MEMBERS of Dressage Ireland living in the south of the country had a choice of shows to attend last Sunday, as the North Munster Region ran one at Clonshire Equestrian in Co Limerick, while the South Munster Region held another at Maryville Stables, Co Cork.

The show in Maryville was advertised as the fifth leg of the Childeric Autumn/Winter league run by both Regions and thus some classes were deemed as qualifiers while others were not. The winner of the highest-graded qualifier, the two-runner BD Advanced Medium 98, judged by Marie Hennessy (List 2), was Bethany Mackey, who scored 67.76% on board her Dutch Warmblood mare Kalahari, a nine-year-old bay by Ferguson.

Cíona Ní Liatháin initiated a Medium double when landing the three-strong qualifier (DI65) with MJI Lady Alceis (66.56%), her 11-year-old ISH mare by Antaeus. The combination’s win (65) in the non-qualifying BD73 was uncontested.

There were just two starters in the Elementary qualifier (DI55) judged by Danielle Carey (List 3), who awarded her impressive winning score of 72.14% to Melanie Mackey and her Dutch Warmblood mare Memilia. Mackey and the seven-year-old daughter of Hennessy also topped Carey’s leaderboard on 73.45 in the three-runner Novice qualifier (DI27A).

Five combinations appeared before Carey in the Preliminary qualifier (DI6), where Sophia Mackey came out on top with Melanie’s former ride Wagner V.U. (75.96%). The Scottish Warmblood by Ludwig is now 21 years of age.

Ciara Egan (List 5) judged the day’s two other qualifiers, reserving her top score of 77.22% in the Trailblazers Intro Test A for Stephanie Fleming on Orla Whelton’s 25-year-old 120cm grey gelding Mountain Ash Of Glendhu. In this three-runner class, Fleming also placed second on Waitwith Finola (74.17). Laura Hagger was the only rider forward in the non-restricted Introduction qualifier, where she scored 72.94 with her six-year-old Rising Sun mare Aon Rud Eile.