FOUR judges were engaged for last Sunday’s Dressage Ireland Leinster Region show at the National Horse Sport Arena in Blanchardstown with Dermot Cannon (List 1) and Michael Moore (List 2A) taking charge of all classes from Elementary level up.

They agreed on four winners, the first ‘double’ being recorded in the two Elementary classes by Iris Walshe on her Dutch Warmblood gelding Olaf van Lange Weeran.

Cannon awarded Walshe and the tall Hennessey six-year-old a score of 67.50% in the DI52, while they achieved 68.75 in the Moore-judged DI55.

At Advanced Medium level, Lucy Cusack topped the scores in the Moore-assessed six-strong DI90 (68.24) and the Cannon-judged four-runner FEI Junior Test (66.48) on her Dutch Warmblood gelding Kirktown. The 10-year-old Uptown bay is out of the Ravel mare Gavelle ter Kwincke who is a half-sister to the Grand Prix level Uptown stallion Bojengel.

Lucy Cusask and Kirktown won the DI90 and FEI Junior Test at the National Horse Sport Arena \ Louise O'Brien Photography

There were three runners in the Cannon-judged Prix St George and a similar number in the Moore-judged Inter I where, on 69.71 and 69.56 respectively, Tara Hayes claimed the honours riding her mother Fiona’s home-bred Irish Sport Horse mare Sandora BS, a nine-year-old bay by the Westphalian stallion Spielberg.

The judges had little choice but to agree on their winner of the two Advanced classes, the DI100 and the FEI Young Riders Preliminary test, as the sole combination forward to score 66.86 and 66.41 respectively was Victoria O’Carroll with her Dutch Warmblood mare Laguna, a nine-year-old chesnut daughter of Valdez.

On board her mother Carmel’s German Riding Pony gelding HS, Cadhla Curran recorded an uncontested win before Moore in the FEI Pony rider individual test, scoring 65.68, before she and the Valdez HS liver chesnut saw off one rival combination in the Cannon-judged FEI Pony team test, scoring 66.14.

The judges disagreed at Medium level but with good reason as Moore’s winners of the four-runner DI65, Debbie Tems and the ex-racehorse Indian Landing (69.06), a 17-year-old chesnut gelding by Barathea, weren’t entered in the DI77 where the higher of Cannon’s scores, 66.29, was achieved by Elaine Murphy and the ISH mare QT An Tanaiste, an 11-year-old Quaterback chesnut, bred by Vida Tansey.

Highest score for Turbo

Three combinations appeared before Cannon in the Grand Prix where he awarded his day’s highest score (70.22) to Sorrell Klatzko on board her Westphalian gelding Turbo, a tall 12-year-old son of Totilas.

The lower graded classes were judged by Jean Halpenny (List 3) and June Loughran (List 5). Although the two Category 2 riders withdrew their horses, Halpenny still faced the day’s largest field of 11 in the Preliminary DI6 where her overall leaderboard was topped by Anna Callery riding the newcomer SP Molly Malone (70). This very tall Finnish Warmblood mare is a six-year-old by Marc Cain out of the Scolari mare Stella Maris.

There were three withdrawals from the Novice DI24A leaving nine starters, two of whom Loughran had on her top score of 75.17. These were Darragh Whyte on the ISH mare Miss Uptown Girl, a nine-year-old bay by OBOS Quality 004, and Bee Sykes on the Hanoverian gelding Con Caballito, a 14-year-old dark bay by Christ. As he had the higher collective score (71 to 68), Whyte claimed the honours.

There was a bit of a gap between the pair in the Halpenny-judged DI21 but here the top score of 69.66 was recorded by Maura Walsh on board her nine-year-old piebald mare DTS First Flight.

Riding for their mother Mary, the Ferris sisters, Abbey and Lucy, won and placed second in the two dedicated Junior Preliminary classes.

In the Halpenny-judged DI6, Abbey and the ISH mare Connaght Curlew (70.96), an eight-year-old bay daughter of Easy Living, narrowly saw off the challenge of Lucy and How Ya Sammy (70). Loughran had the sisters the other way around in the DI15 where Lucy and the Connemara gelding How Ya Sammy (78.04), a nine-year-old bay by Woodfield Sammy, claimed the honours ahead of Abbey and Connaght Curlew (77.86).

The next Leinster Region show takes place at CoilÓg on Sunday, November 2nd.