IT’s that time of year again. You can feel it in the air. Many of us plan our whole season around competing in the Dublin Horse Show and many of the thousands of spectators and equestrian enthusiasts plan for this week as an annual pilgrimage!

What makes the Dublin Horse show so special? History, tradition, nostalgia and perhaps all of the above culminating in that uniqueness that makes the Dublin Show so different to the monotonous sand rings surrounded by tents that have become routine at so many foreign shows today.

Protecting tradition is vital while also moving with the times. Showjumping is big business and not merely a sport. Dublin Horse Show is the last leg in the Furusiyya League of Nations Cup jumping – a league, which in my view, needs tweaking to remain current. There are eight point scoring venues that hold Nations Cups in Division 1 and only four teams out of the eight competing in each leg are going for points each time.

Have I lost you already? It’s too confusing for the public and not easy for even the riders to follow never mind anyone else. The FEI, which is the governing body for equestrian sport, has an obligation to protect the Nations Cups and regain their standing in the sport. By all means come up with new ideas but they must first and foremost be easy to follow. In a sport that already struggles to garner outside interest, excitement and simplicity is key. High prize money ensures top riders and horses. The Nations Cup shows have taken a bit of a battering in recent years with the development of the popular Global Champions Tour but the facts are simple: if the Nations Cup shows put the same money in their Grand Prix classes, they would give the shows a serious boost.

These eight shows have tradition, which gives you, the public and spectators, a unique heritage unlike many of the newer events who often struggle to create any ambiance.

The Irish squad for this year’s Aga Khan Team is Bertram Allen, Darragh Kenny, Conor Swail, Greg Broderick and myself. The pressure is mounting as the next few weeks are important ones. Usually the home crowd adds to the team’s performance in Dublin and everyone is really motivated to do well. Robert Splaine will watch our horses jumping in the days before the Nations Cup and then make his decision on the final four that will compete.

The next challenge is only one week after Dublin, which is the European Championships in Aachen, Germany.

The Irish team has to finish in the top three of the non-qualified teams, which won’t be simple. At last year’s World Equestrian Games, the top six teams qualified and now we are up against strong countries like Britain, Belgium, Spain, Italy and Switzerland all of whom have the ability to put on a good display in Aachen.

Mind you I feel Aachen suits our horses and us more than most. As a team we tend to go well in Aachen. It’s an imposing big arena with monstrous fences but quite spread out - a bold horse and a bold rider can usually deliver the goods!

We have the five that are jumping on the Dublin squad plus Denis Lynch with All Star as the main six contenders while others who have decent form have the chance to jump again in Dublin as individuals to make a bid for their place.

In the end it does not matter who goes but rather that we as a Team qualify. I’ve always maintained that the Olympic Games is where we need to be and with not having qualified a showjumping team for Beijing or London the importance of getting an Irish showjumping team to Rio is massive. Having a team qualified opens doors, creates enthusiasm to get people behind the team and motivates those already involved to invest in the necessary horse power which will enable us to contest Olympic medals.

It’s wonderful to have Investec come on board as our team sponsor for Dublin and Aachen and hopefully we can give them value that they see merit in supporting us beyond this defining moment in national sport.

Success has many ingredients with talent being shared pretty equally amongst the top competitors - but the winning edge goes invariably to the best battle plan when all the jigsaw pieces are put together by design, not accident. That distinguishes a TEAM from an individual win!