DAMASTOWN Stud’s Katie Mulvihill and Billy Romeo made a winning debut under Dressage Ireland rules last Sunday at the Eastern Region show in Marlton, where they won both Preliminary classes.

In the nine-runner DI5A judged by Ruth Daunt (List 4), they scored 69.11%, while in the DI6 judged by Jane Whitaker (List 2), they saw off nine rivals when topping the overall leaderboard on 69.81. Bred by Donal Barnwell at the Billy Stud in England, Billy Romeo is a nine-year-old Anglo European Studbook-registered bay by Billy Congo out of the Corland mare Rocksina, who jumped to 1.60m herself.

Billy Romeo too started life as a show jumper and competed up to 1.30m level with Nicole Pavitt. He was first jumped here in late 2021 by Harriet Pele, moving on to Liam Hayes and Edward Doyle, before Mulvihill took over the ride in the summer of 2022. “Last year, he started getting a bit sour about jumping, so we did a bit of showing and finished third in the large riding horse class at Dublin. I like to challenge myself, so this year I decided to try dressage and am coached by Kate Dwyer.”

Katie runs a livery yard outside Kilcock at Damastown Stud, where her father Stephen Nolan used to train racehorses and his father before him stood stallions. Her husband Des Mulvihill, who she married in February, has no real interest in horses, but is very supportive and is happy to drive her to shows around the country.

At Novice level, Sophie Orr won the Daunt-judged DI21 with the Connemara mare Tirnaskea Starstruck (66.55%), but then she and the nine-year-old Kays Moonlight grey had to settle for second (65.69) in the Whitaker-assessed DI27A, behind Michelle Quint on the Dutch Warmblood gelding New Generation (67.24), a six-year-old piebald son of Toronto.

The first of the Elementary classes, the DI52 was judged by Michael Moore (List 2A), whose winner was Nicki Russell on Julie Finnegan’s Connemara mare Callowfeenish Silver (67.92%), a seven-year-old by Kippure Alkatraz. Topping Whitaker’s overall leaderboard on 66.32 in the DI53 was Daphne Lush riding the Irish Sport Horse gelding Millpoint Carnival, a 14-year-old chesnut gelding by Millpoint Odin. There were eight starters in both classes.

Monahan double

Riding her mother Penny’s Connemara gelding Carrickfad Cloud Break, Mai Monahan won both Baldwin-judged FEI pony rider classes. In the four-runner team test, she and the 11-year-old Castle Gigolo grey scored 62.86%, while in the individual test, the pair achieved a mark of 62.30 to see off their sole rivals.

Eight combinations appeared for the four senior classes graded Advanced Medium and upwards, with the highest score being recorded in the Baldwin-judged Prix St George.

There, just two of the four entries met their engagement, while the only finisher was Marguerite Kavanagh riding her Dutch Warmblood gelding Danciano SR (66.91%), a 16-year-old Lanciano bay.

There were just 14 starters in total between the dedicated Junior section, welcome to dressage classes and the Trailblazers’ division.

The highest score was recorded in the two-runner Junior Preliminary DI6, where Jane Whitaker’s winner was Madison Roche riding Josephine Delahoyde’s Sverige (70.96%), a 15-year-old chesnut mare by Swarovski.