IT has been an extremely busy few weeks at Mullingar Equestrian, where last Saturday the triumvirate of Adrina Starr, Enya Brennan and Vincent Holian, backed up by an army of volunteers, staged the 2024 Showing Show of the Year.

It proved to be the most successful renewal yet of the fixture, with large entries in many of the classes (most of which were pre-entered although some were still made on the day), great sponsorship, especially from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine, and lovely weather, which bucked the forecast.

“You’d have to be happy with the day,” said Holian. “It was great to see the support for the ladies’ astride class, however, I was disappointed with the number of entries in the mares’ classes, although the quality was superb, and also in the maxi cob class, as I would have thought there were plenty of them around.”

As a relatively new show on the circuit, it wasn’t surprising to learn that there was just one memorial trophy on offer on Saturday and that, in memory of Eddie Purcell, was presented to Rathangan’s Nicola Perrin on board the ridden horse champion, Ballarin Boudica. This daughter of the Irish Draught stallion Offaly Clover was the ladies’ astride champion at Balmoral last month.

Here, Perrin and partner Rob Jeffares’ four-year-old bay filly first contested the Ballynegall Feeds ladies’ astride class, where they finished second to Leonie O’Gorman and her 11-year-old Irish Sport Horse gelding Lackaghbeg Augustus Star. In the championship, Ballarin Boudica put her best foot forward to claim the title and the DAFM-sponsored mares’ prize.

Matthew Dickenson, who was one of the judges’ at the AIRC Festival in Mullingar the previous weekend, partnered the reserve ridden champion, the Ballynegall Feeds riding horse class winner, Mya O’Toole’s Major Sam, a traditionally-bred nine-year-old gelding by Crosstown Dancer. The ridden horse classes were judged by the obviously very fit Harry Scallon and Megan Connell, who too was judging at the AIRC Festival.

Popular section

The increasing popularity of performance classes saw entries for the O’Brien Motor Group working hunter section close early. Not only that, but these classes attracted a lot of spectators, who closely followed the judging of north Co Dublin’s Jane Whitaker (conformation) and Co Antrim’s Richard Wilson, as combinations in eight classes, ranging from 60cm to 1.10m, tackled the Michael Keaveney-built courses.

The section champion, and winner of the DAFM mares’ award, was the Roisin Fitzpatrick-owned and ridden ISH six-year-old Cill Croga, a grey by Gortfree Hero. Standing reserve was the Sarah Lang-partnered traditionally-bred four-year-old Moylough Bouncer mare Cois Farraige.

The broodmare champion at the Showing Show of the Year was Gleann Rua For Love, owned and handled by William McMahon. Pictured with his wife Grace Maxwell Murphy and their son Archie \ Jane Emilly Potter Jumpinaction.net

Anne Derwin and David McCormack were charged with judging the in-hand section, starting with the DAFM-sponsored broodmare division, where their champion was the Irish Draught class winner, William McMahon and Grace Maxwell Murphy’s Gleann Rua For Love, a four-year-old by Cappa Amadeus, who was champion ID mare at the RDS last August. Louise and Imelda Cusack’s Greenhall-sired five-year-old ISH Greenhall Clonaslee Ruby stood reserve.

The Forever Equestrian Foal Champion was Sinead Fenton's Galway Bay Amele, with judges Anne Derwin and David McCormack \ Jane Emilly Potter Jumpinaction.net

The Forever Equestrian champion foal was Sinead Fenton’s filly out of the Mermus R mare Galway Bay Amele, while Des and Margaret Jeffares’ already-named Ballykelly Take 5, a colt by Gibeon out of the Gortfree Hero mare Ballykelly Jasmine, stood reserve.

Derwin and McCormack also judged the youngstock classes and were most impressed by a pair of two-year-olds exhibited by Irish Horse Board chairman Tiernan Gill.

Tricolour

The winner of the tricoloured sash, having topped the final line-up in the Midland Equine Transport two-year-old colt class, was the Dutch-bred Flogas Syb, a chesnut or roan son of Calvino Z. Slotting into the reserve slot was Gill’s Mullingar Horse Sales two-year-old filly class winner, the ISH bay Frenchfort Kildysart Lady (by Chellis HC Z), who was champion two-year-old at Balmoral.

The young horse champion in Mullingar was Tiernan Gill's Flogas Syb and the reserve was Frenchfort Kildysart for the same owner, shown by Patrick Finn. Pictured with judges Anne Derwin and David McCormack and Vincent Holian \ Jane Emilly Potter jumpinaction.net

The same two judges earned their oats by assessing those forward in the Irish Draught section, where their TRI youngstock champion was the two-year-old class winner, Heather Martin’s Cloneyhea Lilly, a bay filly by Cloneyhea Paddy. Pierre Lemmer’s three-year-old class winner, a chesnut filly by Gortfree Hero, stood reserve.

North Co Dublin’s Karen Gibney judged all the Connemara classes. Her champions were Grace Maxwell Murphy’s Addrigoole Thunder (Carr and Day and Martin youngstock championship), a two-year-old son of Glencarrig Knight, the same owner’s Glencarrig Princess Ella (DAFM breeding champion), a seven-year-old daughter of Glencarrig Knight, and the Ciara Mullen-partnered Gurteen Burno (Horse First ridden champion).

The last-named, a four-year-old Class 1 stallion, bred by Cathal Mullen out of the Glencarrig Knight mare Gurteen Jennifer, is the last foal sired by the performance influence Coosheen Stormboy.