LOUTH’S Mark McAuley was in fine form as the Longines League of Nations moved to St Tropez-Gassin in France over the weekend. He took the runner-up spot in Friday’s five-star 1.60m Grand Prix at St Tropez with the nine-year-old stallion Rossi vd Heffinck. A start list of 43 saw the best 11 from round one proceeding to round two, where only McAuley and Brazil’s Marlon Modolo Zanotelli on Charly Heart completed double clear rounds. McAuley’s time of 44.85 wasn’t quite fast enough to beat Zanotelli’s 43.30, so the Brazilian took the €92,580 top prize, but McAuley pocketed a very generous €61,720 for second place. Henrik von Eckermann (SWE) on King Edward completed the podium in third (€46,290).

On Saturday, Trevor Breen and Konrad Obolensky placed eighth in the three-star Big Tour 1.45m class. From a start list of 84, 19 combinations jumped clear in the first round, with 15 of them proceeding to jump again. Six completed double clear rounds, with Breen being among the fastest four-faulters in the jump-off to place eighth. It was a home win for France’s Cedric Angot on Harmony de Grandry.