THOSE competing in the Connolly’s Red Mills/Irish Pony Club Intro Intermediate, Junior, Intro Junior and Under 12s’ championships at Tattersalls Ireland last weekend took on the challenge of the Paul Brady-designed cross-country tracks on Sunday.

The Junior competition was by far the largest with 37 squads vying for honours in the team competition, which resulted in four very well-filled arenas, while the individual championship saw 25 combinations start the dressage phase where one was sadly eliminated for a fall.

Having recorded a narrow win in the team championship on 86.6 penalties, the Shillelagh Greens’ quartet of Abbie Byrne (Grand Riser), Sarah Ryan (Ballinaguilkey Rocco), Ciara Winterbotham (Bolgers Leah) and Laragh Molloy (Castletown Lad) were presented with the Tommy Brennan trophy.

The Carlow Crusaders’ Muireann Tooher, Emily Flavin-Redmond, Ali Hughes and Lulu Rose Mulhall finished a close-up second on 86.75, two penalty points clear of the Wexford Wildberries who, thanks to their higher dressage collective scores, claimed third place ahead of Killinick Green although both completed on 88.75. Three teams failed to complete.

Of the teams mentioned above, only the Carlow Crusaders fielded an arena winner in Emily Flavin-Redmond, who completed on her Carr & Day & Martin winning dressage score of 23.25 penalties in Arena 6. Her willing mount was her mother Debbie’s five-year-old Connemara gelding Galtee Honeysuckle (Kinvara Boy - Mona Incha Sunshine Lady, by I Love You Melody).

Comfortable victory

While not on the winning team, Bray’s Emily Grimes had an excellent personal weekend, recording a very comfortable victory in Arena 5, where she too completed on her winning dressage score (22.75) on Millridge Buachall Bui. In his younger days, the 21-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding by Templebready Fear Bui represented Ireland at four European pony eventing championships.

Aoibhinn O’Driscoll, a member of The Kingdom Branch’s Bit By Bit team, topped the final leaderboard in Arena 7 on the 16-year-old Connemara gelding Bally Lala (I Love You Melody - Misty Cashel, by Carra Cashel). Eight show jumping penalties spoiled the championship chances of the dressage winner, Wexford Wildberries’ Kitty Dalton on Rosemount Flashpoint.

With just 0.25 of a penalty point advantage, Kildare Reds’ Nia Webbon recorded an all-the-way win in Arena 8 on the ISH mare Ashwood Ramiro Diamond (Keamore Diamond Clover - Pikeur, by Ramiro B). The 10-year-old is a half-sister to Ashwood Iron Lady, who Ciara O’Connor is competing in this weekend’s European young riders’ eventing championships in Sweden and to Ashwood Rio, on whom O’Connor has won the last two renewals of the Junior/Young Riders’ event horse title at Dublin.

Laois Hunt Branch member Moritz Geoghegan likewise led from start to finish in the Junior individual championship for the Billy Julian trophy on the ISH gelding Derry River Guy, an 11-year-old son of Loughehoe Guy.

Intro Intermediate

Ten squads contested the Intro Intermediate team championship for the Keane Family trophy and here there was a clear-cut victory on a total of 88.5 penalties for the Killinick Green quartet of Niamh Ryan (Rua), Joe Ryan (Ted), Lily-Mai Berry (Chillie) and Bethany Nolan (Epauette Latino Dream).

The Killinick Branch in Co Wexford was well represented at the championships, as was The Kingdom Branch in Co Kerry whose Too Hot To Trot team finished second on 98.85. They, too, had plenty in hand over the third-placed West Waterford Warriors (108.85).

The Killinick Greens’ Joe Ryan added to his prize haul on Ted when recording an all-the-way win in Arena 2. The Tipperary Hawks’ Emily Gleeson jumped up from fourth after dressage to win the second section on her flat work mark with the seven-year-old Connemara gelding Illaunurra Lusca (Ross Fear Bui - Illaunurra Heather, by Silver Shadow).

Four show jumping penalties for a total of 30.7 proved costly in the 24-runner Intro Intermediate championship for the dressage winner, Longford’s Emma Kenny riding Ruby Menlo Kelly’s Bay, as she dropped to third. Moving up a place to claim the win and the Barbara Micks trophy on 29.65 was North Kilkenny’s Aine Walsh with Violet Banks Alfie, an 18-year-old skewbald gelding by Travellers Galaxy.