THE Skibbereen winning streak continued unabated in the filly championship, when Tim O’Leary’s unnamed yearling won the Owen Ryan Cup, ahead of John Burchill with a similar West Cork Eircode, and his year-older ABC Pop Rock.

“We’ve always had one or two mares breeding and showing at local shows,” said a delighted Tim. “My son Michael and I share a great love of horses, which we both inherited from my late father, Paddy O’Leary. Attending the Dublin Horse Show is a family tradition for more than 30 years at this stage.”

Their home-bred Avo Jordans Z filly added a reserve sash to her collection too, when she stood reserve in the Pembroke Cup for home-breds to Joe Fitzmaurice’s all-conquering Meadowpark Legacy, the yearling, traditional and exhibitor-bred champion last Friday.

“What happened at Dublin is beyond your wildest dreams. At the same time, since he was born, I knew he was special. I know that’s a bit of a cliché and people say it all the time about their racehorses, but he was,” said the Roscommon man and Irish National Stud management gold medal winner graduate.

Joe described the time spent after Tully as the “best two years of my life, working for the highly-respected Brian and Sheila Grassick”. It was through the recommendation of their daughter Cathy, a great fan of Moylough Legacy, that Joe chose this Irish Draught stallion as the covering sire for Abend, a Sea The Stars mare acquired from more good family friends, John and Vourneen Fagan.

“They were very kind to me too. This mare is descended from one of their best mares, going back to Frond, the ‘mother hen’ of their Deerpark Stud and they were delighted to see her going to a forever home. The Fagans were there too at Dublin, John’s father showed horses back in the 1930s and it was very emotional for them as well.”

In a poignant link, ringside too was Emer Gilboy, the granddaughter of the late John Gilboy, who, not only bred the full-brothers Moylough Legacy and Supremacy, but also taught a young Joe Fitzmaurice.