Margie McLoone

A FIVE hour journey north from Kildinan, Co Cork, last Friday paid dividends for Rebecca Dunlea as the following day she won the Connolly’s Red Mills Super League A/CNC** championship at Loughanmore with Cashelane Captain.

It was most disappointing that only three horses contested the championship given that it had a first prize of €1,500 plus a €100 feed voucher and other items with good prizes too for second and third. Dunlea had already won the league with her Captain Clover 12-year-old and will be sponsored for next season by the Co Kilkenny animal feed company.

Cashelane Captain led after Rosie Gomes’s judging of the dressage phase (51.6) but dropped back to second with 4.8 cross-country time penalties.

However, the dark brown gelding was left in front again when the Emma Jackson-partnered Amy B, who was seventh the previous weekend in the CIC** at Millstreet and who beat the clock on the second leg here, had an expensive pole down show jumping for a completion score of 57.7.

Steven Smith, who finished third on Bonito (65.9), was the only one to get home within the time on Anvil Lodge Pinnochio in the CNC** class which was also very poorly supported with just five runners. The eight-year-old Grange Bouncer gelding, who was making his debut at his level having won his previous two starts in open novice company, had a pole down show jumping for a completion score of 38.6.

Clare Abbot led after dressage (33) with another two-star newcomer, Ballycarron Lad, but the 13-year-old Snurge gelding, who was beaten a neck when second here in a winners’ race back in 2009 on his last start in a point-to-point, picked up 6.8 cross-country penalties before show jumping clear (39.8).

There were very few problems on the Vina Buller-designed cross-country tracks throughout the day although fence 10, the water, caught out a few in the EI 100 class won on her dressage score of 25.3 by Alex Houston and her smart six-year-old Amiro M gelding Amiro Hemmingway.

A very wet Tegan White was very annoyed with herself following her fall with Lenamore Lux.

In contrast, the ground had dried up considerably at Loughanmore in the preceding few days and the going was perfect.