ELLA Boyle’s Monbeg Dunard Blue, a €45,000 graduate of last November’s Goresbridge Go For Gold Sale, won the five-year-old Balmoral Star of the Future qualifier at Gransha Equestrian last Saturday in the hands of Killinchy’s Ben Rainey.

The Irish Sport Horse gelding by Zirocco Blue VDL, who was bred in Co Westmeath by Maeve Cuffe, is out of the Monaco mare Samenta who comes from the family of Dominant (1.60m) and is dam previously of the Touchdown gelding Devine Spirit (1.30m).

The grey was purchased early in 2024 by Monbeg’s Tomás Doyle and Marti Rudd, who jumped him in four-year-old classes right up to the end of October, winning a Horse Sport Ireland/DAFM development class during the summer. When consigned to the Go For Gold sale, Monbeg Dunard Blue was described as being a horse with an outstanding temperament, who could excel in any sphere. Since joining Boyle’s Hillsborough yard, he has been brought along slowly.

“We’ve just been schooling him and doing some training shows before the Balmoral qualifiers started,” revealed Boyle, who is extremely busy at present with her studies (she is on the first-ever fully-regulated Equine Hydrotherapy course with VETHED, which is mostly online, but does have a lot of practicals) while also getting her new venture, Glebe Equine (for equine fitness and rehab), off the ground; it opens officially next week.

“He’s a really nice horse and we are just taking our time getting him into our way of going.

"Ben (Rainey) works with me in the mornings, helping me produce the young horses. I, in return, help him daily and we work really well together. He’s a real asset to the team! It’s been a massive operation to get to this point and I’ve been so lucky I’ve had so much help.

“I was delighted for Ben and ‘Rocco’ to get the win at the weekend. He’s Ben’s favourite on the yard and he’s doing a lovely job with the horse for me, so they really deserved it. The five-year-olds including Rocco will all probably be aimed at a couple of events in the summer and maybe Dublin qualifiers.”

Victoria Teuton, who judged the two classes at Gransha, had Rainey and Monbeg Dunard Blue on a total of 92 marks, which gave them a one-point win over Jonny Steele and the ISH gelding Punch Lion, a bay son of Herald 3. Finishing on the same total (91), but having to settle for third was Rachel Thompson with Keonan Stables’ ISH gelding Garralent, a chesnut son of Valent.

Laing on top

Newtownards-based Jackson Laing topped Teuton’s scores in the six and seven-year-old qualifier with the ISH gelding GS Benedicti (94 marks), a Carrera VDL seven-year-old bred in Co Donegal by Glenmore Livestock Ltd. The chesnut, who is out of the Hold Up Premier mare Une Belle Amie-S, has 54 Show Jumping Ireland points to his credit and was campaigned by Laing on the Sunshine Tour last March.

Ballynahinch farrier Rory Lavery rode two horses in this class, finishing second on the Claire Steele-bred ISH mare Forever My Girl (91), a six-year-old bay daughter of Centre Stage out of the OBOS Quality 004 mare Boleybawn Saris. Emma Jackson slotted into third with Patricia Nicholson’s year older ISH gelding Master Lion (88), a Luidam chesnut out of a Calido I full-sister to Crosshill (1.60m).

The last of five qualifiers for the Star of the Future championships at Balmoral Show (May 14th to 17th) takes place tomorrow at Lusk Equestrian.