DALKEY owner Yvonne Vard turned to Alicia Devlin Byrne when it came to securing a rider for her Blackwoodland Breeze in Connemara performance classes and, on Thursday at Tullylish, the combination proved unbeatable in the eight to 15-year-old RDS qualifier.

The Glencarrig Prince gelding was campaigned under Eventing Ireland rules last year by Vard’s daughter Alisha and this season by Leila Baker who partnered him to victory in an EI100 at Frankfort Stud in April. The grey was previously evented up to the same level in Britain by Honor Redhouse.

Blackwoodland Breeze, who completed here on a total of 237 points, was bred in Co Kildare by Anthony and Janice Linden out of Blackwoodland Silver Beam who is by the jumping influence, I Love You Melody. While Devlin Byrne travelled up, mainly by motorway, in less than two hours to Tullylish from Co Wicklow, Talitha Diamond was delighted that her four and a half-hour journey from west Co Galway paid dividends as she qualified in second with Sea Storm (232).

Owned by Diamond Equine Renvyle, this 15-year-old grey gelding had amassed 104 Showjumping Ireland points up to the summer of 2019. By Ballinavilla Prince, Sea Storm was bred in Roundstone by Joseph Mannion out of the Windy’s Boy mare, Little Nora.

It was most disappointing that five of the 11 entries in this class failed to complete while four of the 19 starters in the five to seven-year-old class were eliminated. Here, the winner on a total of 235.5 points was Kinamara Laura who was ridden for Jane Dalrymple by Kate Horgan.

From the first crop of the Cashelbay Cruise stallion Cashelbay Chip, the seven-year-old was bred by Michael Burke out of the Ashfield Bobby Sparrow mare Lady Sparrow. The Murphys, owner Leo and rider Gemma, took the second qualifying spot here with Carraun Ferdy (232.5) who has had two outings to date in EI90 classes, finishing second on his May debut at Maddybenny. A six-year-old by Martan Phaidin Mhoir, this grey gelding is out of Niamh Howley’s Glenayre Silver Fox mare, Carraun Sacha.