THE Midland and Western Region of Dressage Ireland held its winter final last Sunday at the showgrounds in Ballinalsoe where double points were on offer.

Simone Hession went home with two league wins to her credit, landing the Advanced Medium and above title with Beezies Double Diamond and the Novice league with Beezies Ripple. The latter finished ahead of the Nina Reinbold Molloy-partnered Kingsborough Samira, David Gray’s home-bred six-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare by Sandro K.

On Sunday, Dermot Cannon (List 1) judged the vast majority of the higher graded classes but this wasn’t too onerous a task as there was just one combination at each level. Hession clinched the Advanced Medium and above title when winning the Prix St George with her home-bred Irish Draught mare Beezies Double Diamond (61.91%), a 17-year-old daughter of Gentle Diamond.

In this section of the show, Cannon reserved his highest score (69.09%) for Cillian Curran and his mother Carmel’s Hanoverian mare Dancing Espri in the Advanced Medium B (FEI Junior team test). Curran and the 11-year-old Denario grey also recorded an uncontested victory in the FEI Junior individual test where they scored 68.68.

Attending the final also paid dividends for Hession at Novice level as she held off three rivals to win the BD39, judged by Connie Noone (List 4), with another home-bred, the Connemara gelding Beezies Ripple (64.04%), a 17-year-old grey by Gurteen Rebel.

There was a divide for first in the amalgamated Medium/FEI Pony league between the Maeve Deverell-ridden pair Annaharvey Dunowen and Derravaragh Boy. Michelle Gilligan finished third on her ISH gelding Avalon Renkum, a 10-year-old chesnut by Porsch.

Deverell appeared four times before Dermot Cannon on Sunday. Riding her mother Aisling’s ISH gelding Annaharvey Dunowen, a 10-year-old home-bred by Radolin, Maeve won the five-runner Medium DI65 on 68.75% and the BD69, in which there were four starters, on 69.70. She recorded uncontested victories in the FEI Pony individual (64.32) and team (65.71) tests on Aisling’s 11-year-old roan gelding, Derravaragh Boy.

Victory for Curran

To be eligible for league placings and prizes, combinations had to contest the final and, while there were competitive classes throughout the winter, the only pairing in contention to do so at Elementary level on Sunday was Cadhla Curran and the Connemara gelding Southeast Starlight.

Curran and her mother Carmel’s 16-year-old Carraig Galen Miller grey narrowly landed the four-strong DI52 on a score of 65.83% but didn’t contest the two-runner BD59 which was won by Shirley Mullins and her Irish Draught mare Gortfree Rebel (64.38%), a 10-year-old chesnut by Gortfree Hero. Both Elementary classes were judged by Connie Noone.

Niamh Macken partnered Diamond King Henry to victory in the Preliminary league followed by Michelle Gilligan and Avalon Outkast and Zara Walsh riding the 13-year-old dun gelding, Flowerhill Dusty.

On Sunday, Macken saw off six rivals to post the highest score in the Connie Noone-judged BD19 on Diamond King Henry (68.13%), her eight-year-old Irish Draught gelding by King Alton. Here, Gilligan could only finish third on Avalon Outkast (65.83) but she and her Connemara stallion, a cream five-year-old by Bog Mac Bobby, won the DI6 on 72.69. Macken and Diamond King Henry (69.81) were second in this 12-runner class which was the only one on the day judged by Danielle Carey (List 4).

Although they could only finish third (63.75%) and second (64.11) on finals’ day in the Connie Noone-judged Junior Trailblazer/Preliminary DIP5 class, Tadgh Murphy and Emma Golden finished first and second respectively in the Trailblazers’ Preliminary league on Sean Murphy’s The Baroness of Carn, a six-year-old grey Connemara mare by Turbo, and Bobby Moone Sparrow. Sunday’s class was won by Eilis Geoghegan riding her mother Paula’s 20-year-old piebald gelding Bilko (66.07).

Other winners on the day were Amy McDonagh who landed the seven-strong Novice DI21 with her 16-year-old black mare Forest View Anne (67.07%) and Gráinne Hallahan who recorded an uncontested victory in the FEI Para Grade II Grand Prix test on her ISH mare Jazzland (62.24), a 16-year-old grey by Silvano.