CLOONISLE Cashel Stud’s Joe Burke had to make sure that he himself was well-shod for last week’s Royal Highland Show, as you don’t get to collect all those rosettes and sashes without covering a lot of ground.

Joe was back at the Edinburgh showgrounds for Friday’s in-hand Mountain and Moorland section, where he first showed Sandra Burton’s Aniar Cashel, who he bred, to win the four-year-old and upwards Connemara stallions and geldings class.

This was followed by the in-hand Connemara championship, which the 11-year-old stallion won, which was immediately followed by the Mountain and Moorland championship, which the grey won, and the overall in-hand championship, ditto.

Then came the big one, the Price Family supreme in-hand championship, a Horse of the Year Show qualifier, where, once again, Burke showed Aniar Cashel to victory on what was his first attempt to qualify for HOYS this year. The show ended on a perfect note on Sunday, when Sandra partnered the pony to win the ridden Connemara class, another HOYS qualifier.

Joe has no regrets about selling Aniar Cashel to Sandra for a second time when the Covid restrictions eased but, among the stallions at Cloonisle Cashel, is the grey’s sire, Banks Timber, who is semi-retired, his coverings being restricted to family-owned mares. Joe’s wife Grace also rides the 16-year-old stallion and won on him at the Northern Ireland Festival in April.