THE sudden and untimely passing of Ivan McDonogh sent shockwaves through the sporting community of west Limerick and much further afield.

It was only a few days previously he had very successfully run the show jumping section at Limerick Show. Always generous with his time, Ivan had stepped into the breach to run the show jumping in the county show at short notice.

But then the sporting world of hunting and show jumping had been Ivan’s life as he was born into a family steeped in the Stonehall Harriers, founded by his grandfather in the early 1900s.

The pack were kennelled on his farm at Bansha House just outside Askeaton, Co Limerick. In the intervening decades, Ivan hunted hounds and acted as lifetime field-master on his famed Irish Draught grey “Ed” and was joint-master with Michael O’Shaughnessy since 2008.

All the while he hunted with the Co Limerick where he was field-master in the Wednesday wall country and was a very able chairman for several seasons.

Many interests

It was during the summer that he really blossomed with the start of the show jumping season. Ivan filled the role of chairman of Munster Showjumping twice. He was both a Senior National Judge as well being a National Course Builder at a similar level of seniority. At most Munster shows, Ivan was almost a fixture on the judges’ podium or as course builder, roles he filled with knowledge and fairness for over 45 years.

At the recent Dublin Horse show, he was a member of the SJI National Appeal Committee. A huge supporter of the Munster Amateurs, Ivan created the McDonogh League. His lifelong friend and fellow senior national judge, Candy Cusack, recalled, “his wealth of knowledge for SJI protocols was unparalleled and very often sought out.”

Good friend

But impressive as this CV may read, it can only go a small way to sum up the good friend I have hunted with for well over 20 seasons.

As field-master, Ivan was always there with a warm welcome for all, regardless of their background or ability. Opening meets at Bansha House were always a special occasion with hospitality being liberally dispensed by his daughter Liza and a bevy of helpers to all comers.

Port drunk and cake eaten, the first fence was always the good stiff wall in his lawn which invariably claimed a couple of casualties with the first draw nearby in what Ivan always referred to as the “winterage”.

Whether it was the show jumping arena, or the hunting field, Ivan was above all one of nature’s gentlemen who carried himself with a quiet dignity and his warm smile and welcoming word put everyone at ease, be they a child on a hairy pony or a Grand Prix rider.

His funeral had no less than four guards of honour at different stages. The Stonehall Harriers brought him home on that Saturday from Wallace’s Cross to his home, with the hearse being led by his beloved hunter “Ed”, plaited and fully tacked up with Liza at his side. On Monday morning, Ivan’s cortege was escorted on his final journey back down to Wallace’s Cross by the County Limerick Foxhounds and the hearse was immediately followed by “Ed” and Liza.

Laid out in his hunting regalia, Ivan’s coffin was shouldered by members of both hunts on successive days. As the cortege reached Shannon Crematorium, they were met by members of Limerick and Clare SJI. Finally the plaintiff notes of “Going Home” were sounded by John Finucane on the hunting horn as Ivan’s coffin was carried inside.

To his children Liza and Eric, we offer our sincere sympathy, your loss is our loss - men of the calibre of Ivan don’t often pass this way.

May he rest in peace.

D.P.