THE final two Area qualifiers for the upcoming Irish Pony Club Festival at Barnadown (August 23rd to 25th) were staged last weekend by Area 8 at the Glenamaddy Equestrian Centre on Saturday and by Area 7 at Killossery Lodge Stud on Sunday.

At the Co Galway venue, the two qualifying tickets on offer for the Pony Club combined training championships at the Dublin Horse Show were won by Tynagh’s Maeve Connolly (Open) on the nine-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare Barnaboy Shauna and by Galway Mid County’s Keris-Mae O’Toole (Intermediate) on the 12-year-old Connemara gelding Forest Buddy (by Fiona’s Man).

Last year, Connolly and the 2016 Cottage Fire mare Barnaboy Shauna qualified for the Intermediate final at Dublin where they finished sixth.

At Killossery, the Open qualifier was won by Sophie May Nolan riding the ISH gelding My Ballybrack Blue, a 13-year-old grey by Ballybrack Diamond, while Clodagh McGauran will compete in the Intermediate championship on board the ISH gelding Mister Morandi, an eight-year-old chesnut son of Island Commander. Both riders are members of the Meath Hunt Branch.

Games league heats up

AHEAD of the fourth and final round of the Irish Pony Club’s senior mounted games RDS league which takes place at Carnew Show next Saturday, July 19th, the three teams who won the previous legs are closely packed together.

Carlow, who topped the scores at Durrow last Sunday, are in pole position on 27 points.

Kildare (Black), who struck on day one at Gorey Show last month, are lying second (26) just ahead of the Charleville Show winners, Tipperary (25). The Shillelagh Branch is currently in fourth spot on 22 points.