THE busy Killossery Lodge Stud was the venue last Sunday for the Killossery Riding Club spring show, which traditionally kicks off the multi-discipline show season in the North East Region of the Association of Irish Riding Clubs.

The organising committee of Lisa Baker, Aoife Cassidy and Sarah Richardson again offered an extensive programme of classes, adding two new events to the showing schedule, but thanks to the back-up of club members plus that of Laura Glynn and her team at Killossery, the day ran off very smoothly. It always helps when the weather is on your side.

For the third year running, the highlight of the show for Killossery members came late in the day when the Sharon McCabe cup, named after their much-missed former club chairperson, was presented to the supreme champion of the show. The winner, who had earlier claimed both the Botanica showing and White’s Agri performance hunter titles, was the Irish Sport Horse mare Foxcovert Dancingintherain. The grey was ridden by Boyneside’s Linzi Sullivan, whose father, Raymond Dowdall, bred the Rebel Mountain eight-year-old. This combination enjoyed a hugely successful 2025 showing season, highlighted by filling the reserve position in the mares’ hunter championship at Dublin.

En route to their championship successes on Sunday, Sullivan and Foxcovert Dancingintherain won their lightweight hunter class and their RC90 Open performance hunter class.

The reserve showing champion, as chosen by judges Megan Connell (conformation) plus Ryan Anderson and Chris Connell, who shared the ride duties, was the heavyweight class winner, Antuasal Ciunas. This eight-year-old Irish Draught gelding, who is owned by Ashbrook’s Helena Fitzgerald, was ridden by Copperfield’s Kevin McGuinness who, on most weekends during the showing season, would be judging the action. This combination were to stand reserve supreme at day’s end.

Locally-based Mairead Ryan judged the performance hunter section and found her reserve champion in the RC100 class won by another Copperfield member, Aoife Keogh, on her seven-year-old gelding Caralackey Lad, a chesnut son of Scrapman, who also won his ID class in the showing section. Former AIRC chairperson Louise Duffy, yet another Copperfield member, had mixed luck in the performance hunter section. She won and placed third respectively in the TIHA-sponsored traditional Irish Horse class on the home-bred pair Merrycorner Rio By Night and Merrycorner Old Gold, who are both by Templebready Fear Bui out of the thoroughbred mare Granny Vickie.

Treo Eile

In the Treo Eile-sponsored thoroughbred class, Duffy had to settle for second and third on Arvika Ligeonniere and Al Boum Photo behind Killcarrick’s Anna Kerins and The Same Again. In the Treo Eile-sponsored flat class, Kerins and her 12-year-old Court Cave gelding finished third behind Boyneside’s Isabel Harmer and the seven-year-old British-bred gelding Ardad Derek. For the record, the newly-introduced riding horse class was won by Rathfarnham’s Nikola Mijas on her nine-year-old ISH mare Annaghmore Epsom Rose (by Epsom Gesmeray).

Ashbrook recorded a double in the TRI Equestrian-sponsored dressage section, thanks to the above-mentioned Helena Fitzgerald and her 16-year-old ID mare Ballymacmague Swallow (walk/trot) and Louise Fellowes with her 21-year-old chesnut gelding Caherbrack Tim (RCN).

There were wins also for Kilronan’s Jane Gallagher on her 11-year-old Connemara mare Corner House Rebel (RCP1), Mullaghmore’s Lisa O’Gorman with Emmas Baby Blue (RCP2) and, thanks to a rare divide, for Castle Hill members Niamh Murphy (Ashdown Star) and Rebecca Matthews (Benvarden Dakota) in the RCP3.

From the West Leinster Region, Killcarrick’s Myriam Bunter saw off the local challenge when landing the RCE on her 13-year-old thoroughbred gelding Star Of Rubykan. The judging duties were divided between Lisa O’Brien and Lyndsey Ilona Brady.

North East success

NER members won five of the seven show jumping classes, sponsored by SandStorm Equestrian, starting in the newcomers’ class where Kilronan’s Sabrina Bermingham claimed the honours on her nine-year-old mare Killinick Lady.

Ashbrook’s Karina Abraham won the RC70 Open on her 18-year-old bay gelding Chandler, Castle Hill’s Elaine Mulligan came out on top in the RC80 Open with her 15-year-old ISH gelding DMF Alphabet, Boyneside’s Erica O’Neill and her 20-year-old ISH gelding Ballistic M2S won a very competitive RC90 and Kilronan’s Claire Solon partnered her 10-year-old ISH gelding Harlequin du Clover to victory in the RC100.

The Rathfarnham club recorded two wins over the coloured poles, Rachel Gaffey striking at RC70 level on her 11-year-old ISH gelding Meadow Mo Chroi Z Diamond, with Lea Cullen bringing up the double in the RC80 on Sally. Laura Carrick judged the action over the Louise Moore-built tracks. Throughout the day, the judges in each section also selected winners for the Higginstown House-sponsored best turned-out awards and a raffle was held in aid of the Irish Cancer Society with €3 from each entry also going to that charity.

Killossery Lodge Stud is the venue for tomorrow’s Ashbrook RC’s Spring Into Summer Show and for next Sunday’s North East Region’s RDS and RC70/RC80 show jumping qualifiers.