CATHERINE Thornton put her first points on the board in the HSI/Connolly’s Red Mills Spring Tour by taking victory in the second leg at Cavan Equestrian Centre. Riding Derryinver Luxury Cruise, Thornton proved fastest in a nine-horse decider to clinch the win in Sunday’s €2,500 class which was sponsored by the venue.

Speaking afterwards, Thornton said: “I’m delighted with the result it’s his first registered show this season. He’s a machine, a dream to ride.”

About the Spring Tour, Thornton remarked: “It’s a brilliant league, a fantastic way to start the season. Stuart [Clarke] built a lovely flowing first round track and in the jump-off there were a few fences at 1.40m, which is exactly what you want at this time of year.”

Second to go in the clocked round, Thornton logged a very fast time of 36.79 seconds which, coupled with a fault-free round, would set an unbeatable standard.

Talking about her winning jump-off round, she added: “The stallion is brilliant against the clock, he is very manoeuvrable and actually even more rideable in a jump-off.”

By Lux Z, Derryinver Luxury Cruise is out of the Cruising-sired dam Icing and was bred by Tom and Linda Magee. The stallion is available for covering this season for the first time with a limited number of frozen straws which can be sourced through his owner David Campbell.

Derryinver Luxury Cruise started his career with Thornton as a three-year-old and showed early promise by winning the 2009 Dublin Horse Show Four-Year-Old Championship.

The flashy grey continued his career under several different riders, most notably Harry Marshall, with the pair making the grade for the 2011 Six-Year-Old Final at the World Breeding Championships in Lanaken and featuring consistently in the Irish Sport Horse Studbook Showjumping Series as a seven-year-old.

The now 10-year-old entire returned to Thornton in May 2014 and the pair immediately renewed their former partnership, culminating in a victory in the leg of the Autumn Grand Prix league at Eglinton in October.

Thornton discussed her plans for the coming season, saying: “The aim is for 1.50m, the Premier Series is the dream.”

Thornton also took the third place on the day with her second mount Galway Bay Easy Touch. As the final rider to take on the clocked round, Thornton knew she was unbeaten and that there were only two faultless rounds at that point. With that in mind, she took the tactical approach with the seven-year-old gelding, delivering a steady clear round in a time of 50.21.

Sired by Prince Des Vaux, a son of the Selle Francais sire Flipper D’Elle, Galway Bay Easy Touch has been produced by Thornton and has had some consistent results along the way. A former winner of the prestigious Five-Year-Old Cavan Classic, the gelding was also the highest placed six-year-old in the 2014 Six and Seven-Year-Old equivalent. Thornton’s main aim for Galway Bay Easy Touch this season will be the seven and eight-year-old qualifiers for the Dublin Horse Show.

The winner of the opening Spring Tour round in Kildare International, Liam O’Meara, had to settle for the runner-up position on this occasion but the eight points gained on the day cemented his early lead in the league. Partnering the Lux Z-sired Realt Na Carraig, O’Meara played pathfinder in the jump-off setting the original time to beat at 37.10.

The Co Tipperary-based rider also claimed fourth place with Curraghgraigue Jack Take Flight. O’Meara was the fastest four-faulter on the day with the seven-year-old Jacomar gelding crossing the line in a time of 37.62.

Jack Ryan took fifth place and the leading young rider accolade at the show. The 13-year-old rider looked set to deliver a double clear with the Glidawn Diamond mare Cavalier Teaca but proved out of luck when the penultimate vertical fell and the a pair a time of 41.33.

Event rider Sarah Ennis faulted at the fence before Ryan with BLM Diamond Delux and came home just outside the 43-second mark (43.06) to slot into sixth place.

Declan McEvoy started the day off in Cavan with a win in the 1.20m aboard BLM Cosmopolitan Dandy. Coming out in front of 65 starters, McEvoy had a decisive victory when crossing the line in 21.44 with the six-year-old son of Kannan.

Liam O’Meara gave a preview of what was to come later in the day when taking the blue rosette with Realt Na Carraig, clear in a time of 23.46. Jordan Coyle picked up his first placing of the day with Urban Cowboy when slotting into third and Coyle later went on to claim the top spot in the 1.30m with the eight-year-old Belgian-bred Amigo VH Winkenshof Z.