THE National Horse Sport Arena in the Walled Garden of the Sport Ireland Campus in Abbotstown was the sun-kissed venue for last Sunday’s Irish Draught Horse Breeders Association (IDHBA) Dublin Branch show.

The ridden classes were well supported, although the more locally-based owners and riders probably wished that Co Down’s Victoria Teuton had taken the day off, when she appeared with Shannaghmore Inferno, who is owned by her good friends Laura Cardwell (Cheshire) and Cheryl Smyth (Co Down).

The 2019 Kiltealy Silver gelding, who was bred in Co Carlow by Liam O’Brien out of the Grange Bouncer mare Liams Lady Bouncer, first topped the final line-up of judges Kevin McGuinness (conformation) and Michael Harty (ride) in the four and five-year-old ID class. The chesnut then claimed the ridden ID title before being crowned supreme champion.

“Laura and Cheryl purchased ‘Fire’ as a two-year-old and left him with me; they have been so patient. Once broken, he had a quiet four-year-old year, hacking and learning about life with plenty of field time. We decided to show him this year and, since February, he has won every ridden class he has been entered in, along with nine championship sashes.”

Shannaghmore Inferno, who has already been sold into Britain but will remain in Ireland for the immediate future, is described by Teuton as: “The kindest, most consistent horse. He is the most sensible hack we have in the yard and yet is phenomenal to ride in the ring.”

Victoria Teuton on Shannaghmore Inferno being presented with the Robert Hare perpetual cup for winning ridden ID champion at the IDHBA Dublin Branch show, by the late Robert Hare's grandson, Andrew Hare

Briefly, and in chronological order, Shannaghmore Inferno won his ID class and was champion ridden hunter in March at Ardnacashel where, the following month, he was crowned champion working hunter; he was champion ridden Irish horse and winner of his ID class at Lusk Equestrian in May; in the same month, he was crowned champion ridden and winner of his four and five-year-old ridden ID class at Balmoral Show; later in May, he was supreme champion, champion ridden ID horse and winner of his four and five-year-old ridden class at the ID show in Punchestown; and he then qualified for the Ardrahan All-Ireland ridden hunter championship, when reserve champion ridden horse and winner of both ID ridden classes at Armagh Show.

There was little of surprise in the final line-up of the older ridden class, where the section reserve, Cloonan Hector, stood top under Chris Carter, joint-owner of the 12-year-old Clew Bay Bouncer gelding with Damien McCormack. The grey stood immediately ahead of another gelding of the same hue, Louise Kavanagh’s 11-year-old owner-ridden Fred Showtime (by Fintan Himself).

The champion working hunter Irish Draught, and reserve supreme, was the four and five-year-old class winner Glas Rí, who was ridden for his Co Meath owner Sive Ryan by Fingal Harriers whipper-in Darren ‘Swifty’ Jordan. The 2019 Lock Key gelding, who was bred by Michael Enright out of Moonlight Lassie (by Mount Diamond Flag), claimed the title ahead of Andrew Thornton’s owner-ridden older class winner, the 14-year-old Castana gelding Prizon Road.

Jimmy Heery of the Long Lane Stud in Co Meath had a major influence on the results in the Tim Wilson-judged, poorly-supported in-hand section of the show, as he owned two of the winning broodmares plus the winning foal and bred the youngstock champion, RSS Touching Story.

This two-year-old filly, who is by Touch Of The Emperor out of the Rosheen Yeats mare Our Rosheen, is owned by photographer, journalist and a former editor of these pages, Siobhan English, and her husband, Robert Storey. The Co Wicklow couple had entered the filly at Gorey, but re-routed to the Sport Ireland Campus, when the Co Wexford show was called off earlier in the week.

Storey and English purchased their chesnut champion as a foal, having seen her finish second in her class at the National Irish Draught Show in Punchestown. Sunday marked RSS Touching Story’s first public appearance of the year. Her main target this season is the All-Ireland Irish Draught two-year-old filly championship at Limerick Show in late August, for which there are qualifiers locally for the owners at Carnew and Tinahely.

Traditional

The addition of two Traditional Irish Horse classes to this Dublin Branch show proved a rewarding move, as these attracted a large entry.

The section champion of Kevin McGuinness and Michael Harty was the working hunter class winner, Pharos Hazy Cove, who owner/breeder Aoife Maguire competes as an amateur with Showjumping Ireland. The 11-year-old gelding by the Connemara stallion Drimcong Cove is out of the Darnay mare Pharos Dream, who pulled up in her two point-to-point starts. Standing reserve was Liz Keegan Comerford’s flat class winner, Edoxtown Cash Cruise, a six-year-old CC Captain Cruise gelding who was bred in Co Galway by Padraic Mannion out of Maries Joy (by Ard Grandpa).