IN two sessions sponsored by Berney Bros Saddlery, Ring 2 will be the centre of attention for Connemara fans at the Gallagher Dublin Horse Show next Thursday when the four ridden classes will be judged by Britain’s Terry Pendry and Fiona Cabrol.

Combinations had to qualify for three of these and among those who bagged a golden ticket early in the series at Tullylish was last year’s champion, Eastlands Jollybrae, who is ridden for Kathryn Smiley by her sister Charlotte.

The 2020 Eastlands Harleybrae gelding, who was bred in Scotland by John and Dianna Staveley, won the four and five-year-old class last August from Emma Walsh’s Dunloughan Troy gelding Emlaughmore Misto and Aoife O’Connor’s Blakehill Sparrow gelding Teach Mór Sparrow who, too, have moved up to the six-year-old and upwards class for riders aged 17 and over.

There, they will face the 2025 class winner, the 12-year-old Brock Lodge Buster gelding Loughmore Mick, who is ridden for Patrick Meehan by Emily Collins, and the fourth-placed Skellorn Superted who Aimee Stunt rides for Emma Walsh. That nine-year-old Skellorn Monarch gelding has also qualified for class restricted to riders aged between 10 and 17

The 2025 reserve champion was the since exported Tullaree Fear Buí, winner of that six-year-old and upwards class for young riders. Among those who have qualified again for that class are the second-placed 2018 Coolin America gelding Caherpuca Chappy and the third-placed now 15-year-old Cnocbán Cassanova gelding Blakehill Bobby.

Now in the ownership of Emma O’Gorman Wall, the Slackport Prince gelding Ballylee Lemon, who, in fourth, was the highest-placed of his generation of in the four and five-year-old class last August, has qualified once again in the hands of his previous owner Chloe Lacey. This could be a very hot class.

Ponies didn’t have to qualify for the four-year-old and upwards stallion class where there is sure to be a lot of interest in Grace Maxwell Murphy’s Glencarrig Knight six-year-old Glenville Glic who had enjoyed a very successful season to date both under saddle and in-hand.