HORSES are in our blood. My grandfather hobby-bred them, my father followed suit, and I was barely old enough to sit in the saddle before I was being led around on horseback. After heading off to college at 17, life took over, but horses were never far away. In my early 30s, I was back in the saddle and once my daughter Joanne had her own horse, Pony Club, Riding Club and the show circuit all followed.

In 2016, we purchased a livery yard across the road, which became Willowsway Stud. That same year, the purchase of a six-month-old colt, Freckleton Royal Affair, affectionately known as Ronnie, became our foundation stallion for the coloured sport horses we dreamed of breeding. The rest is history, and it reached a landmark moment in Cavan.