THE second running of the Pony Club Nations’ Cup of Eventing was held last week at the Aspen Cooling Osberton international horse trials where English members proved dominant, winning the two team competitions and filling the top three places on both individual leaderboards.
The 20 combinations who travelled across the Irish Sea for this competition were supported mainly by the George Mernagh Fund, Eventing Ireland and EI’s Youth Committee plus, of course, parents and guardians who put in many miles and hours through the season supporting the Area 17 and Irish Pony Club members in their bid for selection for the Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland teams.
In the PC110 Nations’ Cup, the team honours went to England Blue (124.6) who were joined on the podium by the narrowly separated quintets (four counting scores) of Scotland (151.2) and England Red (151.3). The Republic of Ireland finished fourth on 241.8.
Emily Lawson (Hurworth) riding the eight-year-old Primitive Faerie Tale mare Faerlie Frisky (28.3), Emily Worsdale (Bedale & West of Yore) on the six-year-old Grey Top gelding Topografik (29.6) and Neve Webber (Eggesford) with the 11-year-old Hey Dixie (31), an Irish Sport Horse mare by OBOS Quality 004 (ex Ballynort Imp, by Master Imp), who were all members of the England Blue team, filled the top three places on the 20-runner individual leaderboard.
Denmark native
Best placed of the contingent from this side of the Irish Sea was Westmeath Branch member Evita Thomsen, who finished eighth (36.8) on Dot Love’s 12-year-old thoroughbred gelding Michael’s Pick (Presenting - Boragh Thyme, by Simply Great), the winner of two point-to-points and a hunters’ chase when trained by Ciaran Murphy. Denmark native Thomsen was lying second after dressage with the chesnut, but dropped down the leaderboard when picking up eight show jumping penalties.
In the PC105 Nations’ Cup, for which eight teams lined out, England Blue amazingly won on the same score, 124.6, with Wales finishing second (151.9), well clear of Scotland White (210). Neither of the Ireland-based teams completed.
The individual honours were claimed by Isabella Moreton (Atherstone) on the Irish Sport Pony gelding Bannow Bee Silver Detroit (30.4), a seven-year-old bay by SF Detroit. Mia Jarrett (Warwickshire) finished close up in second (30.8) with the 17-year-old ISH gelding Master Pocket Rocket (Master Imp - Skerry Flight, by Laughton’s Flight), with Megan Pocock placing third on the similarly-aged US thoroughbred MHF Lady (31). Again, the three top individuals were on the winning team.
Area 17’s Una McClelland (Iveagh) finished a highly-creditable sixth when completing on her dressage score (33.3) with her mother Claire’s six-year-old ISH mare Murlough Beach (Beach Ball - Lanmore, by Lougherne Cappuchino) on whom she won an 11-runner EI100 Junior at Tullymurry 1 in July, after which the duo competed in the CCI1*-Intro at Scone Palace.
At last year’s inaugural running of these competitions at Ballindenisk, there were just two teams (nine individuals) in the 2* Nations Cup, in which the Republic of Ireland beat England.
In the 1* competition, which attracted two teams from England and one each from Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland and Wales, England White came out on top.
England’s Henry Davis saw off 24 rivals to claim individual honours.