Shows

Susan Finnerty

Fifty years after it was first held on Westport House grounds, the local horse show celebrated its Golden Jubilee event last Sunday at its current Drummindoo Stud location.

Anthony Gordon and Tiernan Gill’s friendly rivalry continued in the young horse championship where Gordon’s Elusive Emir gelding won both that and the later horse title, with Gill’s Greenhall Liqueur (Barnaby Flight), another Dublin-bound three-year-old, in reserve. Mary Murphy’s broodmare Castlemeadow Mildred (Power Blade) stood reserve to Gordon’s former All Ireland traditional foal champion in the second championship.

Holy Grace

Judges Padraig Fitzpatrick and Neil Henry (who confirmed he is standing again in the upcoming Horse Board elections) then selected Eddie Murphy’s mare Holy Grace (Holycross) as their Irish Draught champion, ahead of Gerry Ferguson’s two-year-old filly My Rosie (Harkaway Lionhawk) as reserve.

Sean Stagg had some well-filled Connemara classes and his overall champion was Alaoise Halpin’s Kilrock Cashel (Coolough Cashel) from the senior mare class with Michael Sweeney’s Bunowen Grey Lass (Dunloughan Troy) in reserve.

Katie Curran’s Glencarrig Princess Katie (Glencarrig Knight) was earlier crowned junior champion, ahead of Feichin King’s Dancing Timber Star (Banks Timber).

COYNE’S CHAMPION

In the pony ring, Valerie Davis’s champion choice was Deirdre Coyne’s Bacchus, led by her Leaving Certificate student daughter Lauren.

In reserve was Grace Maxwell Murphy’s Gleann Rua Maximilian (Gleann Rua Maxwell).

To mark the show’s Golden Jubilee event, a wreath laying and flag raising ceremony was held, during which show chairman Paddy Joe Foy recalled and honoured the late committee members Sean Joyce, Tony Moore, Vincent O’Malley and also ISA board member John Connolly, from Bantry, who sadly passed away earlier that morning.

Galway County show cancelled

As a result of ground conditions at Ballybrit Racecourse, the Galway County Show Committee has been forced to cancel all showing classes. The only section of the show that will now take place is the Show Jumping at Duffy’s Equestrian Centre, Claregalway on Friday 16, Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 June 2017. The amended schedule will be on Facebook, the Galway County Show website and the SJI this week. All paid entry fees for the cancelled classes will be refunded.

RDS Breeders Championship qualifier change

Although showing classes have been cancelled for this year’s Galway County Show, its RDS Breeders Championship qualifier, now takes place at West Clare Show on Saturday, 1 July.

“Of course I feel sorry for Galway County that they couldn’t run their showing classes this year, we’ll take up the challenge with pride. I’d like to thank the RDS and Fiona Sheridan for supporting the country show and keeping the Breeders Championship qualifier in the west” said secretary Bridgette Coghlan, who also confirmed there will be a new cup on offer at the show in memory of the late West Clare horseman Paddy Downes.

Luck of the Irish in Canada

Irish riders filled three of the top four places in the $130,000 Atco Grand Prix at the four-star Show at Langley, British Colombia in Canada in the early hours of Monday morning.

Seven combinations made it into the jump-off and Co Down’s Conor Swail scored a runner-up finish with the Vanessa Mannix-owned mare Flower, stopping the clock clear in 39.11. Derry’s Daniel Coyle took third place with the Susan and Ariel Grange-owned Cita after they also jumped clear in 39.47.

Galway’s Andrew Bourns c filled fourth place with the Deirdre Bourns-owned CHS Inception. Bourns crossed the line clear in 41.49 with the Irish Sport Horse gelding who is just a nine-year-old by Clover Flush out of a Harlequin du Carel dam.

America’s Margie Goldstein-Engle took the winners prize with the bay stallion Royce with the fastest double clear round of 38.70.