PASSING through Kilcoole on my way to the Bray Harriers meet, I saw a sign for Glenroe, the location of the Irish rural TV soap series (1983-2001) on RTE, which was compulsive viewing at the time, and which many are probably too young to remember. I recall Miley’s (Tom Lally) catchphrase ‘Well Holy God’ and Dinny (Joe Lynch), ‘Boys oh Boys’, and Biddy’s (Mary McEvoy) initial observation on her future husband, ‘Looks a bit of a gom’!

The hunt had just had a mid-term hack early in the season for children at Glendalough Estate, which was an outstanding success. The meet was at Coldross Farm off Leabeg Lane in County Wicklow, an area also known as The Garden of Ireland, as the scenery is so picturesque.

The Brays hunt an artificial scented drag line in magnificent countryside and, when the need arises, it also allows them into developed areas of their hunt country, which would be impossible to hunt any other way. They are a like-minded group of people that love being in the countryside and, what’s more, they have a passion for following hounds and jumping across natural country.

Shauna Watters is the pathfinder, as she has been laying the drag for nearly 20 seasons and is a strong rider picking out all the most challenging lines. She usually has the show horse producer Jane Bradbury on her hunter Pedro assisting her, but she was busy in her stables, so James Green filled in. Jane has produced and ridden many Dublin Horse Show champions including the pinnacle in showing, with an amazing and coveted two Supreme Dublin Hunter Champions, Bloomfield Ollie and Bloomfield Excelsior.

Masters & Hunt Staff

The masters include John Wilding, who hosts numerous cross-country events and Pony Club events on his farm Rosanna, which has over 100 fences including a river. His fellow masters are Jason Kelly, who assures me that he is from the original line of the Kelly Clan, together with Greg McGarry, who all put in a tremendous amount of work organising meets.

The huntsman is Johnny Murphy, who hunted from his youth with the Killinick Harriers. He spent time with that legend of a horseman, the late Jack Lambert, who stood the international eventing and show jumping Irish Draught stallion Grange Bouncer, and Jack always considered Johnny a very natural horseman.

He is the type of man you would go to to source a steady hunter, or ride a young horse, as well as the man you would consult first if your horse had a problem or injury, as he is so naturally knowledgeable on equines. His whippers-in are his son Noah (15) and daughter Charley May (11), who are two top-notch riders and probably the youngest whippers-in in the country. Johnny was riding a six-year-old thoroughbred that is a full-brother to a Group 1 winner. Charley May was on a three-year-old Connemara on his third day hunting and Noah was hunting Louise Ennis’ hunter mare.

Johnny has 10 breeding mares producing sport horses and ponies, and stands the very much in demand Class 1 dun 142cm pony stallion River Dale Goliath and the 146cm grey Killaspic Brave Heart, both of whom have accumulated a significant number of show jumping points, as they are well campaigned on the show jumping circuit and are available by AI.

Both Noah and Charley May were shortlisted for show jumping awards, Noah for Bree Hill Superstar and Charley May for Bravehearts Beauty. Johnny has a very effective pack of hounds and was grateful to George Barrett of the Iveagh as he drafted Big Tom, who has proved such a good lead hound, and Barrier, a lemon-coloured hound from Paul Scallan in the Island, as well as Barker, a blue mottle hound from the South Tipperary Hunt.

Three ladies fill three of the most important roles in the hunt - chairperson Marie Freley, Sarah Magee the superbly efficient honorary secretary, and Mairead Watters, honorary treasurer and point-to-point secretary. Mairead has been a member for many years and she combines her hunt duties with being so generous in preparing food and drinks for all the followers before and after the hunt with her daughter Shauna.

https://foto.ifj.ie/fotoweb/archives/5006-Irish-Horse-World/Irish%20Horse%20World/2020/-%20Suhaila%20Binchey%20on%20her%204%20year%20old%20Cob%20jumping%20off%20a%20bank%20at%20the%20Bray%20Harriers%20meet%20at%20Kilcoole.jpg.info#c=%2Ffotoweb%2Farchives%2F5006-Irish-Horse-World%2F%3Fq%3Dsuhaila%2520binchey

Suhaila Binchey on he young cob jumping off a bank at the Bray Harriers meet at Kilcoole \ Noel Mullins

Followers

Alicia Devlin Byrne, better known for her Connemara Pony Blackwood Fernando who has been a prolific winner in Dublin, Clifden and the Horse of the Year Show, was riding her new hunter, another Connemara Pony, Belmont Dancer. He was bred by Patrick McNamara, who bred Blackwood Fernando, now 28 years of age and still going strong.

Galwayman Michael Freley was on his Ricardo Z home-bred 16-year-old and was hunting with his wife Marie, the aforementioned chairperson. Also hunting, were Suhaila Binchy, Akysha Kelly who also rides side saddle, Shauna Knight, Abby and Jamie Magee, a son of former huntsman Norrie Magee, Greg McGarry, Ailish Magee, Amy Thomas, Gillian Hughes, and Ann Marie Cullen.

Following as well were John Crowley, who many would recognise as the Chief Steward of the showing classes at The Dublin Horse Show and his son John-John, one of the youngest stewards of the horse show, who hunts his trusty cob aptly named Cobeen. John-John featured in The Irish Field during Dublin Horse Show week, as he worked on making a complete set of horse tack and original fittings for the team of horses that draw the magnificent Dublin Lord Mayor’s coach with his uncle Gerry, who is a master harness maker.

In contact also were Brian and Sharon Sutton, who run Enniskerry Stables, and Fiona Fortune, who owns Tudder Stud and Riding School. Keeping up too were June Green, who used to hunt, and her mother Hilda, who was also a follower of both the Brays and the Island. Siobhan Moloney was following with her dog Mandy, and hard-working honorary secretary Sarah Magee, who also acts as road whipper-in and ensures all gates are left secure when the hunt moves on.

Hunting

It was to be a short day, but still they got three lines in with plenty of jumping, with the Irish Sea on one side, and the Sugar Loaf mountain in the background. We had good navigators in Mairead Watters and Siobhan Moloney, with multiple pin drops to help us with directions.

The drag went ahead before hounds were laid on from Coldross Farm over the grass and on over Stringers, where the followers faced a line of 12 ditches leading down towards the Irish Sea.

Swinging back again towards Stringers, they crossed the Newcastle to Kilcoole Road to the Show Field, where they jumped over a number of hunt fences on stubble. They then galloped onto a sea of grass in John and Paul Byrne’s farm towards a nice high drop bank with a flood on take-off, but there were no casualties.

For a short day, they were still on the move for nearly three hours, continuously crossing country and following hounds. What a way to spend an afternoon.

For some, the best was yet to come as Shauna Waters and her mother Mairead had a pop-up kitchen, providing all sorts of goodies. But centre-stage for the last few years has been delicious egg sandwiches from their rescue hens that came from a battery hen house. I even got to know their names - Lady Featherington, Nuggett and Wings. And, just to keep the hens on their toes and keep laying, another hen is named Chicken Burger!

The Brays are a fun group to follow, who enjoy all aspects of hunting with hounds in this beautiful Wicklow countryside.