THE sole Dressage Ireland-affiliated show in the country last weekend was staged by the Midland and Western Region at Ballinasloe showgrounds where the action was dominated by combinations competing out of the McGrath family’s locally-based Ballyjennings Stables.

Across the three Categories, the yard’s representatives competed in 12 tests, winning 10, and four of the successful Irish Sport Horses were traditionally-bred by Fintan McGrath who, in three instances, had used his Irish Draught stallion Black Hero on his non-winning point-to-point mare Memories Of Emly (by Pilsudski).

The odd one out of the quartet was Ballyj Valdo who, ridden by the breeder’s daughter Rebecca, won the opening Trailblazers’ Intro class, judged by Jean Halpenny (List 4), on a score of 66.47%. Also by Black Hero and traditionally bred, this four-year-old is out of a thoroughbred mare but, in this instance, his dam is the unraced thoroughbred mare Bulkaun (by Virtual).

McGrath’s wife Sinead recorded a Preliminary Category 3 double on the four-year-old Ballyj Max, scoring 69.38% in the DI18 judged by Donie McNamara (List 1) and 67.88 in the Halpenny-assessed DI6 where she was on a collective mark of 48. Two other combinations were on 67.88, Astrid Martini-Facio with Ferro Blue Belle (46.5) and Aoibheanna Joyce with Branchfield Dandy (46).

Here, Ballyj Max’s six-year-old full-brother Ballyj Casper scored a Category 2 win (65.58) under Sinead Heffernan.

Also from the yard, Emma Golden recorded an uncontested win in the Trailblazers’ Preliminary class on board the Connemara gelding Moone Sparrow (62.50%), a 17-year-old roan son of Prince Of Thieves, as did show secretary Patricia Frost in the Elementary DI52 on the Peter McGrath-bred Ballj Spirit (66.94%), a 19-year-old bay gelding by Spirit House.

Nina Hartwell and Jane Moggan didn’t let the side down, the former topping the scores in the Preliminary 18 Category 2 table on 69% with her six-year-old grey gelding Greyfort Lad while Moggan picked up two wins in the Novice Category 2 section with her British Sport Horse gelding Flying Solo, a 13-year-old liver chesnut son of Kannan.

The highest scores in both those Novice classes were recorded by Jessica Heinemann on her ISH mare Ballyturn Silver, a 15-year-old grey by Young Carrabawn, Halpenny awarding the pair a score of 68.28% in the DI21 while, in the DI24A judged by McNamara, they achieved 70.33.

The remaining classes were all judged by McNamara. Sadhbh O’Toole won twice with Next Diamond, her seven-year-old Medium level Dutch Warmblood gelding by Daily Diamond while Tracy Murphy did likewise at Advanced Medium level on her KWPN-registered gelding Kennedy, a 10-year-old dark bay by Future.

There was an uncontested win for Crista Dillon on her 15-year-old ISH mare Blackhill Kilcoltrim (by Contador) in the Medium DI67 (64.55%) while Sinead McGrath wrapped up a brilliant day for Ballyjennings Stables when she was the sole starter in the Prix St George with her ISH gelding Killard Precision (66.76), a 15-year-old Mermus R bay.