THE Crosbie family recently lost Hankaline, their two-time Coote Cup champion and dam of two All-Ireland champions. “Today we had to say a premature goodbye to the one and only Hankalaine - thanks for all the wonderful memories,” wrote Julia on social media about her home-bred star.

The 2008 bay mare was by the thoroughbred sire Hankalo and her dam Cleo Laine’s pedigree stretched back to some old Irish greats including Slyguff Joker VII, Joucas, Norson and Primal.

Hankaline won her second Dublin broodmare title in 2015, when Lady Caroline Warren praised her “tremendous presence” in The Irish Field report.

“She walked into the ring and immediately caught David’s [Redvers, co-judge] and my eye with the way she moved. There are some you keep noticing in the ring, no matter where they are and she was one of them.”

Not only was Hankalaine one of the show ring’s broodmare greats but her offspring have proven equally successful. Julia and husband John showed Hankalaine’s first foal - Mellow Lane - to win the All-Ireland filly foal final at Moate the following year before the mare later landed in Emily King’s yard to start her eventing career.

Just this summer, the Hermes de Reve daughter of Hanakaline produced her first foal: King’s Gold, an embryo transfer filly by the Gem Twist clone Murka’s Gem. The Crosbies have closely followed the career of Hankalaine’s eldest offspring, and last year went to Ballindenisk International to watch Mellow Lane and Emily compete there.

Another of Hankalaine’s offspring is Brewery Lane, by Cavalier Land, the All-Ireland reserve champion three-year-old at Bannow and Rathangan last summer when the final was won by the Dublin young horse and hunter supreme dual champion Bloomfield Watergate.

This year, Memory Lane, by Island Commander, won the All-Ireland three-year-old filly final at Dungarvan Show, when shown by the couple’s daughter Lisa.

Hankalaine’s other offspring include a Rock ’N Roll Ter Putte two-year-old filly, a Sibon W yearling gelding named The Fast Lane and this year’s Munther colt, who is thriving, supervised by his equine nanny, on the Crosbie farm in Courtnacuddy.