Brian Hennessy

THURSDAY’s opening 1.50m one-round speed competition at Millstreet International Horse Show was a hard-fought affair, with riders hoping to grab one of the 20 qualifying places on offer for Sunday’s Grand Prix.

Despite having an early draw in a class with 64 starters, Daniel Coyle ensured an Irish winner stood on top of the Millstreet podium, after a brilliant clear round with the 14-year-old gelding Athlet van’t Lozerhof.

“I am delighted, that’s the third year in a row that this horse has won that class, it’s getting bigger every year,” said the Derry native afterwards, adding: “I tried to do the round that I had planned when I walked the course and thankfully it worked out in the end. He has been a great horse for me, he has jumped the Hickstead Derby twice and had a good run in it this year, he won a Premier Series in Omagh last year and he is just a really big jumper and there is a really big day in him sometimes.”

The first part of the treble combination at fence eight fell more often than any other fence on the course, while the top pole of the red postboxes on a related distance following the treble also hit the floor on a number of occasions.

Daniel Coyle’s victory came despite losing his stirrup on the way to the last fence, while British visitors to the Green Glens showed their intent with four of the top 10 finishers coming from Britain.

Alexander Butler came closest to catching Coyle’s target of clear in 61.87 seconds, the Meath rider taking runner-up spot after super effort from Monastery More Pleasure (62.77).

Always a favourite in any speed round, Britain’s Laura Renwick grabbed what would be the first of several Millstreet placings, finishing third with Rembrandt Blue who, despite having no breeding details recorded to attest to a show jumping pedigree, has already a number of wins under his belt since Renwick took up the ride earlier this year. Dean Rogan had briefly held second position before eventually finishing in fourth, after a great effort aboard Falco Van Spieveld, a nine-year-old gelding by Toulon who is owned by Antoinette Bryan, who was also the owner of Rancorado, a former Millstreet Grand Prix winner with Cian O’Connor.

Having been a regular prize winner in the Connolly’s Red Mills Munster Grand Prix league, Waterford’s Peter Moloney stepped up a few grades at Millstreet with Ribanbelle Tame. Patrick Duggan’s nine-year-old (by Ephebe For Ever out of a Quidam De Revel dam) looked very comfortable at international level, taking fifth place in Thursday’s 1.50m, before finishing with an excellent four-fault score in the Millstreet Grand Prix on Sunday.

Ellen Whitaker slotted into sixth place with the eight-year-old grey mare Le Beau, while another horse who cut his teeth in the Munster Grand Prix league, Hyperion, owned by Waterford’s Bobby Flynn, also impressed at three-star level taking seventh spot with Francis Connors on board. Hyperion was the highest-placed Irish-bred horse in the competition and his dam, Cruiseway, was also owned by Bobby Flynn and ridden internationally by Francis Connors on several occasions.

Another Irish-bred gelding, Glenavadra Brilliant, filled eighth place with William Whitaker. The 11-year-old by Brilliant Lad out of a Powerswood Purple dam was bred by Frank Fahy from Co Galway.