THE Westmeath Branch, represented by Sam Carey, Charlie Kennedy and Sofie Walsh, claimed the Intermediate team title at the Irish Pony Club/Connolly’s Red Mills eventing championships held last weekend at the Fell family’s international venue of Ballindenisk in Co Cork.

Along with Rebecca Joyce, who competed at Tattersalls on Sunday, the Westmeaths qualified at Rosanna for the British Pony Club championships which were also on last weekend. However, the majority preferred to stay at home and were delighted with their win here on a total of 100.1 penalties.

The four-rider Meath Magic squad, which included the previous weekend’s European pony championships silver medal-winning team member Holly Love, was second on 106.9 with the Island Flyers, who won the team turn-out award, finishing third on 119.3.

The successful Westmeath trio had contrasting mounts with Sofie Walshe, who won Arena B on her dressage score of 28.3 penalties, competing on the six-year-old British-bred Black Sam Bellamy gelding Herobrine, an ex-racehorse who only started eventing in April.

Charlie Kennedy, who picked up four show jumping penalties to place ninth (37.8) in Arena A, was on board the 24-year-old Woodvale Kings Royal gelding Prince Zola who competed in four European pony championships. Sam Carey, who was third in Arena B on his dressage score (34), partnered the nine-year-old grey mare Blessington Kamikaze for whom there is no recorded breeding.

Second place in Arena B went to Sophie Wetz of the Carberry Branch who too completed on her first phase score with Well Kept Secret (32.8). Disappointingly for Tipperary member Leah Coen, who won the dressage phase (27.5), she was eliminated when Droma Joey put in three refusals at the three-part Normandy Bank which was the most troublesome fence at this level.

COMMITTED

Although there was an Eventing Ireland one-day event right across the road from them at Tattersalls, Ward Union sisters Katie and Anna Byrne remained committed to the IPC and travelled down to Ballindenisk. With Ally Gormley, their Stars team finished sixth and Anna was fourth in Arena B with Fairyhouse Coco (34.3).

Katie fared even better, winning Section A on a score of 28.8 penalties which had her second after dressage behind Tipperary’s Annica O’Connor (28.3) who dropped to sixth when Scorcher Babe lowered two show jumps. Byrne’s mount was the five-year-old Kings Master mare Queens Master on which she won the riding horse championship at the Dublin Horse Show last year.

Second place here went to the Islands’ Laura Bailey and Aughabeg Dew (33.5), who improved from 10th after dressage, while Elena Mullen of Meath finished third on SBT Upmarket who had a fence down show jumping (34.8).

In the non-team Intermediate individual Arena the honours went to the Killinicks’ Andrea Dempsey who completed on her fourth-placed dressage score (28.5 penalties) with the 14-year-old Rantis Diamond gelding, Poulatar Diamond. Andrea was presented with the new Richard Kehoe trophy.

Here, Waterford’s Aine Nugent improved from seventh to second with The Unknown Soldier (29.8) and, despite a fence down show jumping, Katie Naughton of the East Galway Branch climbed two places to third with Cruising Caricello (32.8). Eight jumping penalties saw West Waterford’s Charlotte Dangerfield slip from first to fifth with Kileatin Top Cat (33.3).

Five of the 11 teams which started failed to complete, the Kate Fell-organised scoring system showing that there were four eliminations for falls at this level with three for error of course over a track which demanded the rider’s attention.