MOYA Teeling and Shanbo Myles, who were fifth in the Dublin final in 2023, will bid to improve on that placing next month having secured a qualifying ticket when winning Section B of the eight to 15-year-old Connemara performance hunter qualifier at Rincoola last Saturday.

A resident of Co Meath’s very short coastline, Teeling and the nine-year-old Shanbo Jimmy gelding, who was bred by Noel Farrell out of the Monaghanstown Fionn mare Morning Mist Star, had an excellent start to the showing season when winning the Horse of the Year Show working hunter championship at the Northern Ireland Festival in Cavan.

Nancy Fleming qualified in second on Saturday with Paddy Quinlan’s Grade A gelding Annaghtown Boy (235), a nine-year-old Dunlewey Goshawk grey out of a Smokey Finn mare.

Second in Dublin last August, Vivienne Butler’s previously-qualified Eva McCraith-ridden Cluainin Robb (249) won Section A ahead of another already-qualified pairing in Eliza-Jane Queally and her mother Rachel Brew’s Carraun Ferdy (245), a 10-year-old Martan Phaidin Mhoir gelding.

The qualifying tickets therefore went to the third-placed combination of Aoife Haines with her mother Cathy’s home-bred Kilmartin Philip (242), an eight-year-old Lucky Rebel gelding out of a Woodfield Sammy mare, and the fourth-placed pairing of Amelia Durkan riding Dargle Equine’s Busy Bee (237.5), a nine-year-old gelding by Classiebawn Black Jack.

Anne Burns partnered her own Glenrock Sparrow to win Section A of the five to seven-year-old class at Rincoola \ Johnny Sterritt / Bit-Media

Five to seven-year-olds

Locally-based Anne Burns partnered her own Glenrock Sparrow to win Section A of the five to seven-year-old class on a total of 245 points. The Silver Shadow five-year-old was bred in Co Galway by Sean Hoare out of the Glencarrig Knight mare Glenrock Princess.

Burns and her grey took the first RDS ticket ahead of Co Meath’s Phoebe Horgan and her mother Hannah’s Garvagh Moonlight Boy (243.5). Horgan and the seven-year-old Monaghanstown Boy gelding, who were second in the Dublin final last August, were mentioned in these pages recently having secured an RDS working hunter pony ticket at Barnadown.

Section B

Also from Co Meath, Emelie Larkin topped the scores on 232 points in Section B on Kathy Rispin’s previously-qualified seven-year-old Ballysooghan Danu (Gwennic de Goariva - Rosscon Simply Class, by Rosscon Sunrise). Ciara O’Connor, who partnered a winner and a second-placed horse from two rides at Ballindenisk on Sunday, finished third here with another already-qualified gelding, Fiona Gahan’s six-year-old Kippure Columbus bay Firbolg Dun (222).

Between this pair, O’Connor’s equally busy cousin Jessica Murphy claimed the first qualifying ticket on board their grandmother Noreen O’Connor’s Barr A Leam Shadow (226.5), a five-year-old I Love You Melody bay who was bred by John O’Sullivan out of Leím Shadow (by Silver Shadow).

Having picked up a performance Irish Draught ticket earlier in the day on the five-year-old Glenford Margie, Co Galway-based Scottish international event rider Becky Scott bagged a Connemara performance hunter one here on Aine O’Callaghan’s home-bred Glenford Rose (221.4), a seven-year-old mare by Westonhouse Straboe out of Glenford Lola (by Ardravinna Lady).

The judges on Saturday were Denise Norton and Marian Condron (ridden), Trish Collins (jump) and Bets Coleman (rhythm and fluency).

Amy Grady who booked a spot in the older horses’ final when qualifying started at Tullylish in early June secured a ticket for the four and five-year-old decider when landing Section B here on Murrisk Paudie (238.5 points).