TIM MacDonagh won the five-year-old final of last year’s Berts Properties Starter Series with his Irish Sport Horse gelding CSF Hollypark Rocco Blue and the Craughwell producer now has this season’s Drumhowan Stud six and seven-year-old title in his sights, having won last Sunday’s first qualifier at Galway Equestrian.

While MacDonagh doesn’t compete under Eventing Ireland rules, he is a staunch supporter of the Western Region’s combined training and arena eventing competitions. After last year’s final, he and CSF Hollypark Rocco Blue qualified through the Young Eventhorse Series for the five-year-old young event horse championship at the Dublin Horse Show.

Sunday’s winner was bred in Co Galway by Patrick Connolly out of CSF Roys Revel (by Quidam de Revel), a half-sister to the Carrera VDL mare CSF Alma (CSI4*). MacDonagh and the grey completed on their winning dressage score (54 marks), as did the three combinations behind them who, too, bagged their qualification ticket. That trio comprised Keith Maloney and CBI Supremacy (52), Caroline Devine with Captain Devine (49) and Grainne Davoren with Knotbychance (42).

Easy winner

Oisin McDonagh ultimately ran out an easy winner of the Milchem Equestrian pony class, sponsored by Ralph Conroy, when completing on his flat work score (57 marks) with the 148cm Irish Sports Pony gelding Mr Draco, a five-year-old son of Greenvale Draco, who competed last year under Show Jumping Ireland rules.

Caroline Devine qualified in second with D.S. Hans (31), a five-year-old Hans gelding she is producing for breeder William Lynskey, who will take over the ride next year.

Hannah Gordon claimed the third ticket on offer with Ivy So Witty (48), a D.S. Are You With Me half-brother to the elsewhere-mentioned Nokio, who had been lying second after dressage but lost eight marks in the jumping phase.