A CHRISTMAS present proved to be Emily Crowley’s best accomplice when the young west Cork exhibitor won the Irish Sport Horse Studbook young show person final at Dunmanway Show.

Her Doograne Rebel was bought for her as a foal from his Loughrea breeder Martin J. Keogh and Emily, who took up showing three years ago, has enjoyed a number of good placings with the Womanizer grey since. However Sunday’s win was undoubtedly their outstanding result to date.

“I have always had a huge interest in horses and always look forward to a Sunday of showing. Winning this class meant a lot to me and was completely unexpected. It’s a memory I will cherish for a long time!” said an elated Emily, who recently sat her Leaving Certificate but still found time to show Rebel and her other youngsters, a Barely A Moment two-year-old gelding and Golden Master yearling filly, in the run-up to the show.

She hopes to study Agricultural Science in UCD, and next of the 14 contenders was Athlone hopeful Lorcan Glynn, who has just completed his first year at Mountbellew Agricultural College. The next generation of west Cork exhibitors, including Jane Kingston, Deirdre Burchill, Denis O’Driscoll and Sam Kingston all featured in the line-up.

“The standard was very high and the winner really impressed me, both with her turnout and also with her handling ability. Her gelding just showed himself in such a kind and relaxed manner and she was calm and confident throughout, judge Mary Dooner said.

“My second place also impressed showing his ability showing a young horse, which is never an easy task. The standard was very high which made my task really difficult. It is encouraging to see so many of our youngsters in the final, the future of showing is certainly in safe hands. It was an honour to be asked to judge this final,” she added.

Lorcan Glynn was also busy showing his father P.J’s youngstock, including their Near Dock three-year-old Crannaghmore Lad who was Luke Doyle’s reserve young horse champion. Absent from Charleville, due to attending a wedding in Barcelona, Seamus Lehane was back in action and his Ballard Peaches & Cream won both her three-year-old class and the overall young horse title.

His cousin PJ has also been clocking up miles, having travelled to Kilrush the previous day where he qualified at the final qualifier for next month’s RDS Breeders Championship. His homebred Lux Z six-year-old P.J’s Dream won the heavyweight broodmare class, ahead of Eoin and Sam Jennings’s Gairdin Mor Failte, by Coolcronan Wood and this order remained the same in the broodmare championship.

IRISH DRAUGHTS

Gairdin Mor Failte also won the purebred Draught mare class and there was an Irish Draught presence in the foal championship too.

Here judges Fintan Flannelly and Joe O’Donoghue opted for Claire Starrett’s filly Patience, by the Gold Link sire Mizen Gold as their reserve.

Patrick O’Sullivan won another foal title with his Future Trend colt out of his consistent Kahtan mare Droumbridge Lass.

Irish Draught breeding is very much en-vogue in ridden hunter classes and small hunter winners have proven they can take championships too in recent years and Dunmanway’s results were no exception on both counts.

Martin O’Donovan’s Kilruane Diamond is by the Pat Gleeson-bred Rockrimmon Silver Diamond and he was Shane McKenna’s champion choice.

In reserve was Glenn Knipe with another of his team; Farmhill Fuerty Emperor, also piloted by last week’s Irish Horse World cover star Annie Prendergast. She collected another reserve tricolour with her coloured horse Rosscarbery Lily, with Carole Adams’s attractive sort Mothwing as champion.

Despite a wide choice of fixtures for pony owners, Patricia Byrne had some quality classes to select from. Her first champion was Emer O’Halloran’s Fielden-Chrys-O-Lite, who had won the first ridden class with daughter Amelia on board, ahead of Lucy Tuthill-Kingston’s purebred Connemara Lahaknock Shadow.

Another Connemara, Patricia Lucey’s Kallaghy Beauty, stood reserve champion in the in-hand pony decider, won by Martin O’Sullivan’s homebred broodmare winner Droumleap Absolute Heartbreaker.

Kate-Anne Barry’s Dorothy was the reserve donkey champion with William Ryan taking this championship with his aptly-named Nollaig, on a day when a Christmas present delivered a dream result for young Emily Crowley.