THE only non-Northern Region member to record a win at the Lightsource BP Tyrella (3) event last Saturday was Co Meath’s Stephanie Stammschroer.

Having retired Brownstown Remi in the EI115 the previous weekend, 21-year-old Stammschroer dropped down a level with her mother Paula’s nine-year-old Remington Clover gelding on Saturday when she landed the 11-strong EI110 (Open) on her dressage score (22.3).

Molly Evans finished second with her Lightsource BP Tyrella (2) winner, Wellan Graffiti (23.8), who moves up to EI115 level at the Co Down venue today, while the winner is heading to Ballindenisk for the CCI3*-L.

Stammschroer spent nine months last year based with British international Nicola Wilson but, while she loved the work and learnt a lot, she missed friends and family and returned home in early September to set up her own yard in Co Meath.

She currently has five horses in work in Brownstown, Navan but is keen to take in one or two more to add to her string. Four of the five are traditionally Irish-bred, the odd one out being a four-year-old OBOS Quality 004 gelding.

As at Tyrella (2), the number of entries in Saturday’s Junior classes were severely restricted the by Covid-19 regulations.

Three started in the EI110 where, thanks to her good cross-country round, Newry’s Lucy McIlroy comfortably repeated her win of seven days earlier aboard her mother Angela’s eight-year-old Imperial Hights mare Imperial Black Pearl. The combination will be bidding for a hat-trick of victories back at the seaside venue today.

Again, only two horses started in the EI100, both ridden by Sarah O’Shea for her mother Susan. Here, the result was very tight with the eight-year-old skewbald gelding The Cherokee Flight (30 penalties) narrowly gaining revenge on his Tyrella (2) conqueror, and stable-companion, Youngstars Cheetah (30.5).

While disappointingly sent home last year from the Racing Academy and Centre of Education in Kildare because of Covid-19 restrictions, O’Shea did her apprentice jockey examinations online. She is currently working at the Smith brothers’ yard where she is producing her own horses and enjoying the experience.

Enforcing a strict interpretation of elite rider status meant that numbers were once again well down at Tyrella on Saturday when there was only one EI100 class – although that had 30 starters. The dressage winners, Sarah Ennis and Greenhall Granuaile (20.8) were among eight combinations to pick up show jumping penalties while the only problem across the country came with the omission of a fence.

Two combinations completed on their first phase scores of 25.5, Rosie Alcorn claiming the spoils when home closer to the optimum time across the country on Centre Fold Belle while Leah Knight had to settle for second with the unraced thoroughbred VSI Hendricks, a nine-year-old Kalanisi gelding.

Veterinary surgeon Alcorn, who established her own practice, Coastal Equine Vets, on the north coast last spring, was given the winner as a foal for her 21st birthday. The now eight-year-old Centrestage mare was purchased through Jonny and Claire Steele from her breeder, John Reid. She is out of Renkum Blathainn (by Renkum Lancelot) and is thus a half-sister to, among others, Tyrella Love Song (who twice represented Ireland in European Junior championships) and Alcorn’s own Fiorella (CCI2*).

On their first competitive start together since early July 2014, Janie Cairns and Ailsa Martin’s Grateful For Gold completed on their winning dressage score (24.5 penalties) in the 28-runner EI90.

Given that the successful daughter of The Irish Pride is 17 years of age and has multiple victories to her credit, Jonny Mulligan was well pleased with his second-place finish on David Kirkpatrick’s five-year-old Nazar home-bred Redwood Tzar (26), who was having his second start, as was Alex Houston who finished third on the newcomer Atlantic Rockstar (26.5), a six-year-old home-bred by Beach Ball.

Here, incidentally, Alcorn was fifth on Fiorella’s first foal Chrysanthos (29), a six-year-old Jaguar Mail gelding who was second seven days earlier on his debut. The owner/rider is indebted to Lucy Buchanan of Old Stone Veterinary Clinic who covers for her on Saturdays so she can event.