In a weekend when thunderstorms plagued parts of Ireland, Athlone was fortunate to escape any rain showers until the final championship – the ridden horse supreme championship, won by William McMahon and Grace Maxwell Murphy’s Marksman – began last Sunday evening.

Athlone’s showing classes now occupy the former Galway County date, another bonus is inheriting Dublin qualifiers while the large showrings at the midland show’s latest site on Michael Donoghue’s farm on the town outskirts, proved popular with exhibitors.

Draught title

Martin Murphy’s day got off to a brighter start than the weather forecast when his Sligo Candy Boy filly was the champion foal, matched by his Castlegates Perfect Illusion (Barnaview Grosvenor’s Lad) winning the overall Irish Draught title.

In another native breed championship, Niamh and flanagan O’Halloran’s Cabra Jane (Hilliside Joker), last year’s All Ireland three-year-old champion, had the ultimate red ribbon day, winning both the Connemara and overall pony titles.

Athlone marked the halfway point of The Irish Field Breeders Championship qualifiers with two more: Charleville on Sunday and West Clare (Saturday, 1 July) remaining.

Numbers were poor in the show jumping section with just two forward and both got the nod from judges George Chapman and Philip Scott; Bridget Devenney’s Emme (Voss) and Maurice Wafer’s Hot To Touch (Lancelot), the winning mare in the Dublin final last year and their Hardrock VDL and Vivant van de Heffinck foals at foot.

From the seven hopefuls in the eventing section, Richard Gildea’s Miss Cranny Lancelot (Lancelot) and Mary Rothwell’s Lady Marmalade (Brilliant Lad) qualified, together with their Rosier and Greenhall foals.

Mark English has been absent from the showring for a couple of years. “It took this one!” he said about his young horse champion, BLS Rock And Roll (Glynnwood Star of Verdi). Reserve went to Tiernan Gill’s yearling Flogas Syb (Calvino Z).

The multi-tasking Kevin Healy won the working hunter championship with his well-bred Kilbunny Kabana (Kannan), bought by him and his grandfather Pat Whyte at Cavan last year.

Kevin, who is 16 years old recently got his amateur jockey licence and has won at both the IPC hunter trials and eventing championships, was following up on his working hunter championship win at the Showing Show of the Year at Mullingar the previous day.