MANY people develop lifelong friendships through Pony Club activities and it was at the 1974 Area Trials at The Beeches, Ballyclare that Philip White first claims to have noticed Eavan McCoy.

The latter, who was studying dentistry at the time in Dundee but was home on holiday, takes up the story of that encounter. “I was helping the Route Branch A team, on which my sister Nanno was competing, while Philip, who was farming at Maddybenny, was chef d’equipe.

“When I qualified from university, I returned home to Ireland and took up a position in the High Street Dental Practice in Ballymoney. That was in April 1979 and I stayed there until forced to retire in June 2014 due to injury – an occupational hazard!”

It was while helping set up the track for the Route Hunt’s point-to-point in 1979, at its then location of Stranocum (in the field adjacent to the now famous ‘Dark Hedges’ of Game Of Thrones fame), that Philip’s eye was once again taken by Eavan who was stuffing the aprons with gorse. They were married two years later with Tegan and Jack arriving in 1984 and 1986.

“Philip started riding at a very young age and first competed in the RDS in 1963 on his 13.2hh gelding Tom Tit, winning with three clear rounds,” revealed Eavan. “In 1964, he was second in the 13.2 class and third in the combined 13.2/14.2hh championship. He says it has been downhill ever since but I think he’s a bit hard on himself!

“Philip, who won a banks competition in Dublin in 1971, enjoyed some junior international successes in show jumping and has kept up his show jumping activities ever since. In the past several years, he has enjoyed much success in amateur classes, getting to the RDS with Carig Na Cule (a home-bred gelding by The Actor out of a Fidel mare) and again with Redwood Humphreys. In 2017, at the ripe old age of 66, he was the Ulster Region amateur league champion with the home-bred Senate Hill who was placed in eight of the 12 legs.

“Philip also evented for many years and had several career highlights, especially at Punchestown where he was second in the international with Cool Corroy (on whom he was also fifth in Switzerland that year), fourth with Causeway Coaster in the Gowran Grange national class, and sixth in the two-star international with Bowes Lion.

“He partnered the last-named to win the Open class at the very popular two-day event in Rademon. When Tegan and Jack started to ride, the family reverted to show jumping so that the children could also participate in competitions.”

After her days in the Pony Club, Eavan bought her first horse, Look Sharp, in 1979. She evented him for a few seasons and completed Punchestown on him in 1983.

Other notable results for Eavan came in the show ring in 1986 on the four-year-old lightweight mare Hidden Talent who was second at Balmoral and fifth in Dublin.

Registered with Weatherbys as Secret Ambition VII, Hidden Talent became the foundation broodmare at Maddybenny and is grandam of Portersize Just a Jiff.

She also managed to whip-in for the Route Hunt for a few seasons on the Connemara stallion Canal Cormac. In the early 1990s, encouraged by Billy Roulston and Brian Henry, both Philip and Eavan became involved with the Causeway Coast Charity Show Jumpers.

This led to Eavan taking up a judging role which she has enjoyed ever since, upgrading to senior national level. She has been a regular judge at local shows, the RUAS, National Balmoral and Northern Indoor Championships while, last August, she was on the national judging team in the RDS.

The Route Hunt has played a big role in the lives of the Whites with Philip, who has been on the committee for a very long time, becoming Master around 1985; he still holds that position. Eavan was on the committee of the Route Branch of The Pony Club from 1979 to 2018, serving the last 13 years as District Commissioner.

Philip did some point-to-point riding for the late James Kelly in the 1970s, managing a couple of second and third placings. When gifted a thoroughbred mare by the late James Alexander in the early 1980s, he trained and rode her in several point-to-points. The Whites are breeding from that mare’s grandaughter, Tyra MB.

Philip continued on pointing until, according to Eavan, “he then got a bit of sense after incurring a serious fall at the Carrowclare meeting, resulting in seven weeks in traction during which time he missed out on eventing at Rademon and Punchestown. He went back to show jumping and eventing as the safer option!”

Philip and Eavan White with Judy and John Cooper at the 2018 David Foster Injured Riders Fund Ball at The Johnstown Estate Hotel, Enfield, Co Meath \ Alison Murphy Photography

Next generation

The White’s daughter Tegan started riding at the age of two and was four when joining the Route Pony Club.

“Her first real jumping pony was the 128cms Little Dun,” recalled Eavan. “He was followed by the 138cms gelding Ardmore Misty Rocket who we leased for three years from Leslie McFaul. In 1998, they qualified for the RDS where they placed sixth in the championship.

“The 148cms Barbary Belle started life as a broodmare. She then became a riding school pony until we registered her at the age of 10 and she climbed to Grade A in six months, competing in RDS qualifiers and several pony Championships. Tegan gained a lot of experience riding Belle and Tannagh Lavaso which set her up well for the transition to horses.

“She began on home-breds, French Point (a thoroughbred by Roi Guillaume) and Rasay Roiale (a Roi Guil laume half-sister to Mizen Talent) for example, while, in 2002, Philip secured her the ride on Roy Shields’s stallion Rockrimmon Senator.

“Tegan built up a brilliant relationship with ‘Sylvester’, winning the 1.35m finals at the RUAS in May 2002 and being selected for the Junior Europeans that year. The team travelled to Hagen in Germany via Hickstead where Tegan was placed in a 1.40m class while she was also placed in the opening speed class at the Europeans.

“Over the next few years, Tegan competed in many Grand Prix classes in Ireland and made several trips to Hickstead where she won a 1.40m class and finished third in the Young Rider championship in the Main Arena. She had a lot of success and enjoyment for a few years until a job in Dublin (as a property consultant with Savills) curtailed her equestrian activities for a while.

“In 2012, Tegan’s friend, Davina Gray, persuaded her to try eventing and took her to watch the international at Tattersalls. While walking the course she thought that her seven-year-old Texan Style (a skewbald half-brother to Portersize Just A Jiff), who was then being show jumped by Philip, would adjust to a career change. She immediately took up eventing and jumped a double clear in the CCI1* at Tatts the following year.

“Tegan and Texas have gone from strength to strength since then and, in October 2018, were clear across the country in the CCI3* at Boekelo after which Tegan took time out of the saddle once more.

“She had her second baby, Cora, in October so decided to make good use of her maternity leave by relocating with her family to Maddybenny so she could compete Texan Style and two five-year-olds we bought as foals. Unfortunately, Covid-19 scuppered those plans but, as it has turned out, it’s so much better that they are all here during this lockdown. Cian, her husband, can work from here just as easily as in Dublin while their two-year-old son Tom is tractor-mad and loves life on the farm with his Grandad.

“Our son Jack, who lives in Canada, rode from the age of eight to 18. He had great times as he used the ponies and horses as a vehicle to socialise.

“When Jack went to university in Edinburgh, to study Actuarial Science and Maths, that seemingly brought an end to his equestrian pursuits. However, when later called upon to be the heavyweight for the Route Hunt team chase quartet for the RDS, he got his riding boots down from the attic and fulfilled his ambition to ride in the Main Arena!

“Having finished university, Jack was back and forth between Dublin and Canada, where he now has citizenship. He married a Canadian girl, Courtney, in August 2019 and the wedding was here.

“Jack and Courtney now live in Ottawa which looks like being their permanent home but, thankfully, is on the better side of the country for us to visit!”