TULLYLISH was the venue on Tuesday for the first qualifier in this year’s Young Eventhorse Series (YES!) and, while the weather wasn’t as pleasant as it had been during Millstreet International Horse Trials, there were a lot of similar faces – both human and equine.

This was the first time for the Stevenson family to stage the opening leg of the series and they were rewarded with a large entry, which has been replicated today as the Co Armagh venue holds the first of the RDS Connemara/Irish Draught qualifiers for 2024. The lure of competing at the Dublin Horse Show continues.

On Tuesday, Britain’s Polly Stockton and Brazil’s Ruy Fonseca judged the ridden display, Dora Beacom judged the jumping phase, where horses’ suitability and potential over the Adam Stevenson-designed track was assessed by Georgie Stubington and Gillian Creighton and the presentation phase was judged by Jean Mitchell.

Fulfilling one of the YES! training and education objectives, Stockton and Fonseca passed on some of their training tips and techniques in comments on the individual ridden display sheets. They also gave their general views to the series coordinator, Angela McGahern.

Stockton said: “I was very impressed with the YES! series. It’s a great concept for producing and educating horses for the future, with a shop window for potential buyers. The facilities for the jumping phase at Tullylish were exceptional and to jump well around there would give a very good indication of how brave, careful and balanced the horses are. The winners were of high standard.”

“I know the system and how it works with the qualifiers,” commented Fonseca, who judged at Dublin last year. “I was amazed at the standard and saw some lovely four- and five-year-olds. You could see all the types, the modern types and the ones that might be more a Badminton or a Burghley horse. There were some lovely blood horses and good movers, who were rewarded with good marks.

“I like the way they go directly from the dressage to the conformation and then straight on to the cross-country. I saw the cross-country bit and it was enough for them to have a look. They need to be quick thinkers, because the fences come up quickly and they need to show their true ability. That’s what they are going to face at Dublin and it’s good preparation for Dublin.

Ciara O'Connor and Ashwood Iron Lady winning a junior young rider Young Event Horse Dublin qualifier at Tullylish \ Anne Hughes

“The system works for the riders too commercially. A horse can go through the qualifier in less than an hour, which is good for people going over to see horses. There’s a very good standard and the qualifier was efficiently and professionally run. There were some top riders there, who have a passion for producing horses... that’s why everyone goes over there, as they do quite a lot as four- and five-year-olds and you can really see the brain working and the future ahead of them.”