THE formidable alliance of owner Daphne Tierney and rider/producer Jane Bradbury dominated the Creightons hunter section of the 150th Balmoral Show as they won three classes and the supreme championship on Wednesday.

The pair won two of the three four-year-old weight classes, getting off the mark in the heavyweight division where Bloomfield Aristocratic stood top of the line. The bay gelding is by the show jumping sire Kannan out of the Laughton’s Flight mare Ballymurphy Veronica.

Bloomfield Aristocratic, who was bred in Co Clare by Enda Mulkere from whom he was purchased at Goresbridge last September, had one previous outing under saddle when finishing second at Killossery Lodge. Filling that position here was Mary Rothwell’s Greenhall Will I Am who was ridden and produced by P.J. Casey. This grey Castle Crest gelding was to be crowned champion exhibitor-bred later in the day.

Winner number two for the Tierney/Bradbury team was Bloomfield Eloquence who also occupied the top of the line from the outset in the juvenile lightweight class. A grey, like many of the Tierney horses, this Watermill Swatch gelding was purchased privately as a two-year-old from his Co Wicklow breeder, M.J. Kavanagh. This winner had previously attended the Northern Ireland Festival and a riding club show in Boswell.

Bloomfield Eloquence is out of Gurraun Broadway (by Carrabawn View) who was purchased by Kavanagh from Pat and Miriam O’Sullivan after she had a Crosstown Dancer filly in 2011.

Another mare to make the short journey north from Co Wexford was Bannview Stargazer (by Annaghdown Star) but, in contrast to what we thought last year, this wasn’t until she had foaled Bloomfield Waterfall, winner of Wednesday’s older middleweight class, for the O’Sullivans. Kavanagh is, however, breeder of this fellow’s full-brother, Bloomfield Waterside, winner of last July’s All-Ireland three-year-old championship at Bannow & Rathangan.

The Tierney/Bradbury alliance suffered a slight reversal in the older lightweight class where the home-bred Bloomfield Kylemore moved up from third but only to second as Nicola Perrin maintained her position at the top with Ballarin My Lady. Supreme ridden horse champion at the NIF, this six-year-old by mare by Kings Master was bred in Co Clare by John Ryan out of the Nash Me mare Seefinn Rosewood.

Another horse to always top the line-up of judges Leon King and Michael Cooper was the nine-year-old Limmerick heavyweight The Marksman, who was ridden for Cheryl Whiteley by Lesley Webb, while regular Balmoral visitor Aubrey Chapman claimed the four-year-old middleweight class with Victoria Tennant’s chesnut gelding MHS Charlie Fox who also immediately caught the eye of the judges.

Also progressing to the Main Arena on Wednesday afternoon for the Creightons championship were the first and second-placed horses in the two small hunter classes. Carrying a red rosette from the four and five-year-old class was Shane McKenna’s 2013 Cappa Cassanova gelding Birchill Cassanova. The Louise Mooney-bred bay was ridden by Rachel Moore who was also on board McKenna’s winner when he was crowned champion show hunter pony at Dublin last August.

In the strongly contested older small hunter class, Jennifer Kennedy took the honours on her much-beribboned six-year-old grey gelding Earl Of Grenane who is by the Connemara Cashelbay Prince and was bred by Philippa Mansergh-Wallace out of a thoroughbred mare by Jolly Jake.

The first trophy presented in the Main Arena was the Sir Milne Barbour Cup for champion four-year-old and this went to MHS Charlie Fox, with Lynn Spence being called forward into the reserve slot with her middleweight OBOS Quality 004 gelding.

The champion, who provided Aubrey Chapman with an early birthday present, is a chesnut gelding by Quidam Junior I. He was bred in Co Kilkenny by Thomas Brennan out of the Cavalier Royale mare MHS Cavaliers Daughter whose three-year-old by the same sire was youngstock champion recently at Thomastown.

BRILLIANT SHOW

There was little surprise among onlookers when Bloomfield Waterfall was announced as supreme champion but not everyone expected the Porsch gelding Apple Jack, who was second to the Tierney horse in their class, to be called forward as reserve supreme. This bay was ridden by Jamie Smyth for Hilary Gibson and Mark Morrow who recently purchased him from Trevor Wallace.

“We had a brilliant show,” said a delighted Bradbury, “and I was very pleased with the four-year-olds. I have wonderful support from Wendy Anderson who has been with me for years. You might think she’d like this time of year going to shows but actually she prefers September when we start to break all the horses. Those who are bought in are usually sourced for us by David Tatlow.

“We showed Bloomfield Waterfall as a lightweight last year, when he was champion at Tattersalls, but the judges at Dublin thought he would do better as a middleweight and he really strengthened and matured over the winter.”