It may have been the fourth day of Dublin Horse Show but not in living memory could any of the ringside stalwarts remember a Laidlaw Cup young horse champion returning the following year to match up with a win in the supreme hunter championship too.
That’s the feat recorded by Bloomfield Watergate, the Watermill Swatch gelding that swept through the lightweight, four-year-old titles and then landed the ultimate: the supreme hunter championship for his New Jersey owner and veterinary surgeon, Brendan Furlong.
Originally from Co. Wexford, this win set the theme for a slew of Model County wins throughout Saturday.
Brendan had heard of the horse after his win last year in the All Ireland three-year-old final at Bannow & Rathangan Show and bought him from owner-breeder Daphne Tierney. Following up with the young horse championship at Dublin weeks later, he has recently been produced by Jane Bradbury, winning again on Model County turf at Furlong’s hometown show, Adamstown.
The plan for Bloomfield Watergate is for the Dublin dual champion to move to Florida this winter, where he will then be seen on the US circuit.
Standing reserve to Bloomfield Watergate and Jane, who also received the Michael W. Hickey Trophy presented to the rider of the supreme champion, was another Wexford owner: George Chapman whose middleweight champion Caseys Espresso, a five-year-old by Ulysses M2S, was bred in Co. Kilkenny by John Irish, (also the breeder of Cambalda, the leading Irish Sport Horse in the WBFSH eventing rankings in 2015).
Bernard le Courtois, who judged Bloomfield Watergate’s sire Watermill Swatch when he won the Croker Cup at Dublin in 2009, was back on judging duty in this thoroughbred stallion class, alongside UK judge Richard Ramsay.
On this occasion they selected Galileo Dance as their champion from the seven stallions forward this year. Not only had winning owner Julie Radden got two entries in this class but both Canadian-breds: Galileo Dance and Galileo’s Secret are full-brothers. Both are by – no surprise here – champion sire Galileo and out of the Danehill Dancer mare Dance Secretary.
In the morning’s broodmare classes, the Coote Cup was presented to John Roche for his stinted class winner Assagart Fairytale, an eight-year-old by Coroner out of Assagart Sapphire. Another long line of Assagart breeding, another long line of Coote Cup champions as this was a seventh win in this broodmare championship for the Foulksmills family.
The reserve champion was last year’s multi-tasking Irish Draught mare champion at Dublin: Liam Lynskey’s DS Bounce With Me Baby. Missing out on the Irish Draught class, after the entries filled up, she was switched to the opening middle/heavyweight mare class which she won.
Foal winners from Day 4 at Dublin? John Roche’s Assagart Legacy, by his own Irish Draught stallion Assagart All For One out of his multi-winner Assagart Mistress, a former Limerick Lady champion and Coote Cup reserve champion, won the colt foal class.
Pat Finn’s memorable Dublin continued when his Chelis HC Z filly out of the O.B.O.S Quality mare Frenchfort Grace won her class and the winner of the thoroughbred-sired class was Mary & Michael Dooner’s Shadow Man, by Shadow Gate out of their Dunkerrin Grey Mist mare Vanity Fare, the dam of several All Ireland traditional foal finals.
SUPREME HUNTER CHAMPIONSHIP
Champion: Bloomfield Watergate (ISH) – 2019 gelding by Watermill Swatch (TB) out of Ballyconnery Bloomfield (ISH), by Ars Vivendi (HOLST). Breeder: Daphne Tierney, Co. Wicklow. Owner: Brendan Furlong MRCVS.
Reserve: Caseys Expresso (ISH) – 2018 gelding by Ulysses M2S (KWPN) out of Hugginstown Rose (ISH), by Riyalan (TB). Breeder: John Irish, Co. Kilkenny. Owner: George Chapman.
COOTE CUP BROODMARE CHAMPIONSHIP
Champion: Assagart Fairytale (ISH) – 2015 mare by Coroner (TB) out of Assagart Sapphire (ISH), by Flagmount King (ID). Breeder/Owner: John Roche, Co Wexford.
Reserve: DS Bounce With Me Baby (ID) – 2014 mare by Moylough Bouncer (ID) out of Mount Diamond Princess (ID), by Mount Diamond Flag. Breeder: Brendan Duffy, Co Roscommon. Owner: Liam Lynskey.
CROKER CUP CHAMPIONSHIP
Champion: Galileo Dance (TB) – 2016 stallion by Galileo out of Dance Secretary, by Danehill Dancer. Breeder: Charles E. Fipke, Canada. Owner: Julie Radden.