DUBLIN dual champion Bloomfield Watergate, owned by Brendan and Wendy Furlong, has arrived safely in his new US home. Bred by Daphne Tierney, he won the always keenly-contested All-Ireland three-year-old final at Bannow and Rathangan Show last year and was then bought by the New Jersey-based veterinary surgeon after he received a tip-off about the champion from Eamon Hughes.

Since then, the Watermill Swatch x Ars Vivendi gelding won both the supreme young horse and ridden hunter titles, when shown by Michael Lyons and Jane Bradbury, at Dublin Horse Show, before getting his ‘Green Card’.

“We are going to have him try his talents at eventing,” Adamstown native Furlong told The Irish Field this week.

‘Percy’ has big horseshoes to fill as Furlong, who returned to Bannow and Rathangan Show in July to judge this year’s final with Edmund Vaughan, owned the Irish-bred Happy Talk, sourced for him by Clare Ryan. That find went on to win at Rolex Kentucky 30 years ago with Bruce Davidson.

Brendan’s wife and fellow veterinarian Wendy co-owns another Irish import: After Hours, the Tolan R mare bred by Raymond Kelly. With in-form Caroline Pamukcu on board, she placed third in the recent Young Event Horse four-year-old championship held during Maryland International.