Earlier that day, Daniels had partnered Sarah Hughes’s Alcatraz to make a successful Eventing Ireland debut in the EI115 Open class. In December, he and the 15-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding won and were placed in international arena eventing competitions at Geneva and Bordeaux.

This wasn’t the bay’s first eventing appearance in Ireland however as he won the CCI3*-S at Ballindenisk last September under Britain’s Oliver Townend whose compatriot, Alex Bragg, partnered the horse into fifth place in the CIC2* at Millstreet the previous year.

Daniels, who show-jumped Alcatraz at Cavan last year and at Portmore and JAG Equestrian in January, doubled up on Saturday when winning the EI110 Open on Michelle Nelson’s OLS Queen Bee (30 penalties). The seven-year-old home-bred Luidam mare was having her first start since landing the CCI2*-L at Ballindenisk last September.

The rider, who finished second in that class with Galant DHI (33.5), went on to record a treble on the day when claiming the EI110 on CDS Hasil DHI, an eight-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding on whom he took over the mount last year from Britain’s Daisy Proctor.

“It was great to get such a good first run into Dr Sarah Hughes’s Alcatraz,” said Daniels. “All the horses will hopefully appear in the upcoming home internationals.

“The ground conditions on both days were perfect and the courses were up to standard.

The improvements in the arena surface could be judged by the fact that all 10 of my horses jumped clear.”

In fact, they all recorded double clears inside the time apart from Sammy Davis Junior who, on his first run back, picked up some cross-country time penalties.

Ennis on the ball

Sarah Ennis, who like Daniels and Morrison was at high performance training this week at the National Horse Sport Arena in Blanchardstown, travelled down from Co Meath for Sunday’s fixture where, from five rides, she recorded a brace of victories.

First up, she won the EI115 on her dressage score with Zena Ryle’s 12-year-old Ars Vivendi gelding Moneyball, who was having his first start of the campaign, while she recorded a third win in as many weeks in the EI110 on her own seven-year-old Sligo Candy Boy gelding, Sligo Candy Cane.