JASON Doerflinger was the rider in form at last Sunday’s second leg of the Eventing Ireland Western Region’s combined training league at Milchem Equestrian Centre, home of regional chairman, and the day’s show jumping course designer, Ralph Conroy.

Doerflinger, who is based at the Tynagh venue, comfortably won the two sections of the EI80 class on Hollypark Tyson (A) and Milchem Giovanni (B) before finishing first and second in the well-filled EI90 class on Milchem Gemstone and HSF Milchem respectively.

Derval Diamond was the dressage judge on a cold but dry day and she was obviously very impressed with Hollypark Tyson’s flat work, as she awarded Tim MacDonagh’s home-bred five-year-old Irish Sport Horse mare by Tyson a score of 23.25. Unfortunately, a pole down show jumping brought the bay’s total up to 27.25, but she still held a commanding advantage over Peaches, who jumped clear under Calum O’Kelly to finish second (33.5). The winner is out of the Guidam mare USA.

In Section B, Diamond was again impressed with Doerflinger’s work on the level as she awarded Conroy’s Milchem Giovanni a penalty score of 21, on which the Tyson four-year-old remained. His nearest rival throughout, the Becky Scott-partnered Lissavorra Style, a 2021 daughter of Vivant van de Heffinck, completed on her dressage mark of 27.75.

“Milchem Giovanni looks to be very special and we have high hopes for him,” said Doerflinger of the chesnut ISH, who was officially bred by R.C. Equine Ltd out of the Silvano mare Milchem Dreamer. The latter is dam previously of the 2017 Tyson mare Milchem Melody (Sing To Me Cooley), who is competing in the USA with Bourke Eventing, and Milchem Good Luck.

That 2018 Good Luck VDL gelding, who won the four-year-old league at the first running of the Western Region’s Starter Series in 2022, competed four times under British Eventing rules last year when, in the hands of William Fox-Pitt, he completed his campaign with a second place finish in a division of the BE100 at Swalcliffe Park in October.

EI90

There were 18 starters in the EI90, where Doerflinger claimed the spoils with Milchem Gemstone, who completed on his flat work mark of 21, while finishing second on Conroy’s HSF Milchem, a flashy-looking five-year-old HSF Canturo Lui mare, whose total of 22.75 included four show jumping penalties. Lucy Hope Ryan occupied third place throughout on the Connemara gelding Kilmaine Bay (25.25), a 2016 dun by Caherlistrane Bay.

“Milchem Gemstone is a five-year-old home-bred Ganesh Hero gelding, owned in partnership between Ralph and the East Galway huntsman Eoghan McCabe,” revealed the successful rider of the winning ISH, who is out of the KMS Chicago mare Milchem Saphire. “He looks a seriously promising event horse and is one of a bunch of exciting young horses we are looking forward to producing this year.”

EI100

For the second week running, Katie Gibbons won the EI100 combined training class but, on this occasion, with Milchem Free Spirit, who is owned by her mother Marie Dunne, secretary of the EI Western Region.

This was another runaway victory, with Gibbons and the 13-year-old Contra A mare asserting their superiority on the flat, where they scored 17.5 penalties, before jumping clear over a course which, this week, included a run through water. They were chased throughout in the eight-strong class by Priya Cosgrave with the pony Paulank Redbreast, a 14-year-old Rotherwood Aristotle gelding who, too, completed on their first phase score (25.8).

Milchem Free Spirit is a new ride this season for Gibbons, whose brother Godfrey first started competing the ISH mare at EI90 level in October 2019, since partnering her on the Irish squad at the European Junior championships in 2021 and 2022 and at the European Young Rider championships in 2023. Last season, in open company, the combination finished eighth of 49 in the CCI3*-S at Millstreet. Another winner on the day bred by Conroy, Milchem Free Spirit is out of Milchem Clover Lady (by Nautilus).

EI110

Milchem-based Scottish national Duncan McFadyen won the two-runner EI110 class on board Niall Daly’s ISH mare Rutland Flamenco (30.8 penalties), a 2019 Casallco bay he competed with both Eventing Ireland and Show Jumping Ireland last season.