MR CASTLEFIELD and owner/rider Ger O’Neill dominated in the Gael Form-sponsored 1.40m Gain/Alltech National Grand Prix at Ballivor last Sunday. This win came just seven days after the combination captured the 1.35m two-phase at CSI2* Mullingar.

The pair proved best of the 13-way jump-off from a starting field of 24 to claim the lion’s share of the €4,000 on offer.

Speaking after his victory, Ger O’Neill said: “We’re delighted with the win. He’s going very well. It’s difficult to say where we made up the time to be honest. It was so tight. We all took pretty much the same route.

“Maybe back to the second last I was probably a little bit quicker than the rest, but it was all very, very tight. There was four of us all who came back within the same second, you could have been fifth just as easy as you were first, so it was just nice that the win came along.

“I was first to go in the jump-off with a mare that we have a lot of hope in for the future, Tullogher Lady Liberty. She has been produced slowly through the young horse classes in Ireland. She was in Lanaken as a six-year-old and they’ve been taking embryos from her, so she’s just stepping up to the bigger level now.

“She looks like a mare with a lot of jump and can go on to do big things. We are still taking our time but hopefully she can do a couple of two-stars at the back end of the year, and up to three-star before Christmas. She is really nice to ride. She’s by Indoctro and normally they are very nice to ride. She’s actually quite competitive and fast. I didn’t put the foot down on Sunday; I think she has a lot more to come.

“I went a little bit wider in the turnback to the third fence with her on Sunday. I knew I could be tighter with Mr Castlefield there, once you have been around the track once you can see anywhere where you can be a bit quicker, so that was a big help when it came to his turn.

“The plan with them is to continue on the National Grand Prix tour and then head away to some foreign shows towards the end of the year.

“Mr Castlefield was a little bit behind as a young horse, but he is ready to step up now and we will probably do a couple of the Premier Series with him. He’s gained a lot of experience at 1.45m level so he is ready to go on.

‘We’ve been very busy with stud duties at home and my daughters Ava (11) and Taylor (9) have been competing with the ponies a lot so I haven’t been on the circuit as much, so it is nice to take the horses to some of the nicer shows.

“Ballivor did a fantastic job. With the weather so good they had to put a lot of water on the ground but they had it top-class. It’s nice to be out in a grass field again and the horses learn a lot, especially the young ones.

“They had a five-year-old section in the 1.20m class and that was so good for them. They learn so much. I think we are missing that a bit in the equestrian centres every week, going on the grass brings them on a mile.

“The centres do a fantastic job, but it is still important to have those nice shows on the grass and if it’s run properly and on good ground it can be fantastic.”

Competitive action

Thirteen combinations made it into the jump-off. Of these Jonathan Smyth had three, while Dermott Lennon and O’Neill had two each.

O’Neill was first to go riding the Walsh McIntyre family owned and bred eight-year-old mare Tullogher Lady Liberty (Indoctro x Indorado). Once again the mare left all the fences up in a time of 40.94 for eventual sixth place.

Lennon was second in aboard Victoria Loane’s Gelvins Touch (Touchdown x Diamond Lad). They ran into difficulties and had three fences on the ground for 12 faults.

Smyth and Ann Doherty’s home-bred Crystal Graf (Lux Z x Graf Magna) got things back on track with a clear round in 39.78 for eventual fifth.

Daniel Carroll and his mother Breda’s Dutch-bred Hollywood (Zirocco Blue VDL x Phin Phin) were fourth to go. They had two fences down, a score which was matched by the next pair in Kenneth Graham riding his own mare Beir Bua (Lancelot x Cruising).

O’Neill and Mr Castlefield (Heartbreak ZH x Faust Z) then showed them all how it was done when returning a superb double clear in 38.27 to capture the top-spot.

Good attempt

Lennon made a good attempt with his second mount, his own gelding Anthem In My Heart, but just missed out stopping the clock at 38.41 for third place.

Smyth, riding Noletta Smyth and Roy Craig’s Mulvin Lights Out (Kroongraaf x Diamond Serpent), retired as the next pair in, while Angela Waras riding Hugh Ward’s home-bred Diamant de La Mer (Diamant De Semilly x Eurocommerce Berlin) had a single fence down.

Gerard Clarke partnered Patrick and Clare Sutton’s Lupins Lux Z (Lux Z x Cruising) to a double clear in 38.32, just a fraction off the leading time, which would be good enough for the runner-up spot.

Sean Foley and Bronte Stables’ Ugadi Hero (Udancer Hero x Touchdown) had one fence down, while Luke Campbell and Derryinver Truffle (Tornesch x Cruising) had two down.

Last to go, Jonathan Smyth riding another owned by Noletta Smyth and Roy Craig, Mulvin Lui (Luidam x Baron De Chantepie) made a decent attempt with a clear round in 38.70 for third place.

The next, and 10th round of the National Grand Prix league takes place tomorrow in Cork.