THE 2017 Broodmare Futurity reserve champion, Eamon Murphy and Ger O’Neill’s Columbcille Gipsy, has left big horse shoes for this year’s Futurity hopefuls to fill. The Toulon mare, bred by the late Eamonn in Thomastown, went on to win gold in the World Breeding Federation for Sport Horses young horse championships at Lanaken last September, before being sold for €700,000 at the PSI Auction last December.

Aimed at earmarking broodmares with potential to produce top show jumping progeny, the Futurity is confined to the top two fillies and mares from the loose performance, four, five and six-year-old classes.