THE Irish Pony Society held its 2024 Diamond Anniversary awards night last Saturday in the Killashee House Hotel, Naas, where a vast array of cups, trophies and rosettes were presented to riders and their young support teams.

All presentations were made by the IPS chairman, Jeff Grace, while the prize-giving ceremony was compèred and conducted in a very efficient manner by Emily Widger, whose daughter, Hannah Mackay, was recognised for her international performance during the year, as was Evie Kennedy.

Hannah won the 153cm working hunter pony class and went champion at the Royal International Horse Show in July on the 2007 Connemara gelding Ella’s Melody (I Love You Melody), while Evie won the 143cm working hunter pony of the year class at the Horse of the Year Show in October on another Connemara gelding, Little Dromin Phoenix.

Kennedy and that 2009 Lettermuckoo Lad grey had been crowned WHP champions at the Dublin Horse Show and all IPS members who won in the RDS showgrounds in August were also acknowledged for those achievements on Saturday night.

Among other riders who were singled out in the Killashee House Hotel were Penny Twomey, winner of the new member of the year award, following her great debut season on Rookery Haribo, who she competed in Mountain and Moorland first ridden and beginner cradle stakes classes, and Lucy Lennon, winner of the Brandon achievement award, whose Intermediate show hunter, Mill Races Diamond, was second in the older small hunter class at Dublin.

The very busy Amber Lane was presented with the Pinkeen trophy, as the girl who won the most points with a maximum of two ponies at the IPS’s championship show, while Connor Cusack, who won the boys’ equivalent, was presented with the Carew cup.

A list of the overall winning ponies during the season appears on the results page 92.