IT was a worthwhile trip from Tipperary to CoilÓg in Co Kildare for defending National Grand Prix Champion Liam O’Meara as he rode to victory in The Underwriting Exchange Grand Prix last Sunday.

Some 20 combinations started in the class and, riding Mr Coolcaum, O’Meara was the fastest of the four double clears in the seven-way jump-off in a time of 39.46 seconds. Although O’Meara features on the top end of the leaderboard with Curraghgraigue Jack Take Flight, this was the first win for Mr Coolcaum in this year’s series.

Not content with the win, O’Meara also took sixth place with the aforementioned Curraghgraigue Jack Take Flight when he crossed the line carrying four faults in 38.32. This was the important result as it added an extra four points to their tally to bring them to 34 points going into the final round in Wexford Equestrian in two weeks’ time. That leaves them in third place, just seven points behind the winner.

Bred by Kevin Farragher from Galway and owned by O’Meara, Mr Coolcaum is a 16-year-old traditional Irish Sport Horse gelding by Coolcaum Hill and out of the Indian Ruler-sired Ranch Lady.

O’Meara said: “I am delighted with how both horses jumped today. I was a bit late following the league, but I am glad to be at the top end of the leaderboard going into the final. This year, in the year that was in it, I really just concentrated on the young horses and now in hindsight, I should have done more legs.

“It was a really well-run show and Tom Holden designed a great course, fitting for the penultimate round. There was a really good atmosphere at the show and at the same time there was very competitive jumping.”

Wicklow’s Mark Finnerty took the runner-up spot with Rory Finnerty’s All Action (Askoll Peter Pan x Touchdown), when they clocked 39.70 seconds. The young rider is also well placed going into the final as he added another eight points to his points tally, leaving him on 33 points and in fourth place.

Gemma Phelan and Coolisheal Lance took a more cautious approach and it paid off when the Waterford rider came home clear in 41.82 for third place. Owned and bred by Thomas Hyland, the nine-year-old gelding is by Lancelot and out Coolisheal Cruise (Clover Brigade).

Taking fourth place in the line-up was Derek McConnell and Sorcha Hennessy’s Dothraki Warlord (Mermus R x Diamant de Semilly). The combination were last of the double clears in 50.71 seconds. In the absence of the current league leader Jonathan Smyth (Crystal Tom), this was an important result for the Kildare rider as he added a further six points to his tally and now leads with 41 points heading into the final, ahead of Smyth on 38.

Speed merchant against the clock, Kilkenny’s Eddie Moloney proved that the time could be beaten as he clocked 37.94 with the Caroline Teltsch-owned Andiamix Hero Z, but it came at a price as he incurred four faults and slotted into fifth place.

Seamus Hayes also booked his place in the jump-off with the eight-year-old Clarton Clazou Z, but 12 faults in the second round meant he had to settle for seventh place.

The leaderboard is now tightly stacked ahead of the final on October 4th. Derek McConnell leads on 41, ahead of Jonathan Smyth (38), Liam O’Meara (34) and Mark Finnerty (33).

Delighted with how the show went, CoilÓg owner Chris Byrne said: “There was a great atmosphere at the show. In fact, I would say that I haven’t enjoyed a day of show jumping as much as I did this weekend. There was a great team effort from the arena party to the judges.

“Tom Holden did a wonderful job and hit the right note in every class. We put in a huge effort to ensure that the going was perfect for the weekend and we got great feedback from the riders. In October we are revamping the arenas with fibre coming from Belgium tailored for our surface. It is difficult times but we will keep moving forward.”