COMPETITIVELY, Dale Roberts was the only rider to record a double at last Saturday’s Northern Region show in Connell Hill where the judges were Dermot Cannon (List 1), Angelene Nicholson (List 2) and Coreen Abernethy (List 5).

Riding his Anglo European Studbook-registered gelding Rademon Aachen, a nine-year-old by Anteaus, Roberts had a close battle at Elementary level with Denise Kelly Rice. He narrowly won the Nicholson-judged, three-runner DI52 on 73.75%, ahead of his rival who posted a score of 73.19 with Forvanna.

In the Cannon-judged BD45, where just the two started, Kelly Rice and Pamela Wilson’s Westfalian mare Forvanna, a six-year-old by Formidable, comfortably gained their revenge as they scored 73.97% while Roberts and Rademon Aachen were some way adrift on 66.72.

The double for Roberts came up at Medium level in the Nicholson-judged BD61 where he easily saw off three rivals when achieving a score of 74.31% with Amelia McFarland’s home-bred Irish Sport Horse gelding Kingston Rua, a seven-year-old by Furstenball out of the Clintino mare Tullibards Shakira.

In the Cannon-judged BD73, Roberts and Kingston Rua again had to settle for second (62.94) behind Mark Robinson and Debbie Burns’ Hanoverian gelding Master Caledonia (68.38), a 10-year-old by Metall.

Burns got on the scoreboard as a rider as well when winning the Cannon-judged Preliminary DI18 with her piebald gelding Streamstown Boy (72.92%). She and her seven-year-old son of the Irish Draught stallion Streamstown Stormy Breeze then achieved a second qualifying score when, on 72.59, they finished runners-up in the Abernethy-judged BD17A to Caroline Herron and her home-bred ISH gelding Clantara Lord Louis (73.45). This five-year-old bay by Hoeks Ludo W is out of the Gentle Diamond mare Strandhill Misty who was out of a Clover Hill mare.

Win for Dundee

Lisa Dundee withdrew two of her five rides on Saturday but bagged herself a win at Novice level on her own ISH gelding Dunkeeran who topped the Nicholson-judged BD23 on 70.63%. The successful five-year-old Coolkeeran bay, who was bred in Co Laois by John Phelan, is out of the Garrison Royal mare Turkstown Sarah. In its further removes, this is the family of Hartstown who won the Supreme Novices’ Hurdle (then Listed, now Grade 1) at the 1981 Cheltenham Festival.

There were seven starters in that Novice class and six in the Abernethy-judged DI27A where Dundee and Dunkeeran (66.55) finished second to Sharon Getty and Taptoo who was successfully evented at EI100 and EI110 level by Adam Haugh in 2019 and 2020. A nine-year-old ISH mare by Shannondale Sarco St Ghyvan, Taptoo was bred in Co Clare by Pat Madigan out of the Ricardo Z mare Pat Clover.

Disappointingly, no one took on Ellen McDonald in the two FEI Junior classes where she and her father Jim’s 15-year-old Dutch Wamblood mare Donna Karen JDJ scored 68.64 in the team test and 68.53 in the individual test. There were uncontested wins also at Advanced Medium level for Nicki McKee and her Dutch warmblood gelding Isperado, a 10-year-old bay by Desperado out of the Sandreo mare Cetricia.