WHEN Lucca Stubington pulls on her pink cross-country colours at events, she is maintaining a link to her great-grandparents, Charles L. and Isobel MacKean, whose Soldennis carried the same livery to victory in the 1921 Irish 2000 Guineas as did that stallion’s influential daughter, Sweet Wall, in the 1928 Irish Cambridgeshire.

Those colours are now on a bit of a break as the Sweet Wall team, which comprises Lucca, her mother Georgia and her grandmother, Patricia MacKean, all adjust to life under Covid-19 restrictions. This would normally be a very busy time for the trio whose commitment to the Northern Region of Eventing Ireland sees them on-site early in the morning at events.

Although now 90 years of age, Patricia should be filling her role as writer for the many dressage judges she has come to know over the years but, instead, she is in isolation in her lovely converted cow byre on Donegore Hill, just north of Loughanmore, with her wonderful carer, Lindsay Brown.

“Lindsay has very kindly gone into lockdown with Mum as Lucca and I felt that we couldn’t guarantee not to have some interaction with other people,” explains Georgia Stubington. “They have plenty in common as Lindsay has a long-standing connection with Eventing Ireland and was prize-giving and protocol co-ordinator at many international events both here and in Britain.

“She really enjoys bringing Mum to the events as she meets many friends and has an interest in the sport. We really couldn’t have found a better ‘minder’,” she told The Irish Field this week.

Born in London in 1929, Patricia always had an interest in all things equestrian although her family used to just hire ponies on their holidays in the country. She can recall decking the ponies with bunting before riding with her sister Diana from near Barbary Castle to Marlborough to celebrate the coronation of George VI in 1937 when she was eight.

“Mum moved to Ireland in 1950 and one of the first horses she bought was Paradise Walk who she hoped would be a show hunter. Unfortunately, he didn’t have the temperament for it but went on to event with Major Eddie Boylan.

“She did event her hunters when Eventing Ireland was known as the Irish Horse Trials Society (IHTS) but, after a particularly difficult lesson with Jock Ferrie, she asked him what she should do next, ‘Take up knitting’ came the reply, so she did!

“Mum won the small hunter class at the RDS on Manus who was by Burn’s Cottage, a thoroughbred stallion standing locally with Lewis Lowry out of a Connemara mare named Rowan. She had gone to Connemara to buy the mare and fell for ‘We’ll send the book on’ story but, of course, it never came!”

Patricia was the founding District Commissioner of the East Antrim Branch of The Pony Club, a one-time committee member of the IHTS and a proficient multi-tasker during her daughter’s eventing career.

“Mum drove, catered, groomed and wrote cheques and now history is repeating itself!” said Georgia. “Her favourite venue was Burghley, where I was twice clear across the country, while she really enjoyed our trip to Australia in 1986 for the World Championships at Gawler.”

‘A good amateur’

To answer queries for this article, Georgia had to stop her lockdown pursuit of gardening. “When we moved here to Nettlebush House nearly two years ago, we started developing a garden behind the house where we could grow vegetables and have a greenhouse and outside kitchen.

“Now, benefitting from the amazing weather, I have finally got back to that. Over the last few days, I’ve been building a path and a set of steps. Mixing concrete by hand is hard work so I see a cement mixer in my future!”

Stubington’s equestrian past stretches back to her first pony Tonto. “He was like the little girl with the curl in the middle of her forehead – when he was good he was very, very good and when he was bad he was horrid! I hunted a lot and did all Pony Club activities as a member (naturally enough) of the East Antrim Branch. One year, I got a rosette for trying at the Pony Club games area competition but then, I did, pass the A Test.”

School tests were a different matter. “I wasn’t very interested in school (maybe it wasn’t interested in me) which I have since come to regret which was why I persuaded Lucca to do her A Levels; her sister Claudia didn’t need any such encouragement,” said the mother of two.

“I went to England to do my AI and, when I came back, we employed Eric Smiley to establish a yard at Loughanmore. He found Kells (Pry – Mrs Bofey, by Shackleton) who I later rode at the Europeans at Burghley in 1985 (15th individually) and at the Worlds in Gawler the following year when we finished 23rd individually. I was only a good amateur, with one horse at a time; I never had the strings of horses my contemporaries started to collect during the 80s.”

Unfortunately, there are no computerised records of Georgia’s eventing career which began in 1975. “The following year we bought Juniper Green, our foundation mare on the eventing front. I was on the Junior team with her for the next three years, winning team gold at Fontainebleau (1977), team bronze at Burghley (1978) and team bronze at Punchestown (1979).

“I also partnered Juniper Green to win the Northern Open Championship at Ballee House. I think that was in 1981 but I do know for sure that I beat Jessica Harrington and her great thoroughbred mare Amoy. I won the Open Championship a second time at Ballinlough in 1988 or 1989 I think on Sadler’s Wells.”

Georgia Stubington (then MacKean) and Juniper Green were part of the Irish team who won bronze at the Junior European Eventing Championships at Punchestown in 1979

Stubington found Chris Bartle to be an excellent coach during her riding days. “He was the one who turned on the light for me. He helped me find the key to Kells who could be very hot. His understanding of working with thoroughbreds was so important.

“The other coach who really made a difference was David Mitchell who was the first person to teach me how to jump a round of fences rather than just approach this phase as gymnastic exercises.”

Standing stallions

“All of those horses were bought in but I got into breeding when I came home to live in Northern Ireland in 1988 and took on the stallions when Florida Son was just taking off. He was sire of Florida Pearl whose 16 racecourse successes included the Champion Bumper and the Royal & SunAlliance Chase at Cheltenham, the King George VI Chase at Kempton and a record four wins in the Hennessy Cognac Gold Cup at Leopardstown – all Grade 1 races.

“Among other stallions we stood were Posidonas, Shareef, Classic Memory, Law of The Wise and Arc Bright. We don’t have a stallion at the moment, and I don’t know if I ever will have another, but one should never say never.”

Georgia rode in one bumper herself, partnering her mother’s Deep Peace, who was trained at Loughanmore by Meath native Colin McKeever, to finish 10th of 23 at Down Royal in her first year back in Ireland.

Deep Peace, whose fourth dam was the abovementioned Sweet Wall, was dam in turn of the Toulon mare Solerina who won a bumper, three races on the flat and 18 over hurdles including five at Grade 1 level.

“I loved the race, and the preparation, but ‘doing’ 10 stone was too much of a struggle. I only needed my saddle to make the weight back in the days when eventing had weights!”

Did she like the old format? “Yes and no. It was the ultimate test but you could really only do two a year. The modern format (short and shorter!) does allow a lot more competition and, I think results in less serious horse injuries, especially tendons.”

Never really settling into the role of spectator, Stubington moved into the world officialdom at events in Ireland in 1994 when joining the Northern Region committee, becoming an FEI steward in the same year at Necarne Castle. “I love watching horses and riders and stewarding gives you that opportunity in spades.

“I took over from the late John Martin at Punchestown about the same time and would have been chief steward for the ill-fated World Equestrian Games that never happened. The essence of being a steward is to see that the competition is run fairly for everybody and that’s what I work hardest to achieve.”

Sustainability of sport

While still living at Loughanmore, Georgia and Patricia hosted internationals from 1990 to 1993 inclusive. “Mum and I were keen to put something back into the sport and, in particular, run a Junior European Championship.

“It was the most amazing few years and we loved every part of it and made great friends. Loughanmore lends itself to the sport as it’s wonderful galloping ground and it’s great to see eventing continue there thanks to the Dennison family.

“Since then of course, we have had internationals at Necarne Castle and Ballygraffan but they have gone by the wayside as have so many one-day venues up here.

“I’d love an international again in the north but it’s not easy as it’s hard to establish an event without a very generous benefactor nowadays and the international calendar is very full.

“I’m concerned about the whole sustainability of, not only our sport, but all sports. Take F1, trucking backwards and forwards across the world at the cost of millions, and the salaries of footballers, etc. Eventing costs a lot to stage, and participate in, yet the only way to make a living from it is by selling horses. There seems to be little balance. I’m not sure what the solution is though!”

What does Stubington hope for the sport, on both a local and international level, once the restrictions around Covid-19 have been lifted and life resumes some sort of normality?

“I sincerely hope we will get back eventing before the end of the season but, with all kinds of competitions being cancelled in September and October, I don’t think it will be in the next few weeks. The problems raised running events under any controlled protocol will be difficult and expensive to solve but the health of everyone is paramount over our desire to event.

“I will say though that if anybody ever, ever complains about being unable to compete due to hard ground, I shall just remind them about these lockdown days!”

Like mother, like daughter

IN common with her mother, Lucca Stubington was also an active member of the East Antrim Pony Club which she rejoined this year in a bid to do her AH and A Tests. Unfortunately, all Pony Club activities in both Ireland and Great Britain are also on hold because of the current restrictions.

The 24-year-old learned to ride on Starlight, a pony first purchased for her elder sister Claudia. The latter, who is based at Southampton University, is completing her last year of a doctorate in Educational Psychology although her life too is being affected by the pandemic as she cannot finish the research needed for her thesis.

Lucca Stubington and Xanthe Green winning at Loughanmore ODE in 2019 \ Anne Hughes

There were plenty of other ponies after Starlight for Lucca. “I started competing in showing and working hunter before I was old enough to do Eventing Ireland and, when I was 12, I was given the ride on Lougherne Stud’s pony dressage stallion, Brinkum’s Helmut.

“We had a very successful career together, winning several Medium championships and finishing our time as a combination at the 2010 Pony European Dressage Championships at Bishop Burton. I’ve always loved dressage and the training that goes into it.”

Lucca began competing on ponies under Eventing Ireland rules in 2009 and recorded her first win the following season. That year, she also made her international debut in the CCIJ1* at Tattersalls with the mare Kilminchy Condor on whom she finished third next time out in the CCI1* at Burgie.

“Ever since I left school I have been riding professionally. When I was younger, I considered a career in sports science but quickly realised riding and training horses was all what I wanted to do.

“After 10 weeks with Will Faudree in North Carolina as a working pupil in late 2014, I went to Chris Bartle’s yard and stayed there for two years. It was an incredible experience as Chris has a great philosophy for training and understanding horses which really helped me learn how to educate myself and the horses.

“I was given many fantastic opportunities at his yard, including riding Michael Jung’s (La Biosthetique) Sam and fischerRocana, as well as Chris’s own horse, Ballyengland Rebel.

“Chris also taught me how to think and work independently. We would have a lesson together and make progress and then it was up to me to put the work in to achieve the goal. Once I had done that, we would have another lesson. This is so important as a rider because you need to be able to produce the results without depending on someone standing by the arena ‘holding your hand’.

“Chris then recommended me to Nicola Wilson and I moved to her yard at the beginning of 2017 with one horse (Olivers Green) and the aim of riding in my first four-star short that summer. I worked with Nicola all year, riding alongside her on her own horses and I even got the opportunity to compete some of them.

“I learned so much about running a professional event yard and even more about training young horses and fitness programmes for older ones. I completed two four-star shorts that season, having my most successful campaign with Olivers Green. At the end of that year it was time to come home and put what I’d learned into practice.”

Plans on hold

Lucca has recorded some excellent results since returning to Sweet Wall, finishing the 2018 season with victory in the EI110 National Championship at Kilguilkey House on the thoroughbred Quingenti.

Due to an injury picked up in the spring, Stubington had a curtailed 2019 campaign but did round it off by partnering the same 2010 September Storm gelding to victory in the CCI2*-L at Bicton in October, a rare overseas international success for an Ireland-based event rider.

“Before coronavirus happened, I had 10 horses in work but I turned out some of the younger horses to have a holiday when the lockdown started,” continued Lucca. “In addition to those horses, I have several others to break and get riding.

“We have a brilliant breeding programme at Sweet Wall so every year we have two or three young horses coming in to start their education. The Juniper Green family is now in its fourth generation.

“My main aim for this year had been to qualify for the world young horse championships at Le Lion with our home-bred mare, Xanthe Green (Sir Shutterfly – Daisy M, by Arc Bright). As that will not happen now with competitions cancelled, I will focus on continuing up the grades with her and hopefully finish the season at a three-star, but it’s hard to make plans at the moment.

“We were very fortunate to have the Flexi Eventing series early in the year at The Meadows where I competed on Xanthe, Quingenti and the home-bred Ringfort Cruise gelding, Xenophons Honour. All the horses are having some down time now and when eventing resumes we will do our best to achieve some good results before going show jumping over the winter,” Lucca concluded.

As the youngstock at Sweet Wall are in for handling and the older eventers are getting lunged each day, all their staff have been kept on and are working away at the Co Antrim stud and event yard.

“Lucca’s righthand girl is Marta Krezel from Poland who has been with us just over a year,” commented Georgia. “We also have Hayley Surgenor who has been with us 22 years. She works in the barn and assists with mares and foals and stud work while Jim Jenkins looks after the out stock and the farming activities. Catherine Crawford assists with bookkeeping.”