SEPARATING their potential event horse class from its agricultural show pays off in spades for the Newcastle West Show team.
Their three-year-old event class doubles as a Dublin qualifier and this precision-organised event was held in advance of tomorrow’s (Sunday) show day.
While Newcastle West show takes place on the town’s outskirts, Ballynoe is the appropriate setting for the qualifier - Ballynoecastle RM, Buck Davidson’s stalwart campaigner, is just one of several top-class performers produced on-site. Terence Leonard and ‘birthday girl’ Deirdre Connolly were last Friday’s hosts and another couple celebrating afterwards was Emma Walsh and Andrew Shinnick, as their CSF Jordan topped the 32-strong entry list.
“We’re delighted, especially because we have a mare with Kieran [Kennedy] now for covering!” said Emma, as the Ballynoe winner also received a Coolballyshan Stud nomination, an added bonus for the Fermoy owner.
Bred by Brian Connolly, CSF Jordan is by Kylemore Stud’s former resident, the young Cornet Obolensky son Cornerado VDL. Originally produced by Vincent Byrne, the nine-year-old is currently competing on the Florida circuit with Cormac Hanley.
CSF Jordan’s Darco dam - Angie van Paemel - was one of the original broodmares sourced on the continent by the Connolly family, breeders of James Kann Cruz. She has already produced Canadian rider Jill Thomas’s four-star eventer OBOS Darco, by longtime Coolballyshan resident OBOS Quality.
The second ‘Dublin bus ticket’ went to Meathman John Bannon, who qualified his two previous final winners - by VDL Orestus (2022) and Vivant van de Heffinck (2023) - here.
This time, he qualified Clarecastle Spirit, who was bred by Barry Lyons. By the Casall son Alicante 3, this chesnut gelding is out of Cougar Bella, a mare packed with Banner County breeding through her sire Cougar and grandsire Able Albert.
Splitting third place were Fergus Lawlor’s Libella (SIEC Livello) and Brian Lenihan and Conor Healy’s OHSHN Vivbay (Vivant van de Heffinck).
Most owners planned to continue on the Dublin campaign trail with more qualifiers held this week at Top Flight, Co Clare Showgrounds, Tubberbride, Mullingar and Kernan’s equestrian centres.
“As a show committee, we really enjoy running the three-year-old potential event horse class, originally the brainchild of the late Michael Leonard of Ringwood Stud, Newcastle West. We’re honoured to have this RDS qualifier and this year’s entry brought high-quality, well-schooled young horses.
“We were all delighted to see our winner announced and celebrated by a young couple who obviously have a good eye for a horse and know how to produce a youngster. The winner was impeccably turned-out and served up a performance to match.
“We will all be in Dublin in August to see how our two Ballynoe-qualified finalists get on and we wish them both the best of luck on the big stage,” said Newcastle West chairman Liam Ruttle.
High standard
Irish Olympian Sarah Ennis, named this week on the Aachen Nations Cup eventing team, and Gowran-based Nicky Roncoroni were the judges.
“Overall, an absolutely excellent standard. It’s fabulous to come back here for a second year and to judge some really standout performances. Some really interesting breeding pages, that obviously we were able to see after we finished judging. Overall, the standard was very, very high,” said Roncoroni.
She added: “There’s absolutely two markets for event horses; I’ve thought that for a very long time. The horse that you’re needing to gallop round Badminton and Burghley for 11.5 minutes is a very, very different horse to the one that you need to go and win a gold medal at the Olympic Games now with its shortened cross-country course, two show jumping rounds and a shortened dressage test as well.”
She nominated her Touchdown young rider horse and five-star veteran Trig Point as her horses of a lifetime.
“I’m lucky enough to have had two. Trig Point (Ghareeb) was most definitely a very, very special horse. It would bring tears to your eyes thinking about how brilliant, brave and honest he was. Wasn’t the most talented, pidgeon-toed in front, big scar on a front leg but my goodness, he just had the biggest heart you’ve ever, ever known in a horse.”
Co-judge Sarah Ennis said: “Such a vast selection of horses and I’ve so much admiration for people who breed horses. I’ve done a bit and it is a tough road, it’s hard to come out and breed a champion. We had a lovely, lovely selection of horses here.
“Has to be Stellor Rebound (VDL Ricochet) as my horse of a lifetime,” Ennis added, “he’s very special to me. My mum bought him for me. He was only 16 hands because he has a huge wither but just as Nicky said about her horse, the biggest heart in the world. No matter what you put in front of him, he just said, ‘I’ll jump it.’ He was just amazing.”