Dickie Power

I DO not know how many opening meets of Scarteen I have attended right back to when Thady Ryan carried the horn. Time has moved on now that Chris Ryan has designated Mark Ollard as huntsman. Another change is that long time whip and kennel huntsman Joe Taylor has stepped back from his role in the hunting field and kennels to concentrate on farming.

Joe gave great service to Scarteen, he was an outstanding whip, crossed the country with style and a steady determination based on good horsemanship allied with a deep knowledge of farming and the hunt country. He will be missed!

The opening meet is always a gala occasion with the season set in good store by a blessing for the hounds, followers and landowners from the local PP at the kennels before the short hack to the sporting village of Knocklong.

Scent makes liars out of us all.

The accepted knowledge on scent is that warm sunny days early in the season result in zero scent. The appointed day filled all those criteria so we expected a day of gentle hacking and sociability.

The field gathered on the historic hill of Knocklong in the shadow of Knocklong Castle, operated as stud farm by Eamonn Moloney, nominations manager at Kildangan. The Moloneys have been farming hunting and breeding horses in Knocklong for as long as anyone can remember. His father John has managed Galway racecourse for the last 30 years now to be succeeded in the role by his son Michael. The interlude gave an opportunity to remake acquaintances after the summer lay-off. This was sadly curtailed as hounds found almost immediately and a fine dog fox was afoot. This was looked on by the experts sitting on the hill as youthful exuberance that would soon settle.

So much for the experts!

It was just the start of more than two hours continuous hunting through the cream of the country. Our pilot took us across the main road to Grange and straight into Scarteen itself. Since last season huge farming work has taken place on the estate with all trenches dug out with every fence becoming a challenge.

At times like this one must pick a pathfinder. Shane Breen, the master of Hickstead and its world famous bank, riding a horse belonging to his uncle James from Emly seemed to fit the bill. Young Shane played a blinder over the Scarteen banks and I at least attempted to follow him. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Adrienne O’Connell who was out with her better half Timmy (farrier to the stars) breast one of the big doubles and was bounced out of the saddle. All was well as Timmy was on hand and at the next check, horse and jockey were re-united with Adrienne still smiling. Hounds hunted on across the road to Castle Jane and on to Ballyskidane where our pilot was marked to ground. By this stage it was almost 2pm and horses and a much depleted field having more than enough done, our huntsman blew for home.

FAST AND FURIOUS

By common consent, Cullen was always going to be special!

Those in the know had booked their seats well in advance and with a strong group of English girls, mostly from the Brockelsby in Lincolnshire, guests of joint-master Daniel Crane, the field was well subscribed. It kicked off with a hunt breakfast run by Mel Purcell who has organised a Scarteen Social club. She was assisted by Anne Clarke among others in dispensing hospitality. With the inner man taken care of, it was time to mount up and Mark Ollard with Chris Ryan as his guardian angel both on spectacular greys took hounds to the first draw at Willie Conway’s. This was blank and we hacked back through the village to Conor Condon’s farm. Here hounds found and ran quickly to John Edward’s at Longstone where John and Avena were on hand. John, formerly a leading NH trainer, was formerly joint-master in Scarteen.

Scent was never better than patchy but hounds hunted on the Riordan’s bog which never fails to produce a fox. Living up to its reputation, it held a brace and a fox ran for Ballinacree. Jumping over a decent trench, Maraid English took a hard fall and broke her wrist. Retired doctor Noel Gallivan dismounted and attended to the patient who was somewhat concussed. Maraid, a nurse, has attended countless casualties in the hunting field so it was a reversal of roles for her to be the patient. Her travelling companion and helper Teegan Smith and young Robbie Burns saw her back to the road from where she went to hospital. As I write, she has had surgery and the wrist plated.

Before we could reach the famed cover of Ballinacree, we had to jump over a monumental bank into McManus’s stud farm, managed by Mark Clery who could not hunt on the day as he had to be on duty. However he had all preparations in hand - wire down, stock in etc.

This bank takes a bit of jumping. As I arrived, having done my good deed helping Maraid, hunt staff were already over but Sonya Purcell, IMFHA general secretary, had just failed to reach the summit, got separated from her mount who continued riderless. Peter Wate, a dairy farmer from Dorset and husband of Emma MacDermott, the well-known sculptor had the distinction of two falls at the same fence having fallen on the way up, remounted on the summit and went out the front door on the way down!

Helen Bowser, another UK jockey, had a spectacular fall as she went head first into the trench closely followed by her horse. However Allie Crane on James Breen’s Harietta gave a copybook performance soaring off the summit on the landing side as did husband Daniel on Billy Halligan’s horse. Going well was John Breen, back on ancestral acres, father of showjumpers Shane and Trevor. John, a retired bank manager, was going with an abandon which belied his years. Another jockey of uncertain years having his first day this season and going like smoke on his faithful Millie was Jim Mulcahy.

Hounds went on to draw Purcell’s Folly, a covert planted by Phil Purcell on his farm at Farran, now run by his son Ken and his wife Mel, both of whom were out and at least one of them had a clear round! Hounds had barely entered the covert when Rainbow, a four-year-old bitch by Rapture threw her tongue and we had a fine dog fox who set his mask for the village of Emly. The chosen spot to jump into neighbouring farm took a bit of jumping and as I arrived, I saw joint-master Kate Jarvey just failing to reach the summit and slipping back into the cavernous trench. I had spotted young Dermot O’Halloran finding an alternative spot which was slightly kinder. His wife Camilla was riding a grey cob who spent more time on his hind legs than on all four. Taking Dermot’s route proved successful and followed by a good group, we went through O’Meara’s dairy farm over some smashing jumping towards the Knockane road.

As hounds crossed the road, the line was foiled by cattle and to add to the huntsman’s problems, electric fences were all live which didn’t help hounds’ concentration. We returned to Purcell’s as there had been a brace in covert and a fox had remained who ran across the road towards Mooresfort before swinging back towards Farran and running to the river before swinging left-handed to find refuge in a welcoming shore.

It was a smashing day’s hunting in country which has been untouched by modernity and a great welcome from farmers and landowners in the area.

FACTFILE Kennels: Scarteen, Knocklong, Co Limerick Chairman: Charlie Moore Joint-master: Christopher Ryan Joint-masters: Kate Jarvey, Daniel Crane, Roger Dungworth Field-master: James Riordan Secretary: Triona Fitzpatrick Huntsman: Mark Ollard

HISTORY

The earliest records of the Scarteen Black and Tan hounds and the Ryan family goes back to 1640 shortly after the flight of the Earls. Around 1820, Daniel O’Connell (The Liberator) disbanded his pack of Kerry Beagles and his hounds were sent to Scarteen to augment the Scarteen Pack. The Ryans of Scarteen were closely related to the O’Connell’s of Caherdaniel. Present master Chris Ryan, now in his 28th season, is the eighth generation of his family to carry the horn.