THE South Tyrone Hunt made a piece of history when their joint-master Andy Oliver won the Ward Union Antler Challenge Cross-Country Race on his clever half-bred hunter Donavan.

Not alone was he the overall winner but he also won the Heavyweight, the Veteran classes and also the First Half-bred Home at the event. His wife Saffron, riding Rio, was the Leading Lady Rider as well as coming sixth overall. Mark McIlroy was fifth, Alex Buller was 21st, Ian Moore was 24th and Jason McKeown completed the course.

Of the 24 to complete the course, the South Tyrone had 25% of the finishers and they have many great riders in reserve for the Golden Button! But they are known as hard riding hunt followers, and their country is not for the fainthearted with every type of obstacle and they don’t have a reputation for opening gates!

The meet was in the Tidy Towns-winning village of Glaslough on the border of north Monaghan and south Tyrone with a population of 453, and beside the village is the Castle Leslie Hotel, Riding Centre and 1,000 acre estate.

But the followers settled into the wonderful old world pub, The Olde Bar, originally the Railway Hotel, and now run by publican and funeral director Ron Kendrick. It is a gem dating back to 1860 and untouched by fancy designs, formica, or other materials that have no place in a traditional Irish Pub.

The old Women’s Snug (not very politically correct nowadays) is intact with a sliding door off the bar which reminded me of actor Eamonn Morrissey’s sketch where the door slides back for a few seconds just enough to allow him to say quickly, ‘A Ball of Malt (whiskey) and a Pint (Guinness)’! There is an open fire, a backroom parlour, a funeral home, so within its intimate surroundings, you can celebrate births, deaths, and marriages.

There hasn’t been a meet in Glaslough for 25 plus years, and according to meet organisers Brigetta McArdle and John McKenna, both farmers themselves, said the farmers wanted it back. During the Troubles, there was a meet in nearby Mullen Village but the security services blocked the Border roads and blew up the bridge. However, followers and hounds still managed to walk across the bomb craters to get to the draws!

There is always action hunting with the South Tyrone and this day was no different. The country is made up of drumlins, grassland, with stiff blackthorn hedges, and plenty of wire but they take it all in their stride.

Brigetta McArdle worked at one time with the late Co Clare veterinary surgeon John Hassett, and his wife Eileen. I remember spending an evening in their home with a group of hunting friends reciting poetry of which he had tremendous knowledge.

Huntsman and masters

Joint-master Andy Oliver, despite the race celebrations, was out leading the followers at Glaslough while he rested his Antler Challenge winner. Huntsman Ryan Carvill is a top class rider which he has to be because of the challenging country, but he is also a noted breeder of hounds.

This season he has the use of Heytrop Ransack ’17, a hound that has a reputation for correct offspring with good fox sense. At The National Hound Show last year, Ryan won The Unentered Doghound Championship with Harper 21, and probably the most difficult class to win The Best Two Couple of Bitches Open with Popcorn ’20, Glossy ’20, Glorious ’20 and Peewit ’18. He also won The Brood Bitch Open with Glorious ’20 and The Reserve Champion Bitch with Popcorn ’20.

His son Matthew is doing a fine job whipping-in, and I noticed him doing a quick count of hounds at each check, always a sign of a thinking whipper-in. He is fortunate to have two of the best horsemen assisting with whipping-in duties, Paul Kinane and Kildare farrier Shane Crabbe. Both are great horse producers and Crabbe has two of the best hunters around - one of which is Cruiser by Royal Cruise out of an Ard Granpa mare - and Kinane was on Aidan that came from the Golden Vale Hunt.

Paul’s father Tommy described Paul as more of a natural horseman than the rest of the family even though his brother Michael won classics on four Continents. Paul has ridden in Ireland, UK, Japan, Australia and New Zealand as well as sourcing group winners for clients in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Dan Jones from Wales is the hunt countryman.

Former master Dr Cathal Cassidy, who worked for a few years in New Zealand, is going back for the Hunting Festival in May to The Rotorua & Bay of Plenty Harriers. They will host hunts from both north and south islands and there will be up to 300 mounted followers each day.

Others hunting on the day with Andy Oliver were Ian Moore, Dr Cathal Cassidy and his son Daniel, Mark McIlroy, Austin Weir while farrier Evan McKillan was following as well as Oliver Ferris who is back from Australia and Patsy McKenna who hunts with his foot pack in the area.

Hunting

Leaving the village at St Mary’s National School, there was a big cheer from the children on their break who were fascinated with the 19 ½ couple of hounds. The hounds immediately went over to them getting lots of patting from the children.

Then on to the first draw opposite New Mill on the Blackwater River, built in 1790 to process corn, scutch and flax, different processes because of the seasonal nature of crops. Flax was in demand with the popularity of linen in the 18th and 19th centuries, and particularly in World War I when the early bi-plane wings were covered in linen and bonded to provide lightness and strength.

The pack meanwhile weaved back and forth completely focused along the river bank and around a derelict building, and as they got to the top of the hill, they hit on a brace straight away and were gone in a flash. Hunt staff and whippers-in had to jump a set of double gates to make sure they stayed with them as they ran a wide circle over Tommy O’Connor’s and Jim Porter’s in Lowart. Jim’s racehorse Drumbear is in training with John O’Connell and recently turned professional Ben Harvey rode for him. Hounds were still way ahead running on to Kilabowley and Mullinary and eventually ending up at the back boundary wall of the Castle Leslie’s 1,000 acre estate. A cracking run, but foxhound Glitter was slow to come away and game to go on.

They then crossed John McArdle’s and McAree’s and over the hill back to Lowart and crossed over the Blackwater River into Shelvin’s where hounds found in Drumagelvin and ran a loop to Robert Wilson’s and Shelvin’s and to ground.

Moving on to Terrycalf and over the hill through the townland of Tirevra, hounds found in the fir trees with the pack in full cry. One road follower remarked: ‘It’s a huge fox and he is heading up to the hen houses on the hill’.

Blackthorn hedges

The followers meanwhile were taking on a series of stiff blackthorn hedges. Shane Crabbe and Paul Kinane jumped a set of double gates across a lane and went left-handed over the hill where there were hedges with wire each side. They took them in their stride right-handed over the Armagh to Monaghan road and marked in a bank.

Crossing down the Weir road into Doaghey’s and through the crossroads at Aughaloughan, they ended up in Jimmy McKenna’s on the Monaghan to Glaslough road where a Shetland pony was keen to join them. Farmer Brigetta McArdle had time to check how Mervyn, her new ram, was getting on with his flock of ewes!

The huntsman summed it up, “great hospitality, welcoming farmers. and foxes that were kind as they ran the right way”. Add the quaintness of The Olde Bar in the village, the type of pub that is very difficult to leave...but the South Tyrones will be back!

History

The hunt was reformed in 1960 after disbanding in the post war years. They hunt South Tyrone, North Monaghan and North Armagh.

Factfile

South Tyrone Foxhounds

Chairman - Creighton Boyd

Masters - Andy Oliver and Tony Weir

Huntsman - Ryan Carvill

Whippers-in - Matthew Carvill, Paul Kinane and Shane Crabbe

Honorary Secretary - Naomi

Buchannan