NEWLY introduced this year, the fourth and final qualifier for the working hunter horses’ section of the Gallagher Dublin Horse Show was hosted by the McGahern family on Tuesday of this week at Rincoola, where some combinations had to compete in challenging weather conditions.

The judges for the day were Emily MacMahon (ride) and Philip Scott (conformation), who awarded their first ticket in the Traditional Irish Horse class to Ciara Dennigan, who scored 90 marks on board Paulank Miracle Road (Road To Happiness - Paulank Calla Lilly, by Ghareeb).

Home-bred by her Co Wicklow owners Frank and Paula Cullen, the six-year-old mare, who has affiliated eventing and show jumping experience to her credit, is out of a half-sister to the Touchdown mare Paulank Brockagh. The latter’s long and successful eventing career under Australia’s Sam Griffiths included a win at Badminton in 2014 and a frustrating fourth-place finish at the Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro two years later.

Others to qualify here were Chloe Kirwan on her own Carrigfadda Silver Lady (89), Alice Copithorne with Jamie Byrnes’s Castleview Lady Cruise (89), who had previously qualified for the five-year-old young event horse class, Ethan McGorisk with his own Redbridge Fintan (87)and Catherine Devine with her own Captain Devine.

Devine and that eight-year-old gelding also qualified in third (85 marks) in the seven-year-old and upwards lightweight class, which saw just four clear rounds.

Few clear rounds

The winner, on a score of 91, was the ISH gelding Kensington On The Ball (Beach Ball - Bramble Imp, by Master Imp). The 11-year-old, who has earned 24 Eventing Ireland points and 39 Show Jumping Ireland, is ridden by Janie Cairns for her father David, who bred the grey.

Also securing tickets were Abigail Kenny on her father Graham’s Hogan The Brave (88), who she has qualified for the Intermediate working hunter pony class and the older Connemara performance hunter class at Dublin, Ellie Stunt with Amanda Benson’s much-beribboned Madra Rua (83) and Shauna Kidd with the 17-year-old Good News Scotty (80).

There were only three clear rounds in the four-year-old qualifier, where Co Wexford’s Aubrey Chapman recorded a most comprehensive victory on 90 marks with the TJ Phelan-bred ISH gelding Ballykealy Showman (Rock ‘N Roll ter Putte - Sandy Cruise, by Womanizer), who was a winner in-hand last season.

Also heading to Dublin from this class are David Kiely with his father Roger’s Goldcoast Hero (84) and Tatianna Orminston with the home-bred mare Cherrymount Black Betty (83). John Tilley added to his string of rides in Dublin when qualifying here with Pat Mahon’s ISH gelding Crohanna Boy (82), with five points in hand over the Duncan McFadyen-ridden, Jenny Jakeman-owned qualifier Marmaduke.

While those earlier classes were well filled, there were only 12 starters in the five and six-year-old lightweight qualifier, none of whom recorded a clear round.

The first of the qualifying tickets went to Co Clare’s Alan McNulty on his own Irish Draught mare Hollyhock Island Queen (72 marks), a six-year-old Scrapman grey, who was bred in Co Cavan by Catherine Dempsey out of the Holycross mare Adastra April.

Lilith Stapleton bagged a ticket in second on Dominic Furnell’s home-bred 2020 ISH gelding Ballycahane Raptor (68), while Luke Coen did so on the five-year-old ISH gelding Linky (M), who he rides for Andrew Cox and the bay’s breeder, Susanne Macken. Also qualifying, but some way adrift on 47 and 40 marks respectively, were Olivia Kelly with her own six-year-old ex-racehorse Allesnick and Ryan Stewart with Mary Hegarty’s year-younger ISH mare Kittys Tiara.

PJ Casey, who signed the €170,000 chit for a three-year-old Crystal Ocean gelding at the recent Tattersalls Ireland Derby Sale, marked his quick return to the working hunter world by winning the five-year-old and upwards medium/heavyweight class.

On his way to an 89-mark total, Casey recorded the only clear round on the Virginia Considine-owned, Hazel Bye-bred five-year-old ISH gelding Totally Dignified (Dignified van’t Zorgvliet - Cavalier Silver Joey, by Cavalier Royale).

Co Meath racehorse trainer Ian Donoghue qualified in second on his sister Gemma’s 2021 ID gelding Castlefrench Hero (79) and Lisa Talbot finished third on her own and her mum Alison Mitchell’s eight-year-old ISH gelding GHS Fremont (78), with whom she finished fourth at Dublin last August. The other tickets went to Dominic Furnell on the seven-year-old ID mare Clogherboy Bonnie (77) and to Sarah Maxwell on the six-year-old ID gelding Passions Storm (64).

There were mixed reactions when it was announced that there would be qualifiers for the working hunter horse classes at Dublin, but they were well-supported and hopefully will result in a high standard of competition in August.