Margie McLoone

TOMORROW the final qualifier for this year’s Irish Pony Club/Connolly’s Red Mills eventing championships takes place at the Tinahely Riding Club grounds at Coolboy, Co Wicklow.

The championships are being staged the following weekend at Kilguilkey House, Mallow. This new venue for the two-day fixture hosted a very successful international event last month and also ran a Red Mills qualifier.

At this stage, the Killinicks’ Noel Dunne leads the open league on a score of 18 points with his unraced Warcraft gelding Warship, a 19-year-old with plenty of eventing experience behind him.

Dunne’s teammate Rachel Rowe is two points adrift with The Artist’s Apprentice, sharing second place with Aisling O’Brien (Glenomra Andy) of the West Waterford Branch.

INTERMEDIATE LEAGUE

Niamh Hayden, who featured on the cover of the Irish Horse World with Freddie following a win earlier in the campaign, is running away with the Intermediate league. She is on 40 points, more than double that of her nearest rival, Meath’s Iona Pollock (Killinick Dazzler).

Things are a lot closer at junior level, where Waterford’s Ruth Burke (Freemount Tayto) is on 26 points, one ahead of the Golden Vale’s Kelly Ann Byrne Gilleece (Kelly Choice) with Allanah Kelly (Killington Lady) of Laois three points further back in third.