GILFORD’S Steven Smith made it two wins in three years, when landing the five-year-old young event horse class at the Dublin Horse Show on Thursday week last with his wife Jenny’s Irish Sport Horse gelding, You Neek.

The Diamond Roller bay completed Wednesday’s presentation phase with 32.3 marks (from 40 available) to his credit. None of his 18 rivals managed to breach the 30-mark level, his nearest challengers being the Ciara Kinsella-owned, bred and ridden ISH gelding Tykillen Tango (29.9) and the Ian Cassells-partnered ISH mare Peak Freestyler (29.8).

Keeping his full 45 marks from Thursday morning’s jumping phase, as did five others in the class, You Neek received an average of 13.3 marks from the judging panel of Britain’s Laura Collett and Annabel Srimgeour plus New Zealand’s Andrew Nicholson. His percentage of thoroughbred blood only garnered him 3.4 marks, but he ran out a comfortable winner on 94.

Clear rounds helped Ian Cassells and Sarah Ennis finish second and third respectively with Claire and Pat Duffy’s Peak Freestyler (91.4) and Ben Goodbody’s ISH gelding LSL The Melody Maker (90.3). Four marks lost for a pole down proved expensive for Ciara Kinsella and Tykillen Tango (90.3), as this Tyson gelding had the class’s second highest mark for thoroughbred blood (6.2). Cathal Daniels rounded off the top five on board Paul Donovan’s ISH gelding KBS Sportsfield Quartz (88.8).

The only horse who failed to complete was Sharon and James O’Connor’s Ashwood Rio, who, reportedly, just froze under the owner/breeder’s niece Ciara O’Connor at the pocket end of the Main Arena. This Dignified van’t Zorgvliet gelding won the Dubarry Burghley young event horse class at Millstreet. O’Connor and the bay were out to redeem themselves in last night’s five-year-old masterclass at Lisgarvan, where Ian Cassells had also entered Peak Freestyler.

Targeted

You Neek was bred in Co Louth by John Kearney, who was at Dublin to see the tall, dark bay gelding win and will, in due course, receive a most welcome breeder’s prize of €1,500, while Peak Freestyler won her connections an extra €1,000 for being the highest-placed mare. The winner, who qualified at Forth Mountain, is out of the Camiro de Haar Z mare Veronicas Camario, a half-sister to the Touchdown gelding Touchalier (CIC3*).

“I told everyone last year that we had the winner of the 2024 five-year-old class at Dublin!” said a delighted Trevor Smith, as he held court near the stabling area. His brother agreed that they had targeted this class with You Neek, who they purchased as a three-year-old from the very shrewd Stuart Whittle.

“We could have sold him several times, but Jenny wanted to have a nice horse – for me to ride she says – and she definitely has one here. She also wanted the name Unique but couldn’t have it, so between herself and our good friend Joe Marley (who works with Smith Brothers Eventing), they came up with You Neek. We have a great back-up team here, with Casey Webb (who finished ninth in the four-year-old class on Gleneden Lolo), my daughter Hollie and my best mate Derek Leonard, who stands a couple of stallions, helping us out.”

The young event horse classes at Dublin were supported by Horse Sport Ireland and the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine.

Turnout

There was a very high standard of turn-out throughout the showgrounds at last week’s Dublin Horse Show, with those competing in the flat youngstock classes being financially rewarded for their efforts.

The section’s two judges, Britain’s Tom March and Germany’s Norbert Freistedt, not only had to select their class winner – and all those who formed the line-ups – but they also had to award the best turn-out prize in each class with commentator Bernard Condren then informing the public of the judges’ decision. The prizes of €100 each were generously sponsored by the McCusker Group, Lurgan.