MARIA McNamara rode a quartet of Shanbally horses for her father Tom in the four and five-year-old Pegus Horse Feeds Irish Draught performance qualifier last Saturday at Gransha Equestrian where she qualified two by right, while a third, Shanbally Pippalo Pat, secured a reserve spot.

The Craughwell team decided to undertake the four-hour drive up to Bangor on Saturday as they couldn’t go to the closer venue of Tubberbride on Sunday having entered horses in the Kildare performance hunter show in Punchestown. They had no older horses at Gransha so were able to leave as soon as the first qualifier was over for the long drive home.

Helen Troughton judged the Irish Draughts on the flat, with Victoria Teuton then taking over to assess them in jumping. McNamara led early with Shanbally Hipflask on 40.5 marks, but that grey gelding by Lisatara Tom ultimately had to settle for a close-up second on 136.5 behind his stable-companion Shanbally Master (137).

Only sixth after dressage, the successful Carrickcottage Star gelding obviously impressed Teuton who had him on 104 for jumping with Shanbally Hipflask and the Darren Jordan-ridden Kings View, a four-year-old son of Echo View who qualified in fifth (125), both next best on 96. Gwen Scott finished third with the previously-qualified Moylough Bouncer five-year-old Rockdale Star Bouncer (132.5), while Sammy Weston qualified with the fourth-placed Ainninn Kamaria (128.5), a four-year-old Lionwood Kinsales Lad mare.

Shanbally Master was bred in Co Offaly by Anne Rabbitte out of her Fintan Himself mare Fintans Girl, who has since produced two Irish Sport Horse fillies by Another Pleasure.

Weston won the six-year-old and upwards qualifier with Charlotte and Nigel Moore’s home-bred Tullys Cherry, who showed consistency in both phases to amass a total of 154.5 marks. The Skip And Sea nine-year-old mare, who has 34 Showjumping Ireland points to her credit, is out of Tullys Valley (by Crosstown Dancer) and comes from the family of Tully Lane (CCI4*-S) among others.

The Nicola Martin-ridden Dundrum Misty Blue (150), a seven-year-old Killinick Bouncer mare, who was placed in all five of her EI90 Amateur starts last season and finished fifth at Balmoral, owes her runner-up position on Saturday to her winning jump tally of 116 marks.

Sammy Weston and Tullys Cherry won Gransha's qualifier for Balmoral's six/seven-year-old Irish Draught performance class \ Anne Hughes

Co Meath raiders Zorha Smyth and the well-known 13-year-old Clew Bay Bouncer gelding Cloonan Hector qualified in third (140.5), ahead of the flat phase winners, Ben Rainey and the eight-year-old Carrabawn Cross gelding Dowdstown PJ (139.5).