LAST Sunday saw Interschools show jumping back in the main arena at Killossery Lodge Stud. Torrential rain and strong winds didn’t deter the riders in the novice individual, which saw 13 of them through to the second round, but it was Maynooth Education Campus’ Ruby Lynch and Our Molly who once again took the top spot.

They stopped the clock in a time of 32.42, just fractions ahead of Enfield Community College’s Áine Mullan who took second with a time of 31.59. Third place went to Limerick lass ridden by Tara O’Connor from St Joseph’s Mercy Secondary School who gave an impressive ride crossing the finish beam at 33.40. Alice Harten and Mandy from Drogheda Grammar School were fourth, ahead of Natalie Healy and Misty representing Enfield Community College and Robyn Lynch from Maynooth Education Campus in sixth.

Thrilling

The team event proved a thrilling highlight of the day, with strong performances from 14 schools across the region. The winner was the Ashbourne Community School/Lusk Community College team of Isabel Corcoran with Drombane Jenny Cruise, Demi Wildman with Corneas Mirah, Crea Byrne with Legends Mate and Harry Baker with Malahow Mirah. Second place was claimed by Maynooth Education Blue, represented by Kate Teahan with Pep, Maisie Connolly with Silver, Sadhbh O’Toole with Toby, and Ruby Lynch with Mojo.

Third place went to St Mac Dara’s Community College whose team featured Marie Maye with Rosie, Niamh Smith with Barney, Lily Rogan Mills with Scarlett De L’Aulne, and Áine Mullan with Archie. St Michael’s Loreto Navan took fourth ahead of Dunshaughlin Community College and Loreto Balbriggan.

The 90/95cm individual open championship saw competitive rounds from a strong field of riders and ended with Sadie Lynch taking the win riding Grantstown Hannah, finishing in a swift 31.88 seconds. Second place was claimed by Lillian Ward and KitKat with a time of 36.49 seconds, followed by Kieran Dunne on Rolo in 38.21 seconds. Maisie McCartan guided Cloocan Clover to fourth place in 39.98 seconds, while Toby O’Dwyer and Rocket claimed fifth with 40.87 seconds. Emma Jo Carolan rounded out the top six on Taz, stopping the clock at 47.32 seconds.

Crea Byrne, Harry Baker, Demi Wildman, Isabel Corcoran and Jenny Cruise were part of the winning Ashbourne Community School/Lusk Community College team interschools team at Killossery \ Laurence Dunne jumpinaction.net

Primary classes

Following on from last week’s strong performances, the Primary novice riders once again showcased outstanding form in Killossery. The standard was sky-high, with an impressive number of clear rounds leaving the judges with no choice but to divide the top spot.

First place was shared between CJ Greene with Magic, Luke Murray with Bingo, Aoibheann Smith with Casper, Niamh Maguire with Sandy Joy, Samuel Comerford with Big Jim, Isabel Nulty with Clarenville Magic, Doirean Collins with Milo, Grace with Diego, Chloe McHugh O’Connor with Freaky Friday, and Kate Keagan with Kimmy Coo.

Building on last week’s momentum, the Primary open individual was another hotly-contested affair. Cian Greene and Magic moved up the podium, producing a superb round to claim first place. Rhys Robinson and Scarlet went into a very close second place following their win last week, while Ella Sharkey and Flashy Devil took third after a neat and fast round.

Regan Hewitt and Holly finished a strong fourth, with Lily Dunne aboard Parcglass Golden Venture taking fifth, and Sadie Connolly on Abbeylands Supreme rounding out the top six with another consistent performance.

There was a shake-up in the Primary team standings this week with several teams swapping places after another thrilling round of competition. After finishing just outside the top three last week, Killcloon NS bounced back in style to claim first place, thanks to superb performances from Sadie Connolly on Abbeylands Supreme, Rhys Robinson on Pony, Kaela Leamy with Abby, and Lilly Dunne aboard Parcglass Golden Venture. Their consistency and smooth team riding proved unbeatable this time out.

Last week’s third-placed team, the combined squad from St Patrick’s NS/St Andrew’s NS/St Mary’s NS/Gael Scoil Na Cille, held their form to take second place, once again showing real depth of talent across the group. Fionn Regan on Carrigans Tabragh, Nancy Caffrey with Ceatharlia Freddie, Sadie Woods on The Mighty Man, and Ruth Duffy with Mountainy Man all delivered confident, composed rounds.

Kilsaran National School, who impressed with a second-place finish last week, followed closely behind in third, with Elsa McGrane on Merry Millie, Conor Seaver with Rathruyan Girl, Isabelle Broderick Kiernan riding Bobs Your Uncle, and Isobel Marks Raleigh on Abbeylands Yates again putting in a strong team performance.

It’s all to play for in the coming weeks, with form shifting and teams eager to climb the leaderboard as the interschools series continues. The team at Killossery places pause on the interschools action this weekend as they set their sights on their upcoming two-day Autumn Grand Prix show jumping championships which will see approximately €3,000 in in prize money given out.