WHEN the reputation of the judge presenting a Dublin prize winner with their rosette means more than that symbol of success, surely that in itself is a measure of the judge’s calibre. Few could rate higher in the judging stake than the quite extraordinary Henrietta Knight; judge, author, Olympic team selector, Connemara pony breeder and racehorse trainer.

It was Julianne Corrigan who mentioned this Dublin vignette in her Breeders’ 10 feature in The Irish Field earlier this year, saying: “The proudest moment is our mare Fair Holly coming third as a three-year-old in the Draught young mare class in the RDS. Henrietta Knight judged the class that year and what a privilege it was to have a horse thought so highly of by her alone. Her comments about Holly in the ring after the prize-giving were even more meaningful to me.”