Connemara – The supreme native performance breed at Dublin

Connemara ponies are seen throughout the five days of Dublin Horse Show in various competitions, including today’s show hunter pony class entries, dotted with native pony bloodlines.

Two dedicated Dublin showcases are the Connemara performance and ridden classes. Competition is always fierce at the nationwide qualifiers and the first of the Berney Bros Saddlery performance class winners on Wednesday was Richard Power’s Pine View Ice Cool Cool.
His Co Waterford owner bought this five-year-old gelding as a yearling and as his prefix suggests, he was bred by Sharon Walsh, an active supporter of both Connemara and sport pony breeding in this country.
Her winner, by the French-bred international show jumping pony Ice And Fire D’Albran, was ridden by Debbie Flavin.

Pauline Dahill is another noted producer of performance class ponies and part of a successful cluster of Connemara producers in Co. Waterford and the south-east. Her top finisher this year was William Griffin’s Hogan’s Charm, another five-year-old. Bred by Thomas McCann, he is by Ross Fear Bui, from the prolific performance lines of the dun stallion Templebready Fear Bui.

Incidentally, another well-known performance sire Silver Shadow had two offspring qualified. Visitors to artist Rachel Parry’s stand at Dublin could view her painting of the stallion and legendary Claregalway vet Philip McManus during the Connemara pony stallion parade at Dublin in 2019.
The first of the Connemara pony performance finals is for five to seven-year-olds and in the following competition for eight to 15-year-old Connemaras, Diarmuid Ryan made it a Dublin Wednesday double.
He had already won one of the Irish Draught performance finals with the now Dutch-bound Two Mile Nigel in the morning and followed up here with the Naomi Murphy-owned Pem Boy, a nine-year-old by Clifden Silver and bred by Michael Moran.

The reserve champion from the 16 finalists was Rachel Queally and Leo Murphy’s Carraun Ferdy, ridden by Eliza-Jane Queally. Also, a nine-year-old, he is by Martan Paidin Mhor and out of a Glenayre Silver Fox dam.
Berney Bros Saddlery, an iconic brand name, also sponsor the ridden Connemara classes at Dublin and their tradestand, a target for generations of Horse Show Week shoppers, was visited by the Princess Royal during her visit this week.

As well as shopping, Dublin is a social event and ‘holiday’ for many horsey families. Amongst yesterday’s visitors was Marjorie Hardiman and her daughter Jane Field. Not only are the family well known in the Connemara and performance worlds, usually with their own Creganna-breds, but Marjorie’s late father Sean did trojan work for promoting Irish pony breeding in the west of Ireland.
Marjorie recalled the five-hour journeys by lorry from Galway to Dublin and in fact, the family owned Pat Aengus, ridden by Marjorie’s brother Mal to win the inaugural ridden Connemara class at the RDS. They were delighted to see his picture at the Connemara Pony Breeders Society stand at the Horse Show and their next stop is the famous Clifden Pony Show, celebrating its 150th anniversary this year.

The 2025 Dublin overall ridden Connemara champion and recipient of the coveted Eugenia Murray Cup was Kathryn Smiley’s Eastlands Jollybrae and ridden by Kathryn’s sister Charlotte. This five-year-old Scottish-bred gelding is by Eastlands Harleybrae and out of a Lockinge Frederick dam.
“We’ve had all different types of ponies growing up but now that we’re out of the age classes, we’ve had Connemaras because there’s no age limits. We’ve stayed with them since and they’re so popular, for both adults and children,” said Kathryn, explaining the popularity of the breed.

“Every year, we try to bring a new pony. We won in 2022 with a pony called Cregduff Ranger and then last year, we we were second with Seafield Riverbank. We’ve had this class in mind for this guy [Eastlands Jollybrae] and I think the extra year has stood to him.”

The reserve champion was Tullaree Fear Bui, by the aforementioned Templebready Fear Bui. Owned by Cathy Cooper and Nicola Main, the 12-year-old gelding was ridden by Cathy’s daughter Ellie Rogan under the tutelage of her dad JP, who has been on UN peacekeeping duties in Lebanon this year.

Clive Swindell, Tullaree Fear Bui’s owner, also owned the brilliant Connemara mare Cul Ban Mistress. She was a bigtime winner at the European pony show jumping championships for Kate and Francis Derwin, two more riders who learned their trade on Connemaras, that most versatile of pony native breeds.

BERNEY BROS SADDLERY PERFORMANCE CHAMPIONSHIP

Champion – Pine View Ice Cool, 2020 gelding by Ice and Fire D’Albran – Cool Secret, by Coill Rua Champ. Owner: Richard Power. Breeder: Sharon Walsh. Rider: Debbie Flavin.

BERNEY BROS SADDLERY RIDDEN CHAMPIONSHIP

Champion – Eastlands Jollybrae, 2020 gelding by Eastlands Harleybrae – Eastlands Dunrose, by Lockinge Frederick. Owner: Kathryn Smiley. Breeders: John & Dianna Staveley. Rider: Charlotte Smiley.