THERE was a very large entry for last Sunday’s Irish Pony Club/Connolly’s Red Mills eventing qualifier hosted by Area 7 at Tattersalls so it’s good that the Area representative, David Byrne, was able to be on site early as he lives right opposite the Co Meath venue.

Disappointingly, there were only seven entries (four from Kildare) in the Open competition and, of these, just the winner, Edel Whyte, completed without jumping penalties. Throughout the day, the show jumping phase proved the undoing of some who led after dressage.

Whyte, a member of the Longford Branch, picked up four cross-country time penalties for a three-phase score of 28.8 with the eight-year-old Manninard Abel gelding Abel Star on whom she has represented her Branch, and the IPC, with distinction over the past few seasons.

In Section A of the Intermediate, the Killinicks’ Rian Carroll partnered the 16-year-old Don Tristan gelding Ushouldbesolucky (30.5) to a narrow victory over Island Branch member Ellen Creed whose total of 30.7 with Westbrook Dancer included 0.4 of a time penalty.

In Section B, Nadine Dunne took the honours for Meath on Rico Zippy Sparrow, a seven-year-old Ricardo Royale gelding with whom she has qualified for the new Junior/Young Rider event horse championship at the Dublin Horse Show.

Fellow Branch member Timmy Love repeated his Killossery win at Novice Intermediate level with DSL Allegra, a five-year-old mare by the Swedish Warmblood stallion Jack Of Diamonds.

Junior divisions

The Meaths also struck at Junior level winning Section A through Julie Forrest and the 16-year-old bay gelding Killone Rio. Riding the 12-year-old Templebready Bosun gelding Casper’s Midnight Dream, Jude Donohue won Section B for the Carlow Branch while the Ward Union’s Emily Brooks recorded an all-the-way victory in Section C with the 11-year-old bay mare Melview Another Clover.

The Junior starter competition attracted an entry of 15 of whom, just the winner, Bray’s Esme O’Hagan completed on her dressage score with the 15-year-old dun mare Ballymartin Queen.

Hazel Gleeson, a member of the Newcastle Lyons Branch, won Section A of the Under 12s’ competition by a four-point margin on the 14-year-old skewbald gelding Remondi Bobtail, while the Ward Union’s Hugh Kelly topped the final standings in Section B with another well-known Pony Club mount, the 18-year-old piebald gelding Isle Of Glass Ben.

Representing the Island Branch, Allison Dunne landed the combined training class on her winning dressage score with the 14-year-old chesnut gelding Crimson And Clover.