PATRICK Hickey and Ronnoco Jump’s Replay V/D Rollenbeek won the €3,000 DAFM HSI Development Series for seven-year-olds in Cavan on Sunday.

By Diamant De Semilly out of Farinta Van T’Hertsveld, by Toulon, he has been ridden in Ireland by Hickey since the start of the year.

“I have had him about a year now. He’s a really good horse. He is very cool. He was down in Spain at the beginning of the year and he did well,” Hickey said.

“He did the finals of the Boomerang and had an unlucky fence down, and in the Breeders’ Classic, he also had one down. He has had plenty of experience and just now his mind has gotten a lot better, he’s a lot more mature. Everything seems to have just clicked for him.

“He was double clear in a 1.40m Grand Prix class at the last Cavan show and finished in fourth place.

“He has gotten very competitive now. He has a big stride, so doing one less in a distance is easy for him. When I think he is ready, physically and mentally, he will jump bigger, definitely. He is ready to crack on as an eight-year-old for sure.

“It was a nice class that one. In fact, the mare that Mark McAuley was second on in the Dublin Horse Show Grand Prix during the summer, GRS Lady Amaro, won that class five years ago. That was my last class with her in Ireland. So it’s nice to think that he has won it too, maybe it’s a good omen.

“It’s good to have them winning classes at the end of the year, to finish on a good note. He wasn’t ready to be competitive during the summer. He just needed a little more time to mature. That’s what is really nice about having this series,” said Hickey following his win.

Strong group

Thirty combinations lined out for the competition, which was originally meant to be a jump-off class, but was switched to a two-phase because of threatened power cuts due to Storm Darragh.

Of the 30, just 11 managed to return a double clear round. Hickey was fastest with Replay V/D Rollenbeek in a time of 22.64 for the win.

John McEntee and the Linda Courtney-owned and bred LCC Monte Karlo (Casallco x VDL Arkansas) were runners up in 23.21.

Third place went to Seamus Heverin’s home-bred MVS Celtic Emperor (Celtic Hero Z x Lux Z), with Katie Nallon in the saddle in 23.33.

Ellie Humphries rode Allison Mercer’s Rosemount Luis (Luidam x Clover Hill), bred by Michael Griffin, into fourth in 23.92.

Dermott Lennon’s home-bred Beach Pleasure (Beach Ball x Aganix du Seigneur) was guided into fifth spot by Sean Foley in 24.02.

Kevin Babbington’s daughter Gwyneth, who is based in Ballypatrick Stables, took sixth place aboard a gelding her dad bred, BP Goodfellas (Stakkato Gold x O.B.O.S Quality).