Dickie Power

LIMERICK, you’re a lady! Croom, the legendary home of the Maigue poets who originated the Limerick as a verse form, was the venue for the Co Limerick Foxhounds last Saturday. However, our thoughts were far from poetry as our huntsman, Fergus Stokes, now in his second season, sounded the move off. Despite his youth, Stokes is a veteran, brought up to the sound of hounds as his family kept a private pack of harriers on the farm at Tullylease he grew up in. It was a natural progression to become amateur whip to Gerry Withers in Duhallow before turning hounds to Will Brier with the Co Limerick. Assisted by Jamie Byrne, they make a formidable team up front. Not only do they bring a drive and professionalism to their role but a huge dollop of fun and good humour which makes even poor scenting days most enjoyable.

The mastership is no less impressive having been augmented this year by cousins Emma Thompson and Lady Anna Johnson who have joined the incumbent John Halley. Their common heritage is through the Dunraven family of Adare, Anna being the daughter and only child of Lord Dunraven and Emma being the daughter of Lady Melissa Brooke, a former master of the Limerick and a sister of the aforementioned Lord Dunraven. Their connection with hunting doesn’t end there as their cousin Lord Waterford (known as Tyronie in the hunting world) is joint-master of the Waterford.

Of the trio, Emma Thompson was missing, at her home in London. The front bench was completed by long-time hunt secretary Deirdre Hogan whose family history is part of the lore of hunting. Deirdre, on non-hunting days, can be found in Bank of Ireland branches as diverse as Ballybunion to Ballyhaunis. Accompanying her were two young American cousins having their first day of Irish hunting, Eliza van der Wood and Carmen Noel who hunt with the Warrington in Virginia.

First draw couldn’t have more hunting pedigree as it was at the home of Aongus McNamara who hunts the Limerick Harriers. The place was almost deserted as Aongus andy his family were at a meet at Green Cross to be followed by their hunt ball. The kennels were similarly bereft of hounds with only those who had failed to make the first 11 being left at home. A well mounted field of around 50 made their way through McNamara’s past J.T.’s schooling fences and gallops, everywhere indicating that this is above all a sporting farm which happens also to be a working dairy farm. J.T., who suffered horrific injuries from a fall in Cheltenham, is having a new family home built nearby which will cater for his needs.

As we jumped out of McNamara’s, hounds found and with girths still untightened, we were off at a bristling pace towards the Maigue but as our pilot didn’t fancy a swim, we swung in a wide left-handed arc over some grand country, almost back to where we started. As our pilot decided to retrace his tracks for a second time, huntsman wisely decided to lift hounds not to try the hospitality of landowners unfairly.As we set off across country, crossing the Maigue like wandering Aengus, we travelled through hollow land and hilly land before crossing the road to Glenbevan, the home of Sir Francis Brooke and his mother Melissa and joint-master Emma Thompson, who stays with her mum on her frequent trips home from London to hunt. Francis, who runs Glenbevin as a stud farm, is a fund manager in London as well as being one of the three Queen’s representatives who run Royal Ascot.

For all that, Glenbevin was blank and we drew on towards Liston’s dairy farm at Tullovin. Despite this being an intensive dairy farm, the hunt are made very welcome and on the adjoining farm of Biggane’s. We crossed over into John Kennedy’s outside farm and feedlot where better things awaited. Duhallow men tend to be loyal to their own and in breeding, Fergus has tended to return to Duhallow for Old English blood and it was this progeny, Fizzler by Duhallow Trooper out of Limerick Sari, that found a fine dog fox in a double bank and we were away with the Limerick orchestra in full voice. Earlier was a pipe-opener for what followed in big bank country adjacent to the country crossed in the famed Athlacca ride. Our first major bank had a yawner to the fore and Seamus Murnane was the first victim but his fall had the bonus of clearing the undergrowth and making it just a bit more jumpable. It is at times like this that a good lead is a great confidence builder and such was provided by the Hartigan sisters, Clara on a chesnut out of a Ballinvilla mare and younger sister Ava. Clara won the Coolmore Medal for her thesis when a student at the University of Limerick and went on to be awarded the Horse Racing Ireland accolade for the same work. She currently works in Martinstown for J.P. McManus. Also giving it a clear pair of heels was new joint-master Anna, out on her bay hunter sourced from well known producer of good hunters, William Crowe from Scarteen.

Not quite so fortunate, Slaney Murphy, daughter of Brian Murphy of Dunraven Arms, didn’t quite make it to the summit. The Murphys were further represented by younger cousin Emily, daughter of Louis. Emily, who has all her father’s charm and would have a bright career in public relations, is studying agriculture in UCD and was riding a cracking cob formerly owned by Billy Gleeson, who won hunter trials all over Ireland. Billy’s dad John, one of the great men across country, was out complete with signature cigar alight no matter what country was being crossed.

Hounds checked briefly but our pilot was spotted slipping away by Jerry Foley who had done trojan work in arranging the meet in what is intensive dairy country. As Fergus Stokes remarked on the way home, ”we didn’t step on a blade of grass where we weren’t welcome.” Jumping some great country with every fence a challenge, we eventually marked our fox to ground near Clorane. We hacked on to the next draw between Monaster and Rathmore, where one particular fence I remembered with foreboding when roughly half the field had succumbed to its watery embrace. Though not quite as full on this occasion, it was ready to sort the men from the boys.

COLD BAPTISM

As I got to it, I saw our whip Jamie slipping gently backwards to a cooling swim. This bank was no respecter of persons as its next victim was visiting Tipperary master Tim Hyde who was submerged. He had travelled with his joint-master Liam Kearney on two smashing greys. There had been a spirited discussion on the way to Croom as to who had the best hunter. That fence settled the matter and it required no further discussion!

Ceremonial baptisms are not my idea of fun on a cold day so I kept an eye on vet John Halley on his good grey which he had got from Sean McAuliffe from Broadford, who was out on another future champion. John scrutinised the bank and showing his diagnostic ability, spotted an isthmus where it could just be jumped without fording. His grey gave a masterly performance going down almost to the point of no return, jumping to the far side and clambering back up to terra firma. My grey, surely a distant cousin of John’s, followed suit and I didn’t dare look back lest I might have to get involved in life saving activity. We drew on without finding, eventually arriving at the most famous racing and bloodstock yard in Limerick. Rathmore the present home of Peter Molony but more importantly the yard which produced both Martin and Tim Molony, in their day the leading National Hunt jockeys in these islands. Sadly Tim has long been recalled to the stewards’ room but Martin, now in his 90s, is still very much with us. Their statue takes pride of place at the parade ring in Limerick racecourse.

At this stage it was almost five and we had been out for six hours so it was something of a relief when our huntsman blew for home. The magic is still there!