THE lilt of fluent Gaeilge mixed with a multitude of accents and languages, spoken by Connemara pony lovers from around the world, applause, cheers and conversations galore were all heard around the Clifden ringside last week.

Back to its usual date – the third week in August - after last year’s switch, entries were up for the now four-day show.

This year - and one century on from his family entering a Connemara at the first Roundstone Show and half a century after winning a rosette on his own first-time Clifden appearance, Terence Sweeney won the supreme in-hand championship.

His champion last Wednesday was the well-named Dunloughan Troy and this Currachmore Cashel grey was indeed a Trojan pony as his Ballyconneely “just down the road from Clifden” owner believes his supreme champion is the first embryo transfer Connemara born here.

“My father John won with his grandfather’s pony at the first show ever in Roundstone 100 years, I won my first rosette at Clifden with a foal 50 years ago and we’ve had the same line of pony all the way down through, so to be up on 150 years with three (winners) in the same line is special.”

Last Wednesday was all about the in-hand classes and to coincide with the Connemara Pony Breeders Society centenary, a parade of 13 former in-hand champions took place in the afternoon. Last year, Dunloughan Troy won the seven-year-old and over stallion class, a result he duly repeated, paving his way into the Horse Sport Ireland-sponsored supreme championship.

The winner of the other Clifden stallion class this year, for four to six-year-olds, was Patrick Curran’s busy home-bred Glencarrig Douvan (Glencarrig Knight), ridden champion at Dublin and reserve ridden champion the following day.

Reserve joy

The celebrations could begin for Sweeney once Dunloughan Troy was announced as the supreme champion and in reserve was the Willows Ingredients broodmare champion, Loughmor Suzy.

Owned by Paddy Kearns from Mountmellick, this 14-year-old is by Linsfort Barney out of Hazy Rebel and was bred by Sean Cooney. “She was a previous All-Ireland broodmare champion and the dam of two Clifden champion foals in 2017 and 2018, both by my own stallion Brocklodge Buster and she won in Clifden in 2019. It was great to win on the 100-year anniversary of the CPBS,” Paddy commented afterwards.

Standing reserve champion broodmare was Tomás and Fiona Grimes’ Copperbeech Polly (Menlough Owen - Carrowkeel Star) and she took her place in Friday’s parade of champions through Clifden, accompanied by this year’s champion foal Copperbeech Ivy, by Innellan Condor.

“We were delighted that Copperbeech Ivy took the foal champion last Wednesday as she is now the fourth generation of Clifden winners from our stud. Her mother Copperbeech Polly previously won her mare class in 2019, her grandmother Carrowkeel Star took the overall reserve supreme champion back in 2014 and her great-grandmother Lishin Star has taken four reds including the overall reserve supreme champion in 2019.

“Her sire Innellan Condor won his stallion class back in 2015. So you guessed it, she’s a keeper!” Fiona said about their retained champion.

Standing reserve in the James Morris-sponsored foal championship was Roundstone owner Martin Keaney’s colt Murvey Rock Of Ages, by Rogaire na Locha out of Murvey Rita.

Junior champion

Another Clifden tricolour went to the Lee family-sponsored junior champion: Carnane Bonnie, a three-year-old filly owned by Clifden farrier Bryan O’Halloran. By Blakehill Sparrow out of Robe Moonlight, she was bred locally by Michael Holmes. The reserve junior champion was Paraic Folan’s home-bred Teach Mór Peige (Glencarrig Monarch - Teach Mór Queen Donna), winner of a massive yearling filly class that attracted 31 entries.

“We bought her as a foal from her breeders Micheal and Deirdre Holmes. We fell in love with her as she was true to type and we believed she would do well in the ring. Honestly we didn’t think this was her year but of course we are thrilled,” said Brian’s wife Niamh.

“To win the class was one thing but to be picked as the junior champion was the icing on the cake! We are so excited for this girl’s future, she will hopefully be out under saddle next year doing her thing in the novice classes.”

Clifden stories this year ranged from a 50-year wait to the youngest winners in the young handler classes: Jason Nee and Naoise O’Reilly. More will happen next year at the 2024 show from August 20th-23rd.

What they said

“The show was a great success with entries up over 20% and the footfall was higher again. The icing on the cake was the new record for the puissance wall at 1.65m under such difficult weather conditions but that’s the beauty of the Connemara!” – CPBS Council member and breeder Fiona Grimes

“To have a win in Clifden the feeling can’t be described, it’s the All-Ireland in the Connemara world!” - Niamh O’Halloran

“As president of the Society, I couldn’t be happier with the show, it exceeded all our expectations and was an absolute tremendous success, plus the amount of international business that is here and enquiries about Connemara ponies.

The performance section is growing yearly and really that is where the future lies. This was actually our 98th show, we’ve only missed two shows I believe in the last 100 years due to Covid so, ordinarily, this would have been the 100th but we’ll be celebrating the 100th show in 2025.” – CPBS President Dave Sheedy

“Still celebrating! The amount of calls and texts from all over since is just amazing.” - Terence Sweeney speaking last Saturday.

“It was a nightmare to a dream come true. We left home at 10am on Wednesday morning and it took 11 hours to get to Clifden. We had a blowout and were on the side of the road for three and a half hours.

We didn’t get down until after 9pm and had to be in the ring at 8.30am on Thursday so there were no expectations even for the class.” - Ridden champion Zoe Price