THE third of five qualifiers for this year’s Balmoral ‘Star of the Future’ performance horse championship was held on Wednesday at Wexford Equestrian, where the two classes ran during a busy schooling day at the Tomhaggard venue.

The Balmoral horse committee assigned the task of judging to Co Wicklow’s Johnny Kyle, who awarded 85 marks to the five-year-old class winner, Annaghmore Ganecho. This Irish Sport Horse gelding by Ganesh Hero Z is regarded as highly-talented by Fraser Duffy, who is riding the bay for owner Carol Gee.

“I do think he’s going to be a proper one,” said Fernhill Sport Horses’ stable-jockey. “He’ll go to Balmoral and then we’ll probably do the Dublin qualifiers with him. He’s got such a good jump we might do the jumping qualifiers, there’s nothing set in stone as yet. I started riding him towards the end of last year and he won the four-year-old class at the Horse Sport Ireland autumn eventing development series round at Ballindenisk.”

Annaghmore Ganecho was bred in Co Offaly by Aoife Healion, who sold Wednesday’s winner as a two-year-old to equine physiotherapist Sharon Kelly who, in turn, sold him on to Gee. Kelly then purchased the bay’s 2021 foal who, under the name Annaghmore Dunkirk, was reserve youngstock champion at the Dublin Horse Show last August. The pair are out of the Clover Echo mare HHS Flo Echo, who comes from the family of HHS Catwalk (CSI5*).

Healion no longer owns HHS Flo Echo and sold the last foal she bred out of the mare, a 2022 For Kinmar Echo Z colt.

Ciara Kinsella partnered her home-bred Dignified van’t Zorgvliet mare Tykillen Shindig, who is out of a well-related Master Imp mare, to finish second on 82 points, while Daisy Duggan slotted into third on her own and Seamus Drea’s Willows Freestyle Cavalier (81). Bred by Drea, this gelded son of Freestyle van de Wolfsakker out of a Douglas Cavalier mare has 29 Show Jumping Ireland points to his credit.

Stonewall Trixie and Patrick Byrne, winners of the six and seven-year-old 6/7 Balmoral qualifier at Wexford Equestrian, being presented by judge Johnny Coyle \ Orla Roche

Six and seven-year-olds

In the six and seven-year-old qualifier, Duffy had to settle for third with Carol Gee and Deirdre Lannigan’s Fernhill Quantum, a 2018 Colandro gelding, who was bred by Dessie Gibson out of his thoroughbred mare Mrs Buttons (by Mister Mat).

The bay finished seven points adrift of the second-placed Cracker Jack D’Ive Z (83), a Zangersheide gelding ridden by Patrick Byrne for Eftim Ivanoff. The six-year-old Casallo Z grey is out of the Zirocco Blue VDL mare Zembla Nova D’Ive Z.

Locally-based Byrne, who had a very busy day, claimed the honours on his second ride in this class, Marcus O’Donnell’s home-bred ISH mare Stonewell Trixie (84) who has 10 SJI points. The seven-year-old grey is by Dakar VDL, now on the stallion roster at Drumhowan Stud, out of the Aldatus Z mare Card Trick, a half-sister to the Cavalier Two For Joy mare Moores Stream (CIC3*).

The next Balmoral ‘Star of the Future’ qualifier takes place on Saturday next, March 30th, at Gransha Equestrian. The 2024 Stepping Stones to Success league at Wexford Equestrian starts on Wednesday next, March 27th with the first of four weekly qualifying rounds. The final takes place on Tuesday, April 23rd.