IRISH Sport horses filled the top three places at the final leg of the Event Rider Masters at Blair last weekend. The class was won by Australian Christopher Burton, who also went on to take the 2018 Event Rider Masters series title. He won last weekend’s class aboard the Irish Sport Horse Graf Liberty (Limmerick x Cavalier Royale), a 13-year-old gelding who was bred in Co Down by Brian Livingstone.

Second after dressage, the pair dropped two places to fourth due to a lowered coloured pole in the show jumping. The only pair to make the optimum time across country in dire weather conditions, they moved to the top of the table when Oliver Townend and Cillnabradden Evo picked up 2.8 time penalties.

Townend finished second with the Tom and Orla Holden-bred 12-year-old. That combination were leading after dressage and also lowered a pole in the show jumping ring, so they needed to make the optimum time to stay ahead of Burton, but picked up the time penalties to hand victory to the Australian.

surprise

Perhaps the most surprised rider on the podium was third placed Emily Philp whose ride Camembert (Courage II x Colin Diamond) added just 2.4 cross country time penalties to their first phase score. The 13-year-old gelding was bred by John Freeman in Co Galway and Philp purchased the horse as an unbroken three-year-old from Austin Quigley.

She has done all the work herself to get to this level and was overjoyed at the result. “I was daring myself not to take a pull [around the cross country course],” she said. “He gave me an amazing ride, this hasn’t sunk in yet.” Earlier in the day, Emily had climbed from 11th to sixth with one of only eight show jumping clears.