SOME good stories came out of the third Young Eventhorse Series (YES!) qualifier which was held last Tuesday week at Scarteen, just nine days after the Ryan family had run a quickly-organised Eventing Ireland one-day at their Co Limerick venue.

Top among these was an emotional win on the Lambertstown Stud-owned LSL The Melody Maker in Section A of the four-year-old class for Emily MacMahon, younger daughter of the late Lt Col Ronnie MacMahon who was one of the founders of the Future Event Horse League, the forerunner of YES!

“I couldn’t believe it!” said MacMahon. “I was down with Tom Duffy in Carnaross one day, looking for a Connie, when this fellow, who was two at the time, trotted across the field and I thought there’d be a job for him. At that stage I was thinking of turning him over but when I took him to the May Sale in Goresbridge last year he wasn’t making his money, so I brought him home again.

“Over the winter he was hunted and then did a bit of everything such as hunter trials and arena eventing in Killossery. We went to the Northern Ireland Festival where he was second in his Festival four-year-old working hunter horse class and in his novice ridden hunter class. After 26 years, I returned to eventing at Rosanna in late May when we were third in the EI80 training class.

“We finished in mid-field in the qualifier at Forth Mountain where he jumped a double clear but, while I have been getting lessons on the flat, I’m going to need a lot more before Dublin, and that’s up to me because he really knows how to jump. I got to parade in the Main Arena at Dublin during my working hunter pony days. However, this will be my first time to compete there and to think it’s for Dad’s trophy makes it all the more special.”

LSL The Melody Maker is another horse qualified for Dublin who was bred in Co Monaghan by Amelia Cumiskey. He is by her home-bred stallion Sir Harry out of the Imperial Hights mare Diamonds High.

Qualified

Based with Paul Donovan, French international Corentin Gautier qualified in second here on the Co Tipperary owner’s ISH gelding Sportsfield Cool Kid (271.2), a bay by the Holstein stallion Coolkeeran out of Thomas Hutchinson’s former Grade A Dutch Warmblood mare Warantha. Robbie Kearns claimed the final ticket on offer with Richard Ames’ third-placed ISH gelding Belline Super Ted (270.2), a bay son of Sligo Candy Boy.

Maurice Coleman’s previously-qualified ISH gelding Kealanine Chief (285.9), a Fruits of Love bay out of Richard O’Regan’s West Coast Cavalier mare Kealanine Dreamer, topped the scores in Section B of the well-supported four-year-old class, winning for the second week in a row under Alex Donohoe.

Fellow Co Wexford rider, the busy Patrick Whelan, secured a Dublin ticket in second on the P.J. Roche-bred Carraiganard Obie (283.2). This bay or brown ISH gelding by Lagans Obos Quality out of the Rehy High Society mare Newtown Star is owned by Whelan and Michael Widger. Dominic Furnell is another who has seen plenty of the country in recent weeks in search of a qualifying ticket and secured one here in third with the Traditional Irish Horse Ballycahane Pocahontas (278.5), a home-bred chesnut mare by Pointilliste out of the Diamond Clover mare Ballycahane Flower Power (CCI4*).