SCOTLAND’s Jo Jack and England’s Louise Gaunt judged the Carr & Day & Martin-sponsored pony working hunter classes at Balmoral Show last Saturday, starting with the Intermediate class where all but one of the seven entries met their engagement.

While there was a considerable gap back to third, only three points separated the top two in the line-up where Co Wicklow’s Charlotte Goor claimed the win with her mother Fiona’s Ardville Whispering Hope (93).

Co Meath’s Kate Horgan finished second on 90 points with her mother Hannah’s seven-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding Highview Shakespeare, the Lagans OBOS Quality bay she is competing in the CCIYH2*-S at Millstreet this weekend.

Having finished second in the Clifden high performance qualifier on Thursday, Co Limerick’s Sophie Cusack found herself occupying the same position in Saturday’s 153cms class with her mother Oorla’s 10-year-old Connemara gelding Clareville Codiac (89), a grey son of Caherlistrane Bay. Here, Co Down’s Katie Annett filled the top spot with her mother Gayle’s Illane Duke (93).

There were 15 starters in that class and 23 in the 143cms section where the scorers had to look more closely at the marks to get a result as two combinations completed on 93 points apiece.

Thanks to their higher way of going mark (nine to seven), the win was credited to Co Tipperary’s Evie Kennedy and her mother Maeve’s 17-year-old Little Dromin Phoenix (winners of the Clifden high performance qualifier two days earlier). Co Kilkenny’s Aisling Malone had to settle for second on her mother Grainne’s Connemara gelding Barravalley Bailey, a seven-year-old dun by Barravalley Jack.

Another dun gelding, but one with no recorded pedigree, the 15-year-old Tinnecarrig Milo was partnered by Co Wicklow owner Lucy Kelly’s son Tristan to win the 10-runner 133cms class on a total of 91.5 points. Riding for Hannah Horgan, Ellie Murphy finished second on the 21-year-old Rotherwood Secret Agent gelding Stockholm Secret Envoy (87.5).

The judges’ final task was to chose their champion and reserve and the tricoloured sash was presented to Charlotte Goor on Ardville Whispering Hope, a 10-year-old ISH mare by KAH Clintender who was bred in Co Fermanagh by Ernest Somerville out of the VDL Arkansas mare Ardville Killycairn. This combination finished fourth in the 153cms Junior equitation class at Dublin last August.

Katie Annett filled the reserve spot on the Thomas Vaughan-bred nine-year-old gelding Illane Duke (Ardgaineen Rebel – Manister Celine, by Cloon-Eile Cashel), a position this combination also occupied in their dedicated Connemara section on Thursday.