THE Fingal Harriers Hunt kicked off their season at the quaint thatched Man O War Bar and Restaurant dating back to 1595. It is noted for the excellence of its food and the provenance of their supply, as they are in the middle of North County Dublin market gardening country and the fishing harbours of Skerries and Balbriggan.

It is also a regular stop for American and Canadian tourists arriving in Dublin Airport only 15 minutes away, where they have an early Irish breakfast and usually an Irish coffee or a pint of Guinness to fortify them for their stay in Ireland.

Local man Barney Green, 92, hosts an annual Tractor Run that has raised over €150,000 for St Francis Hospice Raheney that also finishes at the bar. The energetic Barney, who worked with farm horses all his life, won the Fingal County Council Mayor’s Community Champion Award. He is also is a dab hand at playing traditional Irish music on the accordion and still keeps busy maintaining his 70-year-old vintage Ferguson tractor and doing odd jobs around the area.

The thatched pub website reminds us of a popular toast, ‘Here’s to your roof may it be well thatched, and here’s to all under it may they all be well matched’. Interestingly, the 1732 Act of Parliament designated it as a coaching stop toll road, which was the main road from Dublin to the Dunleer Turnpike, the first toll road in Ireland or Britain.

In those days Michael Collier (1780-1849), the highwayman, was busy robbing coaches; he eventually avoided the hangman after being captured at Bellewstown Races and was deported to Australia, but made his way back to Ireland by the Caribbean to Drogheda, only to die in an outbreak of cholera.

Sean Watson visiting from the Ward Union Hunt and honorary secretary Melissa O'Grady at The Fingal Harriers hunt at The Man O War Bar \ Noel Mullins

Long tradition

The area has a long tradition of horse breeding, cricket and Gaelic Football and the Man O War Club recently won the Junior GAA Football Championship after a 44-year gap. But there is a much earlier history of hunting in the area, and, today, the Fingals and the Ward Union Staghounds share much of the same country, especially on Saturdays, and the Louth and Meath Foxhounds also hunt parts of the country.

Over the years, prior to the Fingals being founded, there were many other packs hunting the area, the Stamullen Harriers, Mr Cairnes of Stameen, Dubber, Lissenhall, Lord Donaughmores, and The Earl of Howth. But after 1820, Mr George Woods of Milverton Hall, just down the road from the Man O War Bar, set up the Fingal Steeplechase Club. With the dissolution of the Gormanstown Harriers, Richard Taylor Woods of Whitestown established The Fingal Harriers in 1881, interestingly with the first meet at the Man O War Bar starting with breakfast at 9 am and the meet at 11am.

Today, members are from various parts of the community; farmers, farriers, health workers, landscape gardeners, bar staff, tourism workers, equestrian centre owners, stud owners, students, civil servants, professionals and trades.

Meets are held at 1pm to allow people to do a morning’s work and get out in the afternoon. Hunting is also the single most important sport for the survival of our endangered Irish Draught Horse. Without hunting, there would be a reduced market and therefore would result in its decline, as has happened with the Cleveland Bay Horse in the UK, where the average number of filly foals registered annually is only 14, which is not sustainable and, sadly, the breed could become extinct. Each Irish Draught mare has to produce at least one filly to replace her to keep the breed alive.

Erica Masterson, Aoife Delaney and Roisin Hughes at The Fingal Harriers hunt at The Man O War Bar \ Noel Mullins

Hunt Staff and followers

Former jockey Darren Boylan hunts the pack, which is looked after by the kennel huntsman Neil Cooney, who has bred an energetic pack and he had them looking in tip-top condition. They are mostly home-bred, with Kildare and Meath bloodlines. Whipping in are Stephen Comerford MH, Dave Bennett and Darren Jordan.

Erica Masterson was on horseback on a smashing well-turned out grey hunter amongst the 50 or so followers. She joined joint-masters Orla Gannon, Seamus McGrath and Stephen Comerford, but Brian Beggan I understand was topping up his tan in Macedonia for the forthcoming hunt ball, and Michael McGrath was combining business with pleasure, hunting with his many friends in the UK. Melissa O’Grady, the honorary secretary, was busy with paperwork, processing disclaimers and insurance with members and visitors from the Bray and Ward Union, but she was off the following day on business to visit the bright lights of Las Vegas.

Honorary treasurer Catherine Mullarkey was out, as were Mary Beggan, Roisin Hughes and Pat Crean, who recently acquired the five-star show jumper Highland President, previously owned by Trevor Breen, who will be campaigned from Karlswood Stables.

Hunting also was Sean Watson, visiting from the Ward Union and Marie Byrne and her daughter Ashling, whose family farm is just down the road. Her brother Paul was absent as he was busy ploughing, but he kindly left a strip of headland to allow the hunt to go through the farm.

Another well-known farmer, Joe McNally from The Naul and his son Harry were following, as well as another local farmer, Pat ‘P’ Hagan. Alex Lyons wasn’t hunting, but his partner Aoife Delaney was on former master Pat White’s hunter. Alex’s sister, former event rider Lesley Ann Moore, was looking after her daughter 17-month-old Sadie, with grandparents Fiona and John close by.

Graham Quinn, who normally hunts with the Fingals and Wards, was following by car, as was James Harford and Ray Watts was at all the key areas with his camera. Laurence Flynn, a former Fingal master, and his brother Thomas had already been out with the Ward Union just down the road that morning.

At the meet also was Robert Hoban, whose late father Sean hunted with the pack and served on the committee. I knew Sean well, as I whipped in and hunted the Fingals for a number of seasons. Sean was very helpful when we were planning hunt meets, as he was an Aer Lingus pilot on the trans-Atlantic route to New York and Boston, and he kept us up to date on harvesting in the hunt area. He would bank the Jumbo Boeing 747 around the hunt country before landing to see which farmers were harvesting, baling straw and ploughing. I am sure the passengers enjoyed their close-up view of the landscape, often their first view of the Irish countryside and totally unaware of Sean’s motives.

Marie Byrne and her daughter Ashling at The Fingal Harriers hunt at The Man O War Bar \ Noel Mullins

Hunting

As it transpired, it was a leisurely day with warm weather for the first hunt of the season. The first draw was behind the Man O War Bar in Slevins, which was previously owned by hunt follower Bart O’Connor, father of show jumper producer Barry. The followers tailed the pack over a variety of ditches and, from there, they came out on the Courtlough Road and into Nicky Rooney’s stubble fields. In the background, we had great views of Lambay Island, owned by the Revelstoke family, who stocked a herd of Connemara Ponies and wallabies on the island.

More ditches loomed after crossing Ballymaguire Lane and into Alan Harford’s where hounds found, which took them on a run to the back of Hoey’s and out by Flanagan’s Lane. The next farm was Paul Rice’s - he had to leave his hunter in the stable as he was taking advantage of the good weather and busy ploughing - but kindly left a headland for the hunt to get through. There were reports of a few casualties over a small ditch, which is often the case where some horses do not take small fences seriously.

A nice spin over Martin Clinton’s off Killalane, venue of the well-known motorbike races, and into the former farm of Fiona Wentges, who represented Ireland at the Los Angeles Olympic Games in eventing and into Clinton’s at Carney’s Tree. They then crossed into Paul Rice’s again, which brought them back to Man O War Bar for some welcome refreshments, courtesy of the Mastersons.