STRONG winds in Punchestown on Easter Monday dusted off the cobwebs for many of the showing community’s first day out of the season.

Tom and Maria McNamara made the long trip from Galway worth their early start, with Shanbally Pippalo Pat securing the Supreme title at the Kildare Branch of the IDHBA’s Punchestown show. The strapping son of Jimmy Quinn’s Cappa Aristocrat, bred by McNamara’s neighbour, Martin Donnellan, took all before him, in the four and five-year-old ridden and ridden championship before showing experience beyond his years to go Supreme Show Champion and take home the Kildare Branch Perpetual Plate.

Last year’s four and five-year-old ridden winners, Judith Long and Abbeyward Max, took the step up into open company like ducks to water, winning the six-year-old and upwards class from Fionnuala Lennon’s versatile Tallyho Maguire. Abbeyward Max (Castleview Inisfree Farmer) went on to be Reserve Champion Ridden.

The Kildare show always produces a well-dressed working hunter course. However, the winds in Punchestown on Easter Monday meant fillers and foliage were curtailed, so that fences could be kept secured! Thankfully, the winds abated sufficiently and the performance classes ran smoothly. The classes gave horses and riders a good test and plenty to learn from for their next day out.

Clean sweep

Lady Perdita Blackwood’s 2024 Dublin Horse Show champion Clandeboye took a clean sweep, winning both the 85cm working hunter and the 1m class, before going on to be Working Hunter Champion and Reserve Supreme. Louise Lyon’s mount is a son of the much-missed Scrapman and is being prepared for Balmoral Show in May.

The breed classes were funded by the Breeding Grant Initiative, under National Breeding Services with thanks to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and delivered by Horse Sport Ireland. Thanks to the funding the Kildare Branch secured, there was prize money for the breeders of the winners, the best mares in each class, along with the best four-year-olds.

The Champion Irish Draught mare was Suzie McGee’s Two’s Company (Hillview Farm Superstar), who had earlier jumped two clear rounds in the performance classes. She just pipped Sandra Hannigan’s exceptionally well-bred five-year-old, Dowdstown Jane’s Legacy, who had been second only to the Supreme winner earlier in the day.

In the Derby classes, special prizes were available to the best-placed Connemara ponies with thanks to the Breeding Grant initiatives as funded through DAFM. This encouraged a large entry of Connemaras, particularly in the 1m class.

Amy Hannon, riding her horse Ben, won the 80cm Derby class, ahead of Emelie Larkin with Kegs and Louise Lyons with the Connemara gelding Buachaill Bui. Evie Holohan, riding her Connemara mare Annette’s Girl, won the 1m Derby, ahead of Abbeyfield Farm’s Grainne O’Neill on another Connemara, Benny, and Orla Cleary on the Irish Sport Horse mare Ballypierce Luna. The Kildare Branch expressed their gratitude to judges Claire Gilna and Lindsay Graham, sponsors DAFM and Farmhill AgriServices Rathangan and also Desmond Bell for the photographs.