Having won the opening round of the Horseware/TRM National Grand Prix league at Louth County, Tipperary’s Greg Broderick secured his second win of the series at Thomastown Horse Show in Co Kilkenny on Sunday, where once again his winning mount was Noel Cawley’s mare Rincarina.

Seventeen of the 37 starters made it through to what was a thrilling jump-off, with the lead changing hands on a number of occasions before Broderick grabbed the winner’s prize.

Rincarina is by Cruising, out of a Diamond Lad mare called Diamond Ballerina, who was previously ridden by Edward Doyle. The mare is a full-sister to Solerina, who has been in sparkling form in the USA with Shane Sweetnam and afterwards, Greg Broderick was full of praise for the 10-year-old.

“The mare is not long home from Lummen, where she also won a class. She is very consistent and knows her job so you can take a few chances with her against the clock,” he remarked. “With so many through to the jump-off it was always going to be fast and when you look at the horses in the second round - Mr Rockerfeller had won the previous day at Coilog and Alexander is always fast with Will Wimble - so I knew I would have to take a few chances.

“I added a stride on the way to the third fence because she spooked a bit at the wall, I knew after that I needed to make up some time on the rest of the course so I threw caution to the wind and she did brilliantly to keep the fences up.”

He added: “She has a bit of her own personality, you need to be sensitive and calm with her. I think that is true with a lot of Cruising-bred horses, you have to ask them instead of telling them. I am not going to go to every round of the National Grand Prix league this year, Going Global and Golden Exchange had this weekend off and they performed well in the Premier Series at Louth and also in Lummen, so I will aim those two at the Premier Series and maybe some foreign shows also.”

In Pat Hutchinson’s 12-fence first round course the Thomastown wall at fence two jumped well for the most part and was followed by the first related distance from three to four, before another related line to the double at five. The second part of this double, a square oxer coming slightly downhill, caught out quite a few, before the middle part of the course which featured two looping turn-backs to fences nine and 10, followed by a triple bar before the final line, the double at fence twelve, which did catch out a number of riders.

However the triple bar, which had posed no problems in the opening round, played a real part in outcome second time of asking. Tom Foley (Paddy’s Fly), Seamus Hayes (Barichello W) and Peter Smyth (Corrib House) all picked up faults here when pushing on against the clock. Martin Hynes and the Ramon-sired Galway Brigade were the early leaders – they opted to take the longer route round to the oxer at fence nine and posted a target of clear 42.82 seconds. Just moments later, however, local rider Ger O’Neill stormed into the lead with Sharon Fitzpatrick’s mare Isacorada (by Accorado out of a Pablo dam), cutting inside to fence nine on their way to a clear in 35.38.

Waterford’s Tholm Keane and Warrenstown You 2 were challenging for the lead but they stood too far off the oxer at nine and lowered the back bar to finish with four faults. Ger O’Neill managed to guide three horses through to the jump-off and he temporarily occupied the top two places when he posted another fault-free score with Dree Boeken's Groosos Roeschen (37.57). O’Neill would finish the day in fourth and fifth places, just ahead of Daniel Coyle who took sixth spot with Esprit Van De Hoenderheide.

Vincent Byrne, fresh from his win a day earlier at Coilóg, produced a brilliant round to take the lead with Mr Rockefeller. James Weldon’s big-striding son of Ard VDL Douglas showed huge scope when jumping at an angle to the troublesome oxer at fence nine on their way to a clear in 34.93.

Second last to go, Alexander Butler and Will Wimble were the next combination to go clear, a time of 35.27 seconds saw them move into second at that stage and it would have been even faster if the pairing hat not slipped when turning after fence three.

Reigning Grand Prix league champion Broderick and Rincarina were slightly more cautious than Byrne and Mr Rockefeller over the opening part of the course but really moved up the pace after fence three. They showed their experience, turning tight back to the triple bar before galloping on to the last double which Rincarina jumped superbly as Broderick trusted the mare to jump at full pace.

Broderick’s time of 34.38 saw him take the winner’s cheque in the Grand Prix sponsored by the Thomastown Show committee. Vincent Byrne finished as runner-up with Mr Rockefeller, just ahead of Alexander Butler and Will Wimble in third.