DRESSAGE Ireland action resumed last weekend when there were four shows, one in the South East Region on Saturday with the three on Sunday taking place in the Eastern, Midlands & Western and Northern Regions.

The South East Region’s show was held, as usual, at Spruce Lodge, Co Wicklow, where Saturday’s four judges were Lindsey Ilona Brady (List 5), Jean Halpenny (List 4), the recently-upgraded Michael Moore (List 2a) and Mark Ruddock (List 1).

North Co Dublin’s Lydia Dawson saw off her sole rival, Rachel Carr, to win the two Advanced Medium classes on 66.97% (FEI Junior Team Test) and 68.24 (FEI Junior Individual test) with her 14-year-old Irish Sports Horse gelding Clonswords Alf (by Clonswords Mr Jones).

While her wins were uncontested, Waterford’s Emily Kate Robinson was delighted to have scored 68.09% in the Intermediate I and to have completed her international qualification in the Prix St George (66.32) with her Dutch Warmblood gelding Edvaard, a 14-year-old son of Christ. Grade IV para rider Rosemary Gaffrey also posted an uncontested double on her Hanoverian gelding Freedom, a nine-year-old chesnut by Floriscount, in the FEI Grand Prix A (69.44) and B (69.86).

Winning scores of 70% and over were recorded by Oscar O’Connor in the FEI pony individual test on his mother Susan’s 13-year-old Westfalian gelding by Top Champy, Top Hero 2 (71.22); by Niamh Winter in the Novice BD39 on Josephine Delahoyde’s eight-year-old piebald mare Marlton Rose (70.38); and by Eithne Scully with her Anglo European Studbook-registered Santana (73.75) in the Preliminary BD18.

In the BD P19, Scully and her five-year-old black gelding by Wish Upon A Star scored 68.54% whenlight narrowly beaten into second by Kirsty Kirkwood riding her traditionally-bred ISH mare Ballycapple Brigade Cruise (69.79), a nine-year-old grey by Clover Brigade. Anna Radford recorded the highest score in the Elementary DI52 on her new ride for this season, Rose Carr’s 17-year-old European championship pony Calelvador May Blossom (67.92).