FROM wet weather causing its cancellation in 2023, to last year’s 23 degrees scorcher, it was back to a typical rainy show day at Newcastle West. Not that the earlier part of last Sunday’s weather conditions derailed plans, for, as its chairman Liam Ruttle cheerfully remarked: “When show day goes wet, the show must go on.”

The weather matters little anyhow to the hardy hunting and eventing community. Amongst the exhibitors was Alice Copithorne, back from Germany where she and Fort Arthur Little Dolly finished 21st in their Luhmühlen five-star debut.

“For me, it was like another event and then you saw London 52 and Izilot DHI and you knew the top horses and top riders were there. Dad loved it, he drove the horse over through England, France, Belgium and Germany.

“It hasn’t all really sunk in, but she’ll have a couple of weeks off now. We’ll do some show jumping and then pick an event in England in September and then probably head to Pau in October.”

Aughrim Stables notched up a double in the Newcastle West ridden horse rings, judged by Becky Walter and Aubrey Chapman. “It was a very good standard and full classes,” remarked Chapman, who had a busy weekend as his own local show at Gorey took place the previous day.

Their overall ridden hunter champion was Keith Martin and Kate Boyce’s Rathmorissey Lord of the Dance. The Castleforbes Lord Lancer gelding, with Nicola Perrin aboard, won the middleweight hunter class en route to his tricolour win.

The Jack Freeney-bred was amongst a group of champions and reserves to also qualify for the Red Mills Champion of Champions final at Wicklow Summer Show (July 13th) and another was the reserve hunter champion - Judith and Russ Cowley’s heavyweight class winner Cloneyhea Capriole (Bannvalley Navillus).

Newcastle West ridden horse champion - Aughrim Stables' Sweet Forget Me Not with Fionnuala Moloney Carey and James Carey \ Susan Finnerty

Aidan Ryan’s Sandycove II (Newmarket Venture), the highest-placed four-year-old, was another to qualify, as did the amateur champion and reserve: Lyndsey O’Brien’s Creevaghstables Mr Bloomfield (Gortfree Hero) - another Irish Draught flagbearer bred by Peter McHugh - and Sophie Cusack’s much-crowned Tiger Eye.

The hunter weights championship was one decider; the other Newcastle West tricolour for the ridden horse champion went to Sweet Forget Me Not. “Keith owns both cobs that were first and second in their class. Sweet Forget Me Not, the heavyweight cob that ‘Finn’ [Fionnuala Moloney Carey] won with, has no breeding recorded. Keith bought him at Ballinasloe Fair,” Kate said about the four-legged find at their local fair.

“Mythical Creature was second in the cob class, ridden by Nicola [Perrin] and he’s a lightweight cob, home-bred by Granite Hero. All destined for Dublin, all going well!” Kate added.

The reserve ridden horse champion was Penny Hudson’s coloured gelding Hudson Mermus (Mermus R).

Galway Plate winner Trevor Horgan and Harry Scanlan were in their element judging the working hunter and young horse classes. A new feature of the Newcastle West working hunter track was a bank, which proved an ideal prep run for Charleville entries this weekend.

Their working hunter horse champion was Shane McKenna’s Arnie. “First of all, he’s a big, striking horse and a lovely way of going, a smashing amateur horse. And then when I stood in to him and asked what he was by, he’s out of a Presenting mare and he’s a cracking sire. A lot of them are very, very sound in wind and limb,” Horgan remarked about the popular sire’s stock.

“Our reserve was a nice all-rounder, you’d have great fun with him. Sensible horse, just hopped away and another grand amateur horse,” he added about Carol Ruttle’s Shirsheen Mayday (Gortfree Lakeside Lad), appropriately enough the winner of the amateur class.

Young horses

Young horse classes returned to the Newcastle West schedule last year and, as is now the trend with shrinking numbers of entries, were ran as three age classes, instead of the usual half-dozen. The same pair of working hunter judges opted for Seamus Lehane’s two-year-old winner Ballard Highway Lad (Another Pleasure) as their young horse champion, ahead of Sean Duggan’s three-year-old filly Heatherside Fortuna Royale (Imnotafraid Fortuna).

Although there are no pony show jumping classes at this West Limerick show - another sign of the times - showing classes held up well with dry robes and umbrellas a plentiful sight throughout the morning.

Although steward Katie O’Sullivan’s score sheets soon turned into mush, some quick thinking saw a jeep turned into her mobile office for the day of marking scores, with hardy judge Nicholas Byrne in the busy performance classes.

The overall supreme pony champion this year was Zara Burke Ott’s versatile home-bred Gooseberry Hill Cruise (Ballynoe Nightcruise) from the intermediate ranks. Reserve supreme was the starter stakes champion and schoolmaster Bronheulog Sunny Boy, now showing young Emily Palmer the showring ropes.

It was a Palmer family double as Amelia claimed the mini working hunter championship with Torcardiz Arbennig Arum.

Another home-bred champion was Margaret Greene’s Moonlite Gone With The Wind (working hunter); Grace Nyhan’s Tooreigh Pippa took the performance championship and Orla Whelton’s Whiteleaze Secret Temptation (mini champion) made it back-to-back title wins at Newcastle West.

Roisin Carey’s HJR Firecracker won the show pony tricolour from what is now a rare sight in this category - three separate height classes.

Charlotte Kelly’s Caislin Cití was the Connemara champion and more Connemara bloodlines were seen in Alannah Cosgrave’s show hunter pony champion: Goldthorn Shamrock, by Glencarrig Prince.

Last but not least, Chloe Madden’s Elf 2 completed the champions round-up by winning the family pony title.

The family pony classes always prove popular and, if there was a Newcastle West ribbon for the exhibitors who travelled the furthest to compete here, it was the de Montrichard family from Boston.

Another show day ritual is the picnic and theirs took place in the living section of the Clonshire Equestrian Centre’s lorry where Sue Foley, who also taught the children’s mother Elizabeth, spoke about their plans to add to Limerick county’s tally of three remaining agricultural shows: Cappamore, Limerick and last Sunday’s event.

“We have a little Country Day in Clonshire and we’re hoping to build on that,” she revealed.