LAST Sunday’s Connolly’s Red Mills champion of champions’ finals were advertised as the first three classes on a packed schedule at the Wicklow Hunt Summer Show in Barnadown where there were seven arenas in use.

Leah Kent (ride) and Mary Moore (conformation) judged the ridden hunters and working hunters in the Derby arena where their flat champion was the small hunter Kildalton Wish (Brian Murphy). This four-year-old chesnut daughter of Gortfree Lakeside Lad, who was bred by Teagasc Kildalton out of Kildalton Whisper (by Crosstown Dancer), stood ahead of the middle/heavyweight class winner Courtown Prince (Melissa O’Connor).

Two diverse types came to the fore in the afternoon’s working hunter section. Louise Lyons was beckoned forward into the champion’s slot on Lady Perdita Blackwood’s five-year-old Irish Draught class winner, Clandeboye, a five-year-old gelding by Scrapman, with Sarah Curry standing reserve on the open class winner, Barberton. This 14-year-old US-bred Johannesburg gelding also won the Treo Eile open racehorse to riding horse class.

In Ring 3, Megan Connell (ride) and Imelda Lynch (conformation) found their ridden horse champion in the riding horse class which was won by Matt Dickenson on board Mya O’Toole’s Major Sam, an eight-year-old bay gelding by Crosstown Pride. Jennifer Kennedy finished reserve on her own cob class winner, Moneycross, a five-year-old grey gelding by WRS Elvis.

Nina Doyle’s youngstock champion was the Murphys’ two-year-old Dignified van’t Zorgvliet filly Greenhall Press Button. Patrick Murphy’s sister, Julia Crosbie and her husband John, bought this bay as a yearling from her breeder, Derry Rothwell, who, on Sunday, showed her dam, Greenhall Push Button (by Financial Reward) to win the broodmare class.

Tony Ennis’ ridden pony champion was the Sadhbh O’Connor-ridden Connemara Glencarrig Emperor, a five-year-old Glencarrig Knight grey; Mary Gallagher’s local pony champion was the Bena Marie Hickey-ridden Monty; and Gill Glynn’s working hunter pony champion was the Louisa Dalton-ridden 21-year-old chesnut gelding Jubilee, winner of the starter stakes class.