PERCHED on the kitchen wall in Jimmy and Mai Murphy’s 1930s farmhouse is a wooden boomerang, brought back by their son Pat from his Australian travels. A fitting holiday souvenir.

Boomerang was foaled in 1966. A lifetime ago. Yet, his and Eddie Macken’s story is still widely known, not only by show jumping fans but the man on the street too.

We were riveted to the television back in the 1970s when the ‘Dream Team’ members Macken, James Kernan and the late Capt. Con Power and Paul Darragh chalked up an Aga Khan Nations Cup treble in front of an adoring crowd and nation.

“And Brian McSharry would always say, ‘Boomerang, bred by Jimmy Murphy down in Grangemockler, by Battleburn out of Girl From The Brown Mountain’,” recalled Pat Murphy proudly.

Many know the story of Boomerang; how he went to other riders, from Liz Edgar to Paul Schockemöhle, where he was reunited with Eddie Macken then based in Germany. How Schockemöhle said, ‘Take my speed horse [Boomerang] until you get something better’ and how Macken could find none better.

The man on the street knows how they then went on to Dream Team, Hickstead Derby and Grand Prix glory and sporting legends status.

Iconic

Rattling off results is one-dimensional; there’s a cast of characters too who crafted those results, starting with the breeder. So down to Grangemockler, “two miles, if it’s even that, from the Kilkenny border,” said Pat.

A stone’s throw from the south Tipperary homeplace of Padraig McCarthy, described by Pat as “one of the most dedicated, smart young fellows you could meet”.

The Rio Olympian in turn recalled what it was like to grow up in the shadow of both Slievenamon (721 metres high) and Boomerang (168cm/otherwise immeasurable).

“Consciously or subconsciously, Boomerang definitely had an impact on me growing up,” Padraig said.

“Coming from a non-horsey family, I was always very aware of the Murphy family and Jimmy, whose grandchildren I went to school with and so the story about Boomerang was very, very well known around the village.

“It always for me held a lot of mysticism and magic, that this legendary horse could have been born and bred only a mile from where I was living. We weren’t a horsey family, we got into ponies through an interest my sister had, but Eddie Macken was an iconic rider I admired.

“He seemed almost out-of-worldly when I was younger, because he just seemed to be able to get everything done when the pressure was on. He was always someone we would count on. And the fact that he had ridden Boomerang to such success, it was definitely a big thing in my younger years,” continued Padraig, who has carved out his own successful career (see Breeders’ 10, page 91).

“I still think it’s fantastic and under-publicised the fact that Boomerang was from that area. I think it’s also interesting that I heard, many years after his time had come and gone, one of the top riders saying that the sport was so much different to that era; that poles were lighter, cups were flatter and courses were more technical. But they said Boomerang was one of the few horses from that era that would still be competitive in the modern sport.

“He was so careful and and so quick that he would have still held his own today.”

Tractor to the rescue

Reared in Ballinroan, Jimmy Murphy moved to a just-bought farm in Garrenbeg after he and Mai Stokes married in 1933 and he named their newly-built house Maifield in honour of his new bride.

A farmer and publican, Jimmy owned The Trap Bar, grocery and corn merchant one-stop-shop in the village. He was also a county councillor for the Fethard area for 30 years. Alongside photos of Boomerang and successful racehorses in the family album is another prized one of former Taoiseach, the late Garrett Fitzgerald, making a presentation to Jimmy.

Jimmy, Pat, his sister Vinny and late brother Desmond, unbeatable at local gymkhanas with his pony Lemon Puff, all hunted.

“Dad would have hunted with the Kilmoganny Harriers and he was a big fan of the Kilkennys as well. My longest memory of hunting with the Kilkennys was when Major McCalmont was casting his hounds in the next field after he’d lost the fox.”

Flying downhill towards the pack, “on a little cracked pony that I can’t hold”, a voluntary dismount was considered a better option for Pat than disturbing the hounds at work!

“My father hunted Molly, that was Girl From The Brown Mountain’s name then. No, he didn’t breed her, I think he bought her from people called the Tennysons. They’d have been like ourselves, breeding horses back then.”

Alternatively described as a Draught or by the thoroughbred stallion Aeolian, Pat can’t say for sure how Molly was bred. We do know she was covered by the thoroughbred Battleburn, standing then in Kilmoganny.

Eddie Macken with Boomerang, winner of the Hickstead Derby for an impressive four years in a row

“He stood with Paddy Power, who had a lot of stallions at the time and he had a pub as well. We had a green horsebox that a local man made and an old jeep, like something the Americans left behind after the Second World War!

“My father had left the mare down at Powers, then something happened with the jeep, so he went up to Kilmoganny with the tractor and horsebox to bring her back.”

79 reds

“She was like Boomerang but smaller. And she bred another colt foal by Battleburn,” Pat added.

Boomerang’s full-brother - chesnut with a blaze - stayed at Maifield.

“I broke Boomerang in, I’d drive him through the trees, up and down the field there. I hunted him from November up to March, he would have been a three-year-old then. It didn’t matter what you put him at; he jumped it.

“My father and myself, we used to have races around the farm. I’d ride Boomerang and he’d ride the other horse, [Boomerang’s full-brother]. We were bringing him to Kilkenny once to a gymkhana and the festival was on, so what did I call him? Festival Lad!

“So we’d race around the fields and Boomerang beat Festival Lad every time. He didn’t have the goods like Boomerang but what he was really good at was cross-country, he was a miller.”

Kilkenny rider John Costello took over the reins of Battle Boy, as Boomerang was originally named, to compete at local shows and gymkhanas at Grangemockler, Dunamaggin, Kilkenny and further afield. “We’d meet Con Power, the Hutchinsons, the Costellos at these shows and John was an excellent rider, very, very good.

“I’d buy a three-year-old at the Gowran sales, drop him into John on the way home and he’d break him. We might hunt or sell them, another one ended up on the Swiss team. I bought that one for handy money and got the price of a car out of him!

“I’d say John would have 79 red rosettes with Boomerang in the first year. You see, then you had to jump. It wasn’t like today when you get a red rosette if you jump two clears. This was when you kept going until you knocked the top pole.

“I hunted Boomerang after he came home, nowadays you wouldn’t dream of hunting him in case he got injured.”

The promising youngster was then sent, like many of Jim Murphy’s horses, to Iris Kellett’s ‘finishing school’ on Mespil Road. “My father had loads of horses with Iris, there was a connection there.”

There too was a 20-year-old Eddie Macken, sent to Kelletts on the recommendation of Granard vet, Brian Gormley.

On the telly

Paired up with Boomerang, Eddie competed the Tipperary-bred at the Spring Show before their paths divided after Jim sold the horse for “a good price!” to Liz Edgar.

“Tommy Brennan would have a shake-up in him as well and Liz later sold him on to the continent.”

Macken and Boomerang were reunited in Schockemöhle’s yard where the Longford horseman found the solution for Boomerang’s by-now fussy mouth: a hackamore.

“This horse was a super horse when he was a four and five-year-old, John [Costello] and I won everything on him, I hunted him in an ordinary snaffle, no problem, not even a martingale.

“I’d say that would be one of my greatest credits for Eddie Macken; to think outside the box, think what way can we ride this horse and to come up with a hackamore. I’d give Eddie 12 out of 10. That’s why Macken was such a good rider because he was able to think.”

Confidence restored, the rest is history as Eddie Macken and Boomerang became Irish legends.

Jimmy occasionally travelled to see Boomerang in action at Wembley and Dublin. “Oh Jesus, we were counting down the days to the Horse Show. My father watching Boomerang, one leg jumping along as the horse cleared each fence.

“He was also in contact with Susanne Macken. That came about because of Boomerang and Susanne got on very well with my father and we’re still in touch. Brian McSharry was another, I knew Brian well and he was here lots of times. He would have been one of the people that got Boomerang on the map.

Holiday souvenir on the wall, Pat Murphy with one photo of Boomerang and Eddie in action \ Susan Finnerty

“To me, RTÉ were fantastic for show jumping coverage then. I can remember when my father had the pub and people would come down to watch the television in the afternoon because they didn’t all have the telly at the time. They’d be drinking and watching Boomerang at Dublin or wherever he’d be.”

Timeless

Aachen, Dublin, Hickstead, Spruce Meadows, Wembley, European and world championships - out of all those memorable Boomerang highlights, which one was the stand-out?

“I think the Aga Khan would have been the one. You know, to breed a horse on the nation’s team and for Ireland to win three years in a row? You can’t beat that.

“I suppose some of Boomerang’s appeal was winning with the underdog. You see it with Shark Hanlon with Hewick, I’d have Red Rum in there too. He’s of the same era as Boomerang and people still talk about Red Rum.

“There wouldn’t be a week but someone will mention Boomerang. Just last week, I’m in the supermarket and a fellow comes up to me and he said, ‘Have you any more horses like Boomerang? God, I enjoyed watching him on the telly.’ It’s just... timeless. Boomerang comes up on every outing, every occasion.”

Especially at election time. Did Pat ever have his father’s vocation?

“Vocation is the word! Never, but my father 100% loved local politics. Loved meeting people, loved helping people. It’s different times today but I would do a lot of canvassing. Love it. We canvassed every single day for the month before the last general election when my second cousin Michael Murphy got elected to the Dáil.”

Being Boomerang’s breeder was a great calling card for Jim Murphy during canvassing? “It was surely but... it wasn’t that my father was ever looking for recognition. Never. He was just so proud of breeding the horse. It poured in.”

There was that special ceremony for Boomerang at Millstreet, a scroll from Noel C. Duggan to the horse’s breeder; Horse Board ‘Best Irish-bred’ awards and an invitation to a Horse Board dinner in the Shelbourne Hotel, also attended by Eddie Macken. Plus, Boomerang, along with other icons: Arkle, Ballymoss, Coosheen Finn and King of Diamonds featured on An Post commemorative stamps in 1981.

Wish granted

“He was an absolutely amazing horse and Boomerang put Grangemockler... put the whole island on the map. But he did even more than that. Look at how many kids got into show jumping? It’s like that young darts player at the moment - Luke Littler. My grandson now has a dartboard in his bedroom.

“It’s like Carrick [on-Suir] for cycling after Sean Kelly. All you need is a Macken, a Kelly or Littler and they can lift sport out of the ground with the influence that they have.”

Pat recently gave one of his well-related French-bred throughbred mares to his granddaughter Lily. “She has a super pony now [DoubleDiamond] and doing very well, nearly a red rosette every Sunday.”

On the advice of John Killoran, the plan is to cover the thoroughbred gift with Maurice Cousins’ Dignified van’t Zorgvliet.

“I’m actually delighted to think we’ll see a half-bred coming back into the place again.” Like the boomerang on the wall, it’s all about coming back to where you started.

Boomerang’s stable

We’ve called over to visit Maifield, which is rented out during the summer months. Staying in this lovely farmhouse, home of Ireland’s most famous breeder, is an extra selling point for the next batch of American guests due tomorrow.

We also stop by Boomerang’s stable - his nameplate still on the door - accompanied by two adorable Jack Russell terrier pups that ride shotgun with Pat.

“I have them advertised in the Field! Always get The Irish Field every week,” said this avid racing fan. It’s all thanks to his horse racing connections with Irish Horse World contributor Noel Mullins that I got the contact details for this great character, who is as modest and under-the-radar as his father Jim, who passed away in 1996.

Pat Murphy with his Jack Russell pups at Boomerang’s stable; the horse’s nameplate is amongst other the names of other former \ Susan Finnerty

Argentina and Vietnam are just two of the places they’ve visited on racing club tours but there’s one more mission.

“Do you know what I’d love? A photograph of Boomerang and Eddie coming down the Hickstead Bank. Searched the internet, can’t find one anywhere.”

Hey presto, 48 hours later in the Boomerang Bar in Eddie Macken’s hometown, Fiona Macken said, ‘Here’s another photo’, and produced... that very same iconic image of her cousin and Boomerang descending the Hickstead Bank.

Mission accomplished.

£250,000 - Boomerang’s prize money, worth approximately €1.35 million today.

4 x 4: Hickstead Derby and Wembley Derby wins, plus his clear rounds in the 1978 world championship final and Aga Khan appearances.

3 - Aga Khan Cup wins in a row (1977-1979).

2 - full-brothers bred by Girl From The Brown Mountain.

1 - generous gift of Boomerang to Eddie in 1977 by the horse’s German owner Dr Herbert Schnapka.

1/4 - of a time fault with Pandur Z in the 1978 world championships, hosted in Aachen, meant silver for Eddie and Boomerang.

0 - Olympic appearances for Boomerang due to the amateur riders only rule then in place.