PRIMO Merona, a six-year-old Dutch-bred mare owned by Michael Hayden and ridden by Mark Cleary, won the six and seven-year-old HSI Development Series in Killossery Lodge Stud last Sunday afternoon.

By Grand Slam VDL, she is out of Verona H, by Matterhorn. Her sire Grand Slam is the all-time top scorer of the KWPN Stallion Test, and his sire Cardento won silver medals at the WEG, the European Championship and the Olympic Games.

Her damsire Ahorn was himself an international success and is the sire of 10 approved stallion sons.

Speaking after the win, Cleary told The Irish Field: “She’s a lovely little mare. I’ve been riding her since the middle of last summer. She’s out of the same dam as Machu Picchu that Paul O’Shea rode to international level.

“In the jump-off yesterday, there was a turn after the third last fence, she is little and can be quite nifty through the turns, so I think that’s where we made up the time.

“She’ll do the age classes up in Cavan next and then she’ll be let off for about a month and a half; Micheal (Hayden) has a lovely set up at home, so all the horses go back to him and have a break.

“She already had a few weeks off in September, so these HSI Autumn Development classes are great for horses like her that needed to get a little bit more done before the end of the year.

“There’s a possibility that we might do a tour in the spring and she may tag along to help get her ready and set up for the HSI seven-year-old classes next year.”

Clean sheet

Mark Cleary on Primo Merona (6YO), winner of the HSI Autumn Developement series Six/ Seven-year-old class at Killossery \ Rolf Stenberg Jumpinaction.net

Some 29 combinations lined out for the class, which offered a prize pot of €3,300. Resident course designer, Frank Glynn, set them a tricky enough 1.20m two-phase track, which saw just nine keep a clean sheet through both phases.

Cleary was fastest of these, stopping the clock in a time of 30.37 to secure the win. Daren Hopkins, riding the Allen family’s Ballywalter Stables’ six-year-old gelding Elite Della Caccia (Elvis ter Putte x Cardento), came closest to catching them. They crossed the finish in 30.50 to capture second place.

Third went to another six-year-old, Allison Mercer’s gelding Rossmount Luis (Luidam x Clover Hill). Bred by Michael Griffin, he was ridden by Ellie Humphries to a jump-off time of 32.21.

Young rider Jazmine Arthur guided Karen Kerr’s seven-year-old Ballyknock OBOS Hollywood (O.B.O.S Quality x Luidam), bred by Noel O’Brien, into fourth in 34.39, while Feaha Moore and Mick Smith’s Dance Monkey (Cobra x Quidam), bred by Denis O’Brien, were fifth.

The sixth and final place in the line-up went to Andrew Hodgins aboard Reenmore Reggie (Balou Star x Harlequin Du Carel) for owner/breeder Maura Crowley.

A total of 37 youngsters started in the five-year-old HSI Autumn Development Series class. In total, 15 of them managed to keep a clean sheet throughout the 1.10m two-phase to divide the €2,500 prize fund. In the four-year-old equivalent, just eight of the 27 starters managed a clear round to share the €2,000 on offer.

Grand Prix

Brian Cassidy [AA] and Looks Easy, winners of the 1.10m Grand Prix at Killossery \ Laurence Dunne Jumpinaction.net

Brian Cassidy rode his own Looks Easy to the top-spot in the €1,000 Bank Holiday Monday 1.10m Grand Prix in Killossery.

By Ringwood Harley Carol, out of Lorella by Ballysimon, the mare lived up to her name and made it look easy to win the class by a margin of almost a second in 39.22 in the 12-way jump-off.

Casey Phair and her own mare Metralis (Metropole x Royale Touch) were second in 39.93. Third place went to young rider Robyn O’Donoghue aboard Paul Curtis’ German-bred Ceblue in 42.63.

Amateur Davina Gray riding Heather Crawford’s HSC Sunny Jim (Pacino x Conquistador) finished fourth in 42.68, while the eight-year-old Talbot Siss (Metropole x Chippison), bred by Pat Hutchinson and ridden by Egle Zakaraite, were fifth.

Maximus Vivendi (Ars Vivandi x Harlequin du Carel), owned and ridden by Paddy Barry, finished in sixth as the fastest four-faulters.