IRELAND’s long tradition of horse dealing is famously recorded, and one of the most colourful of its members is the Fethard-based trader Paul Donovan.

His Sportsfield prefixed horses have represented him across the world, while his yard at Byrneskill has been a ‘must visit’ destination for decades. An enduringly popular personality, and recognised for his infectious enthusiasm for life in general, the genial Donovan loves to sell horses and the world related to it.

With a laid-back attitude masking a steely resolve, he is also an international event rider and an intrepid follower of hounds.

Growing up as one of five siblings, Donovan was born and raised adjacent to the Sportsfield bar, the family-owned pub in Clonmel. Although horses did not feature within the immediate family, his father also owned a farm a few miles out of the town.

From here Donovan, together with his brother Cyril would head off ‘up the mountain’ meeting up with the neighbouring Holohan family, who were never short of ponies to ride. “We’d camp out at the farm all summer,” he remembers.

“We would work for John and Pat and their father Bill, helping with the hay in the days when summer seemed to last for months and the sun was always shining! Bill would always have ponies to ride, and we would be off at shows the whole time.”

Importantly, Bill not only taught the young Donovan about the riding of the ponies, but also how to make money out of them. His sons, John and Pat Holohan have remained close friends to this day, as has their sister Magette who is married to Kedrah House veterinary surgeon and breeder Tom Meagher.

Another sibling is Felicity, who together with her husband Maurice Cousins, and her twin sister Louise, run the Barnadown show centre in Co Wexford.

Born to deal

There was never any other career mapped out for the young Donovan. Single-minded from the outset, he recalls one of the first deals he made at the age of about 15.

“I was still at school at the time, but went to Ballinasloe where, with help from Maurice Cousins, I ended up with a horse and a pony. Within a week I sold the horse to Frank O’Connor (father of Irish Olympian Austin) who had come into the yard with Clare Ryan.”

As a respected agent, Clare Ryan has remained a staunch supporter throughout, as Donovan explained. “She’s had me on her books since I was 15 or 16, and would probably still have a record of every horse she sourced from here.”

Another mentor and supporter at the time was the late Michael Lysaght, who took Donovan under his wing at the sales. A man with an outstanding eye for a horse, his advice and knowledge were invaluable.

Early in his career, Donovan spent some years in Yorkshire, where he worked alongside fellow dealer Nigel Walker. The pair sold horses of all sorts and sizes, and became well known for selling horses to the police.

They always kept an eye out for a special horse however, and among the stars to pass through their hands was a jumper called Sportsfield who went on to win the Wembley Foxhunter championship under Andrew Saywell. Sportsfield was one of the first horses to bear the Sportsfield moniker – and indeed Donovan was a pathfinder in recognising the advantages of a commercial brand.

Meanwhile, back home in Fethard and in between his trips to England, Donovan had begun the task of renovating the farm at Byrneskill. Both the house and the yard had a complete overhaul, while the first of many subsequent arenas was constructed just behind the house.

Hunting

At that stage, the scope of the fledging selling business was broad, and was backed up by a thriving hunter hireling operation.

Following the Tipperary hounds was high on the list of priorities at that stage, and Donovan was a formidable presence behind both Michael Higgins and later Simon Probyn. These were good times and full of stories as Donovan relates.

“I had some really good hunters on the go, the best of which was a horse who, after a good night in McCarthy’s bar with Demi Byrne and Mouse Morris, we decided to call Arkle.

“I didn’t hire him out too much, but of course he was the one everyone wanted to hire. I was always being asked the question ‘am I riding Arkle today?’ to which I would say yes, you are riding Arkle. One day there were five ‘Arkles’ out, but only I was riding the real one!”

A special favourite, the versatile and talented Arkle even evented, and spent the latter stage of his life hunting and eventual retirement with Jack Ronan.

During one of his spells in England, Donovan met up with Carol Gee, a Yorkshire woman who would influence his life both personally and in business. “I was recuperating after a fall, and one of my visitors brought along this very jolly, ginger haired Irishman,” recalled Gee. “I had no idea of his background, but he seemed to know a thing or two about horses. He broke and rode away horses quicker and better than I had ever seen it done before, and shod them all as well.”

Subsequently the pair teamed up and returned to Ireland, where they traded at Byrneskill for 12 years. “There was a lot of laughter, a lot of living and many horse deals,” Gee said.

“We learned a lot from each other, and although it eventually came to an end, we remain very good friends. Paul can turn any occasion, good or bad, into a party; he brightens up the bleakest of days, doesn’t take life too seriously and that of his laugh is infectious!”

In the saddle

In the early days there was little time to compete, but through his good friend Kevin Smyth and also Carol Gee, Donovan developed an interest in eventing. An accomplished event rider, Smyth encouraged Donovan throughout, and although he sadly passed away a few years later, the seed was sown.

Gee remembers Donovan’s first affiliated event in England. “I knew that getting him out of bed at the required hour would be a challenge,” she explained. “So, when he returned from the usual Saturday night session in the pub, the house doors were all locked and the only available place to sleep was in the truck!

“It worked. The next morning he duly woke up, charmed the dressage judges into giving him some good marks, and proceeded to finish sixth with a double clear round. As with everything to do with horses, Paul found it easy.”

Over the years and as his interest grew, Donovan was able to increase the time spent competing, but the business had to take priority. “At the time I was concentrating on making a living rather than wearing a green jacket,” he explained. “Selling was more important than competing, but I enjoyed the eventing. I got a buzz out of it and I still do.”

Paul Donovan and Sportsfield Pretty Lady in the Millstreet CCI3* in 2017 \ Tadhg Ryan Bit-Media

Donovan found one of the most rewarding aspects of the sport was the production and eventual sale of the young horses. While the vast majority changed hands quickly, the odd one inevitably slipped through the net.

One in particular was the talented Sportsfield Sandyman, a somewhat tricky customer by Euphemism. “He wasn’t so easy to sell,” Donovan admitted. “And as a result, he was one of those horses who stayed with me – and I had a lot of craic with him.”

Together, the pair moved through the grades, culminating their career at Burghley in 2009. Although he never sold the gelding, Donovan recalls a time when he lent him to a young Oliver Townend who was chasing points for the HSBC title.

“I had just done Tattersalls with him, where he posted the fastest time. Oliver was short of horses and asked me if he could borrow him to ride in Luhmühlen. There were no qualifying runs in those days, so I sent him off to Germany with George Russell, complete with two bits and his shoes hanging off!”

Townend had a long history with both Donovan and Gee, having been a regular visitor to Byrneskill throughout his early teenage years. “He would stay for the summer. He was very cocky and would pick out a horse stating that he would win whatever event he was aiming for. He was naturally talented, always driven and was a good businessman who knew what he wanted. He would have learned a lot here, and also probably picked up quite a few bad habits from me as well!”

Impromptu Vegas trip

Over the years many of Donovan’s clients have become lifelong friends, most notably Nigel Taylor, who rode internationally for Britain and who now runs the Aston Le Walls event centre in Oxfordshire.

Taylor now also hosts a big commercial shoot at the venue, a visit to which has become a must attend fixture on the winter calendar. One year however, Donovan did not make the date as planned. “I was heading over one Christmas but pulled into Townend’s yard on the way down,” he explained.

“Ollie was heading off to Las Vegas the next day for Geoff Billington’s stag party, but we looked at a few horses and went out to dinner with his American clients. It was a good evening and at some stage I found myself booking a flight to Vegas and spent the next few days at the stag party. Nigel was not amused, and I never did get to the shoot that year.”

Partying aside, it is undisputed that Donovan is a good judge of a horse. Numerous household names have passed through his hands, among which are the Olympic event horses King Pin and Connaught.

The latter, who was owned throughout his career by Angela Buhler and formerly known as Ballysimons Best, was campaigned by both Carol and Paul. A winner here in Ireland before he was exported, Donovan partnered him at Le Lion d’Angers and also at Punchestown.

Another favourite is Joseph Murphy’s popular five-star specialist Sportsfield Othello. One of only a handful of horses to rack up in excess of 1,000 Eventing Ireland points, he has been a stalwart of Irish teams. Others include Piggy March’s 2019 Osberton CCIYH3*-S winner Sportsfield Top Notch, and the former RDS young horse champion OBOS Impressive.

When time permits, Donovan is on the road sourcing horses, but in common with all producers, he is currently finding the right sort of horse increasingly hard to find. “The three-year-olds have got very expensive.

“It’s hard to find what you want and because there are so few of them, everyone is after the same horse and this is especially evident at the sales. The event horse nowadays has to do three jobs and is a unique horse. He has to be a good jumper, he has to do a good dressage test and be a brave cross-country horse.”

Donovan also acknowledges that eventing’s new scoring format has really upped the influence of the show jumping. “A pole down can be very expensive.”

Another point that has been made in these columns is that there is often a difference between a commercial horse and a very good horse. “We are all constantly looking at the model and the type, whereas you go to the trot-up at Badminton or Burghley and they come in all shapes and sizes. A horse will get there if he wants to do it, has a big heart and plenty of ability.

“For selling meanwhile, I like a good mover, something with a good brain, a good front and not too heavy. If you had a yard of those you would make a lot of money but it’s hard to find them.”

Donovan is not an advocate in buying foals, usually sourcing his stock upwards from three years-old. “Foals are a different ball game again. Fellows who pay a lot of money for foals are brave. I would sooner have a sit on them and pay more and not have them so long. Most go as four-year-olds, and ideally I’d like to keep them a bit longer.”

Interestingly, he has little preference for any particular sire or bloodline, saying: “I buy what’s in front of me – that’s how it’s gone these days.”

Sociable

For many overseas visitors a trip to the Donovan yard at Fethard is a must, and the genial Donovan likes to make the experience fun. “I’m a sociable kind of fellow myself,” he said.

“I like to have a drink, party and have a good time and I think it’s a nice way of doing it. I’m not very pushy when it comes to the selling of horses, the horses will sell themselves.

"People will make up their own minds. They like coming here and to McCarthys (pub). Fethard is a great town and people enjoy it.”

Always thinking of the clients, and indeed trying to raise the bar in all directions, Donovan is constantly upgrading his facilities. “It’s important to have good facilities to try horses these days. We now have a big arena, a good cross-country course, and we are in middle of building a new log cabin for clients to stay.

“I try to provide as much as I can. I also don’t mind other people bringing horses in to show to clients as I try to give them what they want, and to show them what they want.”

Looking to the future post Covid-19, Donovan is pragmatic. “It’s hitting the whole world and you would need a crystal ball to know how things will turn out.

“Although the lack of competitions will mean that the five-year-olds will be a bit behind, I think people will always buy horses and good horses will be selling.

“However, there will be a lot of people going out of business and I think it will all depend on how quickly we can get a vaccination up and running as to how quickly can get back. We’re doing well here in Ireland and hopefully have it controlled, but both America and England have it bad and we do a lot of business there. There is no one it won’t affect.”

Meanwhile, Donovan and his long-term partner Sharon (Power) have plenty to be doing at home. Sharon, who is a very successful amateur event rider and a director in her father’s plant hire business, events throughout the summer, as well as competing in the young horse series.

Favouring smaller horses, she picked up her first international win in 2018, when heading the CIC* at the Fernhill Kilguilkey House fixture.

With boundless enthusiasm, the evergreen Donovan still has his dreams to compete at the higher level once more. He has his four-star mare Sportsfield Pretty Lady back in work after injury, and looking forward to her comeback.

“The dream might still be alive!”