TWO men delighted with their time spent at this year’s Dublin Horse Show were Anthony Gill and Gerry Keena, whose home-bred Irish Sport Horses, Glen Candy and LVH Star respectively, finished first and second in their yearling fillies’ class last Friday week and, in the same order, were champion and reserve champion yearling.

By Sligo Candy Boy, Glen Candy, who was to place reserve to Dermish Not A Dare in the fillies’ championship, is the third produce registered on CapallOir out of Future Girl, who was also bred by Gill. That OBOS Quality 004 mare finished fifth in the eventing section of The Irish Field Breeders’ Championship in 2022 and fifth again in last Saturday’s stinted mares’ class. Also in 2022, Future Girl’s first foal, Glen Future (by Future Trend), won her three-year-old fillies’ class in Dublin.

Having lived in Germany for eight and a half years, Gill, a first cousin of Irish Horse Board chairman Tiernan Gill, returned home to Co Mayo in 2003 and established AGS Scaffolding Services. He also decided to set up a small breeding operation. “I wanted a nice thoroughbred filly, who I would cover with top sport horse stallions and hopefully breed a top quality sport horse.”

Gill didn’t have to search too far, as his brother Jim and his wife Maureen were breeding thoroughbreds and he spotted a Classic Cliche filly in the field, who he bought from them. She, Flynns Choice, who was a half-sister to three track winners, bred one colt and four fillies for Gill before dying last year; he is now breeding out of three of those fillies.

His stock have ‘two-room apartments’, being able to go out or in as they wish. He doesn’t believe in overfeeding his horses and grows, crushes and feeds his own 15 acres of oats.

In addition to being passionate about breeding, Gill is determined to see country shows survive and is chairman of his local Crossmolina Show. “It’s the small shows that keep the big shows going,” he states with conviction. Gill plans to support Scariff Show tomorrow week, Sunday, September 1st, as Glen Candy has qualified for the All-Ireland yearling filly championship at the Co Clare show.

Delighted

Shown in Dublin by Lorcan Glynn, Gerry Keena’s LVH Star is a member of the second crop of Tom Jones’ six-year-old ISH stallion Carrick Diamonds Diamond whose daughter, Dunraven Miss Diamond, won a large hunter yearling class at the Royal Highland Show in June. The chesnut is very much a product of Keena/Westmeath breeding, being out of the Golden Lariart mare Polygala, who was out of a Star Kingdom mare, out of a Salluceva mare.

“You don’t have to go too far to get a good horse,” said Keena, who couldn’t show the filly himself as, on Friday, he had to dash off to his nephew’s wedding in New Ross. He had every reason to be delighted with the result, as LVH Star is the only produce out of Polygala, who has since died from colic. Keena is breeding out of Polygala’s Shadow Gate half-sister, Catinas Star.

“I had a lot of success in the past, including here at Dublin, with ridden horses produced by Maura Rooney, but I decided I’d try in-hand showing this year and loaded up this filly to bring her to Ballivor Horse Show in June. Just outside Killucan, a fellow crashed into us, writing off the jeep and horsebox.

“Thankfully, we were okay and the filly just had a big knee. However, she was understandably very nervous about loading after that, so she just did three shows before coming here to Dublin. I’m absolutely delighted with the result.”

On Friday, LVH Star stood reserve in the Traditional Irish Horse championship to Serendipity Kerin’s home-bred Ouachita Diamond Lady. This three-year-old filly by Cloonacauneen Grandpa is out of the US-bred Dynaformer mare Flower Fairy, who won a Kempton all-weather maiden in August 2010 on her second and final start for the John Gosden yard. She is the dam of three successful track performers.

The winner of the yearling colts or geldings’ class was Darragh Glynn and Niamh Varley’s home-bred VG Elusive Knight, a traditionally-bred bay gelding by Elusive Emir out of Marys Lady (by Aughrim Knight).