AS the weekend’s Connolly’s Red Mills/Irish Pony Club National Eventing Championships concluded at Tattersalls Ireland on Sunday, so too did the Treo Eile league and there’s one indisputable fact - when it comes to thoroughbred horses in Pony Club eventing, the Killinicks rule!

Of the 19 thoroughbreds who earned points when finishing in the first six places at the 15 qualifying rounds and the championships (where double points were on offer), 12 were partnered by members of the Killinick Branch, including the top seven on the leaderboard.

While the weekend didn’t go as she had hoped, 17-year-old Kate Jordan held on to win the league on 31 points with her mother Emer’s seven-year-old gelding Serene Ace (Sandmason - Rosies Rocket, by Definite Article) on whom she had finished second 12 months previously.

Lucy O’Brien filled the runner-up slot on this occasion with the 17-year-old Fruits Of Love gelding Ballyteige Bay (28), who failed to finish in three point-to-point maidens during the 2013/14 season, ahead of Saoirse Cousins and the unraced Rox Dream (24), a seven-year-old mare by Gamut.

“The horse just went green on the day,” was the owner’s comment on the weekend’s elimination at the water. “He will have a bit of a break now but Kate, who is going into Fifth Year, will probably do some schools’ jumping with him over the winter and then mix it again between the Pony Club and Eventing Ireland next season. She probably won’t do the Stepping Stones again with him, as she hopefully has a new thoroughbred for that.”

The Claire Keegan-bred Serene Ace, who also won the Foran Equine league at Intermediate level, fell and pulled up in two four-year-old maidens in the spring of 2023 when trained by Cormac Doyle. Jack Hendrick, who rode the bay on both occasions, told the Jordans that he thought the horse would suit them.

Treo Eile was represented at Tatts on Saturday by its Senior Executive Anne O’Connor, who commented: “It’s very rewarding to see the continuous increase in the number of thoroughbreds within the Pony Club. Year on year, we have enjoyed following the partnerships participate and move up the grades. Seeing three thoroughbreds amongst the 16 entries at Open level at the Championships is a testament to the versatility and suitability of the breed. Through the Treo Eile prizes, we are also acknowledging the skills of these young riders, who have transitioned these horses from the racetrack to the IPC Championships.”

On Sunday, Treo Eile was represented by Peter Roe, Horse Racing Ireland’s Head of Racing whose daughter Charlotte competed at Intermediate level for the Laois Hunt Branch. Also spotted from the worlds of racing and breeding over the weekend were Ken Condon, Tamso Doyle, Timmy Hillman, Nick Nugent, Dot Love, Marie Harding and Richard Forristal.