AS they had the stage to themselves last weekend, there was an excellent entry for Sunday’s Dressage Ireland Eastern Region show at Marlton where the judges were Vida Tansey (List 1), Jane Whitaker (List 2), Bernie Webb (List 3a), Elizabeth Daly (List 6) and Jane Averill (List 6) who recently joined the DI panel.

Averill, who just as recently left her position as office administrator with DI to join Dublin City Council, judged the 25-runner BD Preliminary 15. Here she awarded her top score (73%) to Barry Higgins on Aideen McCormack’s Irish Draught mare Castanasky, a seven-year-old roan by Welcome Emperor out Castana Princess (by Castana).

Elizabeth Daly judged the other Preliminary class (DI18) where her wide-margin winner was Ger McNulty riding Dee Byrne’s Dutch Warmblood gelding Nacho (78.33), a five-year-old by For Ferrero out of a Limbo VI mare.

John Gavin partnered his own Irish Sport Horse gelding Holywell Contender to victory in both Novice classes. In the Bernie Webb-judged DI24A, Gavin and the home-bred five-year-old by Contendro I scored 71.5% while in the Vida Tansey-assessed BD23 they won on a score of 70.

Holywell Contender, who started competing with Show Jumping Ireland this year, is out of the Crosstown Dancer mare Skreenmor Dancer, a half-sister to the Limmerick gelding Ridire Dorcha (CCI4*-S).

Gavin rode the unrelated Holywell Spark in the Jane Whitaker-judged DI Elementary 51 but here, on 69.07%, he and his seven-year-old Cobra gelding had to settle for second behind Rhona McNamara and Reenmore Duke (69.81). This was just the second affiliated start of the season for the 14-year-old ISH gelding by Quicksilber who evented up to CCI3*-S level with Jodie O’Keeffe.

Wendy Seymour and her lovely grey ISH mare Carrick Diamond Lilly (67.5%), a traditionally-bred 13-year-old daughter of Carrick Diamond Lad, saw off the challenge of seven rivals to win the Tansey-judged BD Elementary 57.

Floyd Mills had mixed results at Medium level with his Hanoverian mare Debutante II, winning the three-runner, Webb-judged DI77 on 68% with the Desert Moon 12-year-old but finishing fourth (60.74) of five in the BD73 judged by Whitaker where Finn O’Gara topped the leaderboard on Karen Bennett’s Dutch Warmblood gelding Jinger (65.74), a nine-year-old chesnut by Negro.

Killian Gaffney owned and rode the two entries in the Advanced Medium classes and, in both instances, the 13-year-old Holstein gelding Coretto (by Chepetto) comfortably got the better of his ISH stable-companion My Bishophill Rolex.

Tansey judged the four higher graded classes and while Elaine Cross-Johnson saw off one rival to claim the BD Advanced 101 on her Dutch Warmblood gelding Devilingh (66.08%), a 15-year-old bay by Lingh, there were uncontested victories for Jennifer Egan and Don Juan’s Doll (61.57) in the Advanced, for Petra Larkin with Jarlos (57.50) in the Prix St George and for Sarah Mellor with Hotshot (63.97) in the Intermediate II.

Egan and her Sorrell Klatzko-bred Don Juan’s Doll (by Don Juan de Hus out of Desert Doll, by Desert Moon) got the better of their sole rivals to win the seven-year-old young horse class on 62.35% while Sadhbh O’Toole was the sole starter in the five-year-old class where she scored 69.2 on her Dutch Warmblood gelding Next Diamond (by Daily Diamond).

As is usual in this Region there were good entries in the Trailblazer classes won by Lillie-B Meredith and Dooneens Mystical Star (76.47% in the mini DI Introductory class), Caoimhe O’Donnell on board Greylands Razzle Dazzle (69.82 in the DI Preliminary 5A) and by Finn Breen on Goldengrove Morsecode (66.03 in the DI N26).

Victory for Mooney

In the Welcome to Dressage classes, Molly Mooney partnered Moses (69.41%) to victory in the DI Introductory Test B while Caoimhe O’Donnell and Greylands Razzle Dazzle (68.75) brought up a double in the DI Preliminary 5A.

The Northern Region is holding a leg of their summer league today at Knockagh View while, in Co Wicklow, Spruce Lodge is the venue for the South East Region’s NutriScience Classic. The South Munster Region is holding its summer league final and summer championships tomorrow at Maryville Stables.

No Dressage Ireland shows are scheduled to clash with any days of the Dublin Horse Show where a dressage demonstration will take place in Simmonscourt on Wednesday afternoon at 2.50pm.

The riders will be international Grand Prix rider Kevin Acres, international para rider Lucinda Blakiston Houston, young horse rider Linnea Larkin and one of Ireland’s European Pony team members.

The demonstration will be compered by Mark Ruddock and Dane Rawlins and is an opportunity for spectators to learn more about dressage and will feature dressage to music demos by each rider.