THE Melanie Young-ridden Sorbet made a winning seasonal debut in the CNC2* at Tyrella last year and repeated the feat last Saturday. Their total of 28.6 included two cross-country time penalties and they were the fastest in this phase between both two-star classes.

On an excellent score of 21.8, Sarah Ennis led after David Lee’s judging of the dressage phase with Cooley Cosmopolitan Diamond. However, as the seven-year-old Canturo gelding was having his first start at this level, they picked up 14 cross-country time penalties before recording one of just three completely clear show jumping rounds in the 21-runner competition.

Young was delighted with the performance of Mary Guinness’s home-bred Sorbet who, currently, is her only mount for the season.

“I’m working as a primary schoolteacher in Blessington and keep Sorbet with Jenny and Karl Heffernan at their Redhills Stud which is close to where I’m living. I find that one horse at that level is enough to ride while working full-time and Jenny and Karl do a wonderful job and have great facilities.

“I’m really enjoying my riding and, after doing so much on my own in the past, I really love mixing with others in the yard. There’s great camaraderie and, as everyone is doing something different, no real competition between us.

“A year is a long time between wins but Sorbet has really strengthened up over the winter and has grown into himself,” commented Young on the nine-year-old grey gelding who is by the Arab stallion Sisyrinchium out of a non-winning thoroughbred mare by Broadsword.

“He’s a tall, rangy horse and it has just taken time for the penny to drop with him. I was surprised with how fit he was but delighted with his cross-country round and then he really put in a very good show jumping clear. His first big target is the CIC2* at Ballindenisk (at the end of this month) then I would like to move him up to advanced and do a CIC3* over the summer.”

Second at Tyrella (1) last year, Clare Abbott and Cormac McKay’s home-bred Euro Prince (33.9) won Saturday’s O/CNC2* as they prepare for a fourth appearance at Badminton where last May they placed 14th.

The first four in this 25-runner class were all clear over the coloured poles but two down proved expensive for Cathal Daniels and Sammy Davis Junior who dropped to fifth having led following Dermot Cannon’s judging of the dressage phase (27.1) and even after picking up 3.6 cross-country time penalties.

WIN FOR CORBETT

Home-based competitor, Emily Corbett, had good results with four of her five rides, the highlight being her all-the-way victory in the O/CNC1* on her 11-year-old chesnut gelding Leapfrog (26).

They won by two penalty points from Daniels and LEB Lias Jewel but the Kildare-based rider hit the target when landing Section A of the CNC1* with Michelle Nelson’s home-bred OLS King Aragon, another to lead from start to finish. By Samgemjee out of Sue Shortt’s Olympic ride Just Beauty Queen, the bay gelding was one of the country’s top six-year-olds last season, ending his campaign with a win in the CCI1* class at Ballindenisk International in September.

Jim Newsam finished second on the 12-year-old Dutch Warmblood gelding Burinex, an eventing newcomer who spent the last two years competing in Riding Club dressage and show jumping with his owner, Trish Warren. There were only two completely clear show jumping rounds in this class with just the winner and fourth-placed Seducer (Trevor Smith) being within the time across the country.

There were three show jumping clears in Section B, one being recorded by Daragh Byrne on his father James’s Kilcannon Ramiro who added 0.4 of a cross-country time penalty to his flat work mark of 26.3. Abigail Carlisle finished second (31.5) on Suirvalley Little Monkey who lowered a pole but was one of only two horses in this section to beat the time across the country.

Byrne was delighted with the six-year-old Ramiro B gelding who was bred in Co Wexford by Mary Bolger out of the Kildalton King mare Flick Princess, dam previously of the four-star eventer Bodidily. “This horse was big and weak as a four-year and competed in just four events last year. His immediate target is Ballindenisk then we will look at the six-year-old classes,” said the rider who has room for more horses at his new yard near Fethard.

Seven combinations beat the clock on the cross-country phase in the 27-runner CNCJ1* class including Cameron Kiernan who completed on his dressage score with Fernhill Nearly Darc (36.3). However, the Co Cork combination had to settle for second place behind Newtownards’ Katie Riley and her mother Sarah’s 14-year-old Templebready Fear Bui gelding Versace Biscuit (33.9) who were runners-up in the CCIJ1* at Tattersalls last year.

There was also a very well-filled CNCP2* class but not one combination show jumped clear and only two were home within the time across the country. Here, Co Kildare’s Isabelle Comerford, riding for her father Patrick, filled the first two places with Langtons Choice (43.2) and Colour Me Fancy (43.4).