THE Stuart family’s Gransha Equestrian Centre outside Bangor was originally scheduled to host the final leg of this year’s Knotts Bakery young event horse qualifiers for Balmoral show but, instead, staged Tuesday’s third round.

Due to the overnight rain, the arena surfaces were in excellent order with the tracks built by Adrienne Stuart and her son-in-law Simon Jackson encouraging the young horses to jump while also asking enough of them to show their talent.

The dressage phase was judged by Ivor Harper while Angela Fynn assessed all horses forward for conformation and type. The jumping rounds were judged by Eamon and Karen O’Flynn who had spent much of Saturday battling the wind when acting as call-up stewards for the cross-country phase at Tyrella.

Based in Garristown, north Co Dublin, Jill Revill had already qualified for the four-year-old championship with her husband Aaron Lupton’s Lislan Beth but was on the road early on Tuesday to make her dressage time. The effort proved worthwhile as having finished third at Lusk EC and fifth at The Meadows, the black Irish Sport Horse mare topped this week’s scores on a total of 78.50%.

Lislan Beth, who won the dressage (23.5) and jumping (36) phases and shared the top marks for suitability and potential (12), was bred in Co Clare by Sinead Kelly. She is by the jumping stallion Querlybet Hero (by Baloubet du Rouet), who stood for the 2014 season at Ballymureen Stud, and is the first produce of the 2011 Mermus R mare Lislan Sabina whose own dam was by Cruising out of a Clover Hill mare.

“Beth is the only one I have this year for these young event horse classes and I’ll probably do the Dublin qualifiers with her after Balmoral,” said Reville of her winner. “I got her in November and broke her over Christmas. She went to a few local jumping shows but has really done very little which is one of the reasons I took her on Tuesday, paying my first visit to Gransha in the process. She is brave and has a lovely attitude.”

Another reason Revill had for travelling north this week was to accompany equine dentist Niamh Martin who is taking part in young event horse classes for the first time this year. On a very good day for the pair, Martin qualified in the five-year-old section with her mare Lady Bell (by The Swarty Hero) who she has on livery with Revill.

Newcastle’s Emma Newsam qualified for next month’s four-year-old championship when finishing second with Kilcooley Seanachai (74.08) who was bred in Co Tipperary by the owner/rider’s mother, Faith Ponsonby. The grey gelding is by the Irish Draught stallion Rockrimmon Silver Diamond out of the point-to-point winner Sweet Music. That 1998 Accordion mare is a half-sister to the thoroughbred Kilcooley Michael (by Siberian) who Newsam partnered into fifth in the EI110 (Open) at Tyrella last Saturday.

Having qualified Colm Doherty’s home-bred Colandro Low at The Meadows, Stacey Watling secured another slot at Balmoral when finishing third here on the Tolan R gelding Drumnaconnell Tolano (73.75). Owned by his Saintfield breeder Lawrence Patterson, the bay is out of the Guidam mare Drumnaconnell Rojo.

BAGGED ANOTHER

While Patterson spent Saturday at Tyrella, where Izzy Riley rode his Drumnaconnell Goody Bag in a division of the EI100, Watling’s weekend was confined to Cavan. There she qualified Omard Sansa for the five-year-old jumping championship at Balmoral while partner Shane McCloskey, who already had two five-year-olds through, bagged another slot for their S&S Sporthorses’ yard when Cooleyhill Bonzo C finished fourth in the 1.35m qualifier.

Also qualifying on Tuesday were Colin Halliday with Philip Rosbotham’s Valent gelding Valcruz (72.92), Chloe Lister Tinsley on George Stewart’s unraced Jeremy gelding Drakes Island (whose total of 72 included the joint-winning suitability and potential score of 12) and event rider/amateur jockey Holly McGahan with Malachi McKinney’s King Of Mourne gelding Mr Grey (68.33).

As so many of the top-placed horses in the five-year-old section had already qualified, the organisers had to go down as far as ninth to find a fifth horse on Tuesday.

Among those who had previously booked a place at Balmoral was the winner, the Chillout gelding Buddy who was again ridden by Suzanne Hagan for her husband Jonny. En route to completing on a total of 83.67%, the grey really impressed the O’Flynns as he received an excellent 41.5% (out of 45) for his jumping phase.

Bred in Co Galway by Paddy Power, the grey is out of the Coevers Diamond Boy mare Gortmacall Diamond Lady.

Adrienne Stuart’s home-based Charming Lad, who finished fifth in the four-year-old championship last May, qualified in second (79.50) under the owner’s daughter Kirsty Jackson who achieved a joint-winning dressage score (24.25) on the bay.

Jackson bred her Carrick Diamond Lad-sired mount out of Granshas Borrowed Charm who was by Word Perfect’s full-brother Perfect Reply out of Stuart’s Gransha’s Abbey Star. According to Adrienne, “Gransha’s Borrowed Charm was a wonderfully versatile mare. Kirsty did dressage, working hunter and eventing on her and I even took her show jumping a few times!

“We sold her to friends in England who hunted her for a few seasons and, when she retired, she came home to me and has given us a couple of lovely foals. Charming Lad was her first and, to date, is living up to all expectations we have for him.”

It was a mixed day for Jonny Mulligan who finished third here with The Ferryman (78.67), who was previously qualified, but, on a high-scoring day, failed to reach a qualification spot with the Loughehoe Guy mare Lemme Aine who comfortably topped the suitability and potential marks (14.50).

Joint-winner of the dressage phase, The Ferryman is owned by Mulligan and Co Down’s Pat McCartan who bred the Ricardo Z gelding out of the unraced Winged Love mare Warrenpoint Lass. The Ferryman too qualified for Balmoral last year, finishing second to the Valent mare Rosalent who is now successfully competing in Britain with Oliver Townend.

In addition to Niamh Martin’s Lady Bell, those five-year-olds who gained qualification status on Tuesday and hadn’t already done so were Claire Schaefer’s Womanizer mare Brittania Cruise and Rebecca Nickels’s Hector van d’Abdijhoeve mare Hectors Galway Girl. Both owner-ridden greys completed on a total of 65.67%.

The fourth and final qualifier for the Knotts Bakery young event horse championships at Balmoral show takes place next Tuesday, April 23rd, at Portmore EC. Entries close tomorrow with Eventing Ireland’s Northern Region secretary, Dora Beacom.