THE Longford team of Aisling McGreal, Rebecca Yorke, Edel Whyte and Rebecca Lyons represented the Irish Pony Club at The Pony Club championships at Cholmondeley Castle in Cheshire last weekend and won the international show jumping title.

Having picked up eight faults over the first two rounds of the competition, the quartet were one of three teams to advance to a jump-off where their three clears came in a time of 100.82. The Tiverton Branch, winners of the national championship, were clear in 114.69 with the Rufford also leaving all the poles intact but in 116.16.

Lyons (15) is the youngest member of the team and has been riding since she was three years of age.

She bought Castlerea Draoi in 2015 and uses the fantastic facilities at Mosstown Riding Stables to stable and exercise her horse. Rebecca joined Longford Pony Club in 2015 and this is her first time to represent her Club at national and international level. She attends Moyne Community School.

Whyte (16) has just completed fifth year in Ballymahon Vocational School which she has successfully represented at interschools show jumping competitions.

Edel has competed at Championship level in Pony Club hunter trials, dressage, show jumping and eventing. This year, she has campaigned Abel Star, a horse which was bred and produced by the Whyte family. This combination was second in the 2017 individual Open Championship in Mullingar.

Accomplished show jumper

Yorke (17) is an accomplished show jumper having progressed through the grades from ponies to horses. She has successfully brought on young ponies and horses to compete at national and international level.

This summer, Rebecca was awarded a bursary for SJI elite training in Cork and was also selected to complete a summer camp at the Longines World Equestrian Academy with the renowned German show jumpers Thomas Stiller and Ludgar Beerbaum. At the Championships, Rebecca rode her horse La Vie Hof Ter Zeedycke.

McGreal (19) has been a member of Longford Pony Club since she was seven and has represented the branch in dressage, hunter trials, eventing and show jumping. She was honoured and privileged to be offered the ride on Harold McGahern’s Rincoola Holly Berry for the 2017 Pony Club season.

During 2017, Aisling competed successfully at the international shows in Mullingar and Millstreet and competed at the RDS Dublin Horse Show in the small event horse class. Last year, she represented Area 6 at the Dublin Horse Show where she was reserve champion in the Members combined training.

Aisling is currently studying Agricultural Science in UCD.

TOP PLACINGS

In the Elite individual championship, 15-year-old Rachel Patterson of the Iveagh Branch in Area 17 of The Pony Club – Northern Ireland – finished seventh on the five-year-old Osmium gelding Ballyrobinblackphantom.

The Iveaghs won the Intermediate team championship through the efforts of Ella McAlister, Rory Osborne, Finn Osborne and Emma Jane Orr. They finished on a zero score against the clock, with their fellow Branch members, Ellen Ward, Tabytha Bonar, Erin Burns and Emily Duncan placing fourth on eight faults.

In the individual competition at this level, the Iveaghs’ Chloe McBride was fourth with Tynan Espresso when picking up four faults in round three while, on eight faults, Rose de Montmorency and Hollypark Toes were fifth for the North Downs. The girls were third and fourth in the horsemanship award standings.

In eventing, there was no luck for the Open teams from Area 17 but the East Downs’ Ben Rowlatt-McCormick finished third in his arena ahead of the Iveaghs’ Conall McGrath (fifth) and the North Downs’ Charlotte de Montmorency.

At PC100 level, the best Area 17 result was recorded by Holly Boal of the North Down Branch who finished third in Section C.

In the PC90 division, the North Down team of Katie O’Reilly, Kathryn McCaughan, Charlotte Keers and Hannah Morrow were third. The last-named was second in her arena, Section D, O’Reilly was ninth in Section A and the Mid-Antrims’ Josh Mark finished sixth in Section C.

Representing the IPC in dressage, the Meath team of Lexi Kilfeather, Susie Shackleton, Iona Pollock and Niamh Farrell were eighth in the Open team competition with Kilfeather finishing fourth in her arena, Section A, while Farrell was fifth in Section D.

At Intermediate level, the North Downs’ Claire Ireland was seventh in Section B with Fergal McKinney of the Seskinore Harriers Branch placing second in Section E, finishing ninth in the ride-off. In the Novice ranks, Tabytha Bonar of the Iveaghs was sixth in Section F.

Teammate Laura King took on 30 others in the Open dressage to music, finishing 10th.