WE’VE been reading a lot lately about Esther Skelly-Smith regarding veterinary matters, but she was lauded as a breeder on Tuesday at Tullylish, where Shanaghan Solomon won the Traditional Irish Horse working hunter qualifier for Dublin.

The six-year-old, who is ridden by Hannah Blakely for Yvette Donaldson, is by Cappa Cassanova out of the Oke Boy mare Shanaghan Joy. At Balmoral last month, he finished third in the five and six-year-old working hunter class behind Greenhall Dark Knight, who also won on Tuesday. He recorded two double clears from his two starts, at the one show, under Show Jumping Ireland rules, and was fifth in his middleweight hunter class at Dublin last August.

Diarmuid Ryan, who qualified in third here on the six-year-old Cougar mare Clogher Crafty Lady (90), had a busy day with four other rides in the working hunter division and two in the young event horse classes. Abbie Collins bagged the fourth qualifying ticket on board the seven-year-old Gortfree Hero mare RSH Strings Attached (89), just ahead of Edel Whyte and the home-bred five-year-old Watervalley Cool Diamond mare Sleehaun Showtime (88).

Two of Ryan’s worker rides, the Heigh Ho Dubh gelding Derreen High Ho (85) and the Clogheen Captain Jack gelding Jack Glen Shannon (79), qualified in second and joint-fourth in the four-year-old class. This was won by another rider who also competed in the young event horse section, Jackson Laing riding Nicola Campbell and Paul Guy’s Cascari gelding Cassius Clay (87), who recorded the only clear round out of 17 starters.

Also qualifying here were Rory Lavery on Anne Gomes’s Ashfield Bouncer mare Inch Abbey (80) and Ivan Ryan with the SHS Soco Blue gelding Painestown (79), who he rides for his aunt Judy Duffy and her daughter Katherine.

There were only eight starters in the over 13st class, which meant only one combination didn’t progress to the ride phase and that only two others failed to qualify. Those who did had at least one fence down.

Here the win, on a score of 83 points, went to Rachel Moore Rooney riding Amanda Benson’s five-year-old gelding BC Masquerade. Others who had to be pleased with the result were Camilla O’Halloran on the 2020 Killinick Bouncer gelding Dash Bouncer (80), Grace Kavanagh with the 2011 Mountain Pearl gelding Mountain Emerald (74), Gwen Scott with last year’s Dublin working hunter champion, the 2019 Glynnwood Cornet gelding Tul Na Ri (71) and Alicia Devlin Byrne riding the 11-year-old Gortfree Hero gelding Gort Town Dancer (66).

Locally-based riders won four of the five classes, but not that for the up to 13st five-year-olds and upwards, where Sophie Tobin topped the final leaderboard but only on closer perusal of the scores, as she and Becky Gibney’s seven-year-old home-bred ISH gelding Seachange (Vittorio - Sea Pearl, by Limmerick) were one of three combinations to complete on 86 points.

Qualifying in second and third were Ciara Collins with her own 10-year-old Pollux De Muze Z gelding Carneyhaugh Talisman and Michael Bowe on his father J.J.’s eight-year-old Cappa Amadeus gelding Patrickswell Sherry who had a fence down.

Sadie McMahon finished just a point back in fourth with the nine-year-old Camiro de Haar Z gelding Creevagh Hilfiger with Katherine Duffy taking the final qualifying spot on her mother Judy’s nine-year-old Celtic Hero B Z gelding Ballyshan Hero (82), who picked up 10 jumping penalties. There were just 12 starters in this class.