UNFORTUNATELY, those competing at last weekend’s Irish Pony Club/Connolly’s Red Mills eventing championships at Kilguilkey House didn’t enjoy the best of weather.

There were showers throughout Saturday and Sunday with gusts of wind also proving problematic on day one when some competitors were extremely unfortunate to ride in the worst of the weather. A downpour on Friday night left the going quite wet and deep in the all-weather arena where the junior members show jumped Saturday.

Acting as chief steward for the weekend, Gervaise Maher asked for some fences to be moved during the phase and found those involved in the organisation, plus landowners Danny and Michelle Dulohery, to be extremely co-operative and efficient at all times.

“It was a very well-run event and the three cross-country courses designed by Danny were very good,” reported Maher, who was paying her first visit to Kilguilkey House and, like many before her, was very impressed with the spread put on for volunteers.

While there were plenty of problems in both jumping phases, the ambulance never had to leave the venue over the weekend. Unfortunately, the numbers competing were down on previous championships, a situation which will be discussed by the IPC in the coming weeks.

By far the largest number of riders appeared in the junior ranks where the team competition was won by the Louth branch on a total score of 92.80 penalties.

There were two arena winners among the quartet, Millie-Jane Bell, who won (27.80) Arena 5 with the 10-year-old black gelding Yodalicious, and Andrew Matthews who topped (29.60) the leaderboard in Arena 8 with the Connemara gelding Park Fionn, a nine-year-old dun by Monaghanstown Fionn.

Also rewarded for their journey down from the ‘Wee County’ were Victoria Smith riding Arnie and Emer Blake who was on board Big Man Ollie.

The Tipperary branch finished second (98.60) through the efforts of Anna Walsh with My Kilrush Lad (33.60) and Leah Coen riding Droma Joey (31.40), who were third in Arenas 7 and 8 respectively, Annica O’Connor, who was sixth (33.60) in Arena 5 on Scorcher Babe, and Alice Tobin (Chuinche Fear Sneachta).

Narrowly beaten into third (99.80) were the Waterford quartet of Vivien Leslie, who was third (32.80) in Arena 6 with Meelickisland Ash, Ruth Burke (My Late Find), Kate Kelly (Hunters Firefly) and Heather O’Connor (Robinhood’s Gentle Cloud).

Other junior team members heading home with arena wins to their credit were Amy Hurley of the Laois branch, who landed Arena 6 with The Big Bossman (29.60), and Shannon Fogarty of Warrington, who recorded a two-point victory (30.60) in Arena 7 on board the 12-year-old Nigrasine mare Coppenagh Athena.

As usual, there was a special class for junior individuals which resulted in a very close finish between the top three. The honours went to 14-year-old Anna Byrne of the Ward Union Branch who, riding Fairyhouse Coco, completed on her flatwork mark of 27 penalties. At Tattersalls the previous weekend, Byrne and the home-bred six-year-old, who is by the Connemara Gwennic De Goariva out of a thoroughbred mare by Supreme Leader, finished 13th of 23 in the open EI90 National Championship which was sponsored by Kilguilkey House.

Second on Sunday having added four show jumping penalties to her winning dressage score of 23.4 was Pataire Crawford riding Ardfry Balmoral for Galway Mid-County, and West Waterford’s Charlotte Dangerfield also fell behind Byrne when Killeaton Top Cat lowered a coloured pole for a completion score of 27.6.

The Connolly’s Red Mills Junior League was won by the Golden Vale Branch’s Kelley Ann Byrne Gilleece (27 points) with Lorna Murphy of Limerick finishing second (24).