TREVOR Breen scored an Irish double on the opening day of the Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) in Birmingham earlier this week.

Breen won the Addington Manor Talent Seekers title with Classic III, a class that also incorporated the national seven-year-old championship, which he duly won too.

The combination’s jump-off time of 37.90 seconds saw them finish clear of Tracey Priest and Market Irminka, with Charlotte Flack and Ratinka Khan third.

The Tipperary native has had a great 2014, riding Karen Swann’s well-known one-eyed Adventure De Kannan to Hickstead Derby and Queen Elizabeth II Cup glory.

Speaking after his HOYS win Breen said: “It was absolutely brilliant. I won that class in 2011 [with Old Town KC], and now I’ve won it again. It is a 100% record I hope to keep going.

As we went to press yesterday, Billy Twomey won the 1.50m five-fence challenge riding Royale Du Rouet, ahead of compatriot Cian O’Connor on Ulme De Feugeres in second place and his former student Bertram Allen in equal fourth place.

Irish-bred horses featured strongly in the showing classes at HOYS, with Mr Socks, Pearl Underwood and Georgia Butterworth’s Ghareeb gelding, winning the Small Show Hunter of the Year title and five Irish-bred horses featuring in the Science Supplements Ladies’ Hunter of the Year.

For a full report on both showing and show jumping classes at HOYS, see The Irish Field next week.