THE Horse Sport Ireland autumn eventing development series paid the first of two visits into Connaught this year when the second of six standalone legs was held last Sunday at the Claremorris Equestrian Centre in Co Mayo.

This round of the series was run as a combined training competition with dressage being judged by Danielle Read-Carey and Helen Nolan while the jumping phase was judged by show organiser Sinead Hanley over tracks designed by her husband Charles. In a bid to attract more competitors in the west to eventing, there were no age limits on horses/ponies competing.

Physiotherapist Hannah Gordon has had a busy year on the equestrian front, travelling the roads of Ireland with great success most weekends – and mid-week if necessary – with the Liam Lynskey team of horses from Derryronane Stud. Closer to home on Sunday, the duo recorded a HSI-sponsored double, landing the nine-runner EI110 class with DS Ballagh Bouncer and the EI80 with Greenhall Carrera.

The Moylough Bouncer stallion DS Ballagh Bouncer was the first of the pair to strike and, in fact, was the first horse of the day to compete. On 31.25 penalties, the 10-year-old held a marginal lead after the dressage phase over the Irish Sport Horse gelding Cairnview Noble Jester (31.75). The latter, a Harlequin du Carel five-year-old with Eventing Ireland experience, was ridden for his Co Longford owner/breeder Geraldine Quinn by Anita Algierowicz.

In the jumping phase, both DS Ballagh Bouncer and Cairnview Noble Jester lowered a fence apiece and the latter dropped to third behind Kingsborough Jester (35.5) who left all the poles intact. A 10-year-old Je t’Aime Flamenco gelding with 180 Show Jumping Ireland points, Kingsborough Jester was ridden by Chloe Goggins.

Multi-purpose stallion

Lynskey, who competed two horses himself on Sunday, is extremely proud of DS Ballagh Bouncer who started off this year by winning on the Five Star tour in the west under his owner. He then competed successfully in the Western Region combined training challenge.

Gordon and DS Ballagh Bouncer contested the Dublin Horse Show performance Irish Draught qualifiers and, on the opening day of the show at the RDS, the grey finished third in the older ID final. Two days later, he was also third in his in-hand stallion class while, on the Sunday, he rounded off his week in Dublin with a fifth-place finish in the open heavyweight working hunter class.

DS Ballagh Bouncer, who was bred in Co Roscommon by Brian Duffy out of the Mount Diamond Flag mare Mount Diamond Princess, won an extra prize on Sunday as the highest-placed ID in his class.

Gordon and Lynskey also linked up for success at the end of the day, winning the 17-strong EI80 class with Greenhall Carrera who was third in her lightweight hunter mares’ class in Dublin.

The seven-year-old Dignified van’t Zorgvliet bay, who bred a filly in 2019 by DS Are You With Me, completed on her winning dressage score of 28.25 penalties. As her name suggests, the winner was bred by Derry Rothwell and is out of his Porsch mare Greenhall Wendi who comes from the family of Greenhall Mullord who recently finished eighth, from 276 starters, in the world five-year-old show jumping championships at Lanaken.

Hannah Gordon and Greenhall Carrera won the EI80 at the autumn eventing development series in Claremorris \ Chloe Goggins Photography

Elisa O’Connor finished second here, on her first phase score, with her ISH mare Oilean Ambora (29.25), a six-year-old Koro d’Or grey who has done a small amount of registered jumping.

Family affair

Marjorie Hardiman partnered the home-bred Creganna Dandini (29.5) to finish third in that EI80 competition and the 14-year-old Cashelbay Prince gelding won the prize as highest-placed Connemara. However, before that, the Oranmore exhibitor assumed her now more familiar role of spectator as her daughter Lara Field landed the EI100 on Creganna Kerfuffle.

Field (15) completed on her flatwork score (30.75 penalties) as did her good friend, and fellow Galway Mid County Pony Club member, Anna Gibbons who partnered Riona Finn’s nine-year-old Orestus gelding The Kiwi (32.25) into second. Home-based Ciara Hanley and Amy Grady shared the lead on 29.25 after dressage but slipped down the order when lowering two fences apiece with Trendy Ricardo Cruise and Glynsk Star respectively.

A Silver Shadow half-sister of Creganna Dandini, the seven-year-old Creganna Kerfuffle, winner of the section’s Connemara award, did little as a youngster due to Covid. However, when travelling restrictions eased but there were still no pony showing classes, she was campaigned in registered show jumping competitions on the Connaught circuit and has now amassed 133 SJI points.

This season, Creganna Kerfuffle was fourth in the high performance class at Clifden and filled the same position in her working hunter class at Dublin. She recorded a telling victory at the Irish Pony Society’s summer championships show at Castle Irvine, Necarne when winning the prestigious Tom Robinson Gold Cup (dressage, working hunter and show jumping).

Hanley fared better in the EI90 class where she completed on her first phase score with Trendy Ricardo Cruise, the 11-year-old Bahrain Cruise mare on whom she competes under Eventing Ireland Rules. However, her score of 31.25 was only good enough for second as Westport’s Lilly Berry McLaughlin claimed the honours on General Sinatra (31).

The lead after dressage was shared on 28.25 by Hannah Gordon on six-year-old Irish Sports Pony gelding HansFree and Georgina Beesley with the 12-year-old ISH gelding Mountain Hideaway but both had a fence down show jumping to drop to third and fourth.

Long journey

General Sinatra, who is now 10, was purchased by Lilly and her mother Carol Berry as a very green four-year-old at Clifden sales. Pony and rider have come a long way together with plenty of schooling and coaching through the Clew Bay Pony Club. The vast majority of work 17-year-old Lilly does with the pony is on the flat while they have developed into strong combined training contenders.

The pair won the 80cms combined training championships at the Irish Pony Club festival last year and just narrowly failed to land the 1m Area qualifier this season, missing out on the opportunity to compete in the Pony Club combined training finals at Dublin. As the RDS was her season’s target, Berry McLaughlin qualified at Rincoola for the ridden Connemara championship at the Ballsbridge showgrounds.

General Sinatra, who is now on a break, won Sunday’s Connemara award for his class. The grey General Humbert gelding was bred in Co Galway by Gerald Walsh out of his Moy Johnny’s Pride mare Tully Marie.

The third leg of this HSI autumn development series takes place today at Punchestown (being incorporated into the third EI one-day at the Co Kildare venue this year) with the fourth being staged tomorrow at Ballindenisk. It’s back to the west then next Sunday when the penultimate round will be held at the Milchem Equestrian Centre in Tynagh, Co Galway where age restrictions will apply.