CHEVAL’s Emma Sweeney, who rides out at the famous Greenogue Stable of racehorse trainer Jim Dreaper, made her debut appearance at the Association of Irish Riding Clubs a winning one when landing Sunday’s breed championship on the ex-racehorse Mr Cosmopolitan.
The 10-year-old Basanta gelding was bred out of a Top Of The World mare by Hugh Newell, in whose colours the dark bay ran 22 times on the track and in four point-to-points in the season just over, with Sweeney in the saddle twice. He was retired by connections following his final outing at Borris in February.
All but one of the 12 entries in the class appeared before judges Tim Wilson (conformation) and Chloe Osbourne (ride) and Mr Cosmopolitan always stood top of the line. In the following class for traditional Irish cobs, all four entries came forward, the red going to Cill Dara’s Sarah Mulhall and her eight-year-old piebald gelding Derrykearn Gypsy King.
“He was just broken when I bought him from The Field Equestrian Centre as a four-year-old,” said Mulhall, an Abbeyleix-based financial advisor. “He competes in SJI jumping and in Riding Club dressage and we also hunt with the North Kilkenny Farmers.”
The popular Irish Draught class was divided with Mill Road’s Kilkarney Hero, who also won Saturday’s mediumweight hunter class, landing Section B under Orla McKevitt. Section A proved a triumph for the Drynam club with Sophie Marks taking the honours on Barbervilla Lilly ahead of Gillian Barry with Loughmelvin Cochrann; both are chesnut mares by Gortfree Hero.
CHAMPION
The four-year-old Loughmelvin Cochrann was bred in Co Fermanagh by Fiona Watkins out of a Gurraun Zidane mare while the 2009 mare Barbervilla Lily, who had competed in the Dublin Horse Show Irish Draught qualifier at Scarteen the previous day, was bred in Co Mayo by Michael Jennings out of an Inver Steel gelding.
The latter’s experience proved crucial in the title decider as she was crowned Irish Draught champion, with Loughmelvin Cochrann standing reserve under Barry, who is a graphic designer living in Rush, Co Dublin. “She has been in work since February and this is her third show,” said the owner/rider of her mare.
Barbervilla Lily has featured many times in these pages, winning just the previous weekend at Cheval’s Pre-Festival Show in Jordanstown and at the North East Region’s earlier spring show at the same venue. Her owner Sophie works full-time at the Drynam yard of club secretary Laura Snow.
One rarely hears of any good Riding Club horses or ponies being for sale but one winner on the market is Sycamore Lad who landed the large Connemara class under Kilrainy’s Jurgita Zelvyte, beating Drynam’s Chloe Marks into second with her Ashfield Storm Cloud gelding Killegar Mist.
The winner is owned by Martin Kearns of Clane who bought him two years ago. He has a little bit of riding club eventing, show jumping and dressage under Lithuania-born Zelvyte who broke him in two years ago. Sycamore Lad, who is by Fiona’s Man, was bred in Ardara, Co Donegal, out of a Slaney mare by Charles Dobbyn.
It may have been that riders couldn’t hear in the wind but just the two Irish Draughts were in the ring for ages waiting on the championship.
As more time went on, it was obvious that the judges had one of the other breeds in line for honours and so it proved as when Emma Sweeney did eventually appear with Mr Cosmopolitan, it wasn’t long before she was called forward to be presented with the Eddie Fowler memorial trophy with Sophie Marks then beckoned forward to stand reserve with Barbervilla Lily.