PADDINGTON was a bit of a buzz word this week as two days before the Aidan O’Brien-trained Siyouni colt of the same name won the St James’s Palace Stakes (Group 1) at Royal Ascot, the Irish Draught gelding Paddington Himself made a winning Eventing Ireland debut in the EI100 at Ballindenisk last Sunday.

The top eight in this 25-runner class all completed on their dressage scores with Paddington Himself (23.3) being joint-leader following the first phase under Alice Copithorne.

Fraser Duffy had been awarded the same score on another newcomer, Fernhill Castlefield Park, but, while the Kilkenny-based rider was still in the runner-up slot at day’s end, it was on another debutant, Captain Jack Sparrow II (24.3).

On Sunday, Copithorne was riding the six-year-old Paddington Himself for just the second time. The first had been at the RDS ID qualifier at Forth Mountain where the Dermot Shaughnessy-bred grey, who is by Grandpas Diamond out of Fodhera (by Oh Carol’s Rebel), ruled himself out of contention in the jumping phase.

“He is owned by Cindy Wagner who won the ladies’ astride class on him at the Northern Ireland Festival,” revealed Copithorne. “Cindy, who works with Shane McKenna, has shown him a bit and also competes him with Dressage Ireland (has 36 points) which is why he is so good at that phase. Daniel Alderson has done a bit of jumping with the horse but, because he couldn’t commit to the RDS qualifiers on Saturdays, I got the ride. We only really brought him to Ballindenisk for mileage as he is due to compete in the qualifier at Scarteen on Saturday (today).”

On springs

There were 13 starters in the EI90 where six combinations jumped double clear inside the time. Five filled the top of the leaderboard while the sixth, Rastaman (29.8) an unraced thoroughbred, went hors concours under Ellen Homes. This Indian Danehill gelding amassed the majority of his 28 British Eventing points under Sam Ecroyd.

As at Rosanna the previous day, it was a Western Region rider who proved victorious here, Anita Algierowicz recording her third Eventing Ireland success, and her first since October 2020, on Geraldine Quinn’s home-bred ISH mare Cairnview Crystal Springs (30.5). This Tolan R five-year-old is out of Cairnview Clover Crystal (by Clover Hill).