‘What a day to be Irish’
One nation is looking stronger than ever, but there is disappointment for the Brits in a thrilling second leg of the new-look League of Nations
Longines League of Nations Ocala, World Equestrian Centre, Florida, USA
IRELAND’s showjumpers are looking stronger than ever and a competitive quartet were on top of the world when winning the second leg of the Longines League of Nations (LLN).
Going one better than their runner-up spot in the series in Abu Dhabi last month, Ireland’s Florida-based squad of Darragh Kenny, Daniel Coyle, Shane Sweetnam and Cian O’Connor dominated from the outset, winning on a score of five, ahead of
IRELAND’S CHEF D’EQUIPE
MICHAEL BLAKE
Switzerland who rocketed up the leaderboard in round two with a full house of clears, finishing with eight penalties.
USA and the Netherlands had held the lead with Ireland on a zero score after round one, but mistakes crept in for both sides during round two and each completed on 12; USA joined the podium ahead of the Dutch with a quicker time.
Ireland came out all guns blazing, with first-round clears from Darragh on Amsterdam 27, Daniel with Legacy and Shane riding Nations Cup debutant Otis Blue – a late replacement for an injured Bertram Allen – which meant that fourth rider Cian and new ride Maurice
SARAH RADFORD JENNIFER DONALD weren’t required to jump.
This combination proved a crucial part of the equation for the deciding leg however, as one of the trio picked by chef d’equipe Michael Blake.
With four faults collected at the midway double by pathfinder Darragh but with nothing to add from Daniel and Legacy, Cian carried the pressure that a single rail could cost them victory, potentially forcing a jump-off with USA.
But he and Pat Crean’s 12-year-old remained foot perfect over the obstacles set by Alan Wade, just adding one time-fault, to seal a momentous victory for an ecstatic Irish side.
NO ROOM FOR ERROR
“I’M so proud and honoured to work with these guys and they put in an incredible performance,” said Michael Blake, with Ireland at the top of the standings at the halfway point in the LLN series.
“The other nine nations – who make up the top 10 in the world rankings – sent their best to Ocala and we saw them off in style. There is no room for error in the League of Nations and my lads showed that they thrive on that pressure.”
An “over-the-moon” Cian proclaimed, “What a day to be Irish. We’ve been working towards this for months and I feel privileged to ride alongside these great guys. The team is building great momentum with this win following up our recent win in Wellington [four-star Nations Cup].”
While Daniel summed up,
“I’ve jumped lots of double clears with Legacy before but this is that bit more special. It feels like I’ve been getting Legacy ready for five years for a night like this.”
The roller coaster of fortunes under this new format played out in round two where there is no drop score. A fall from Kevin Staut after a refusal on Beau De Laubry Z resulted in France’s elimination and Belgium sank down the leaderboard with a run-out from Niels Bruynseels’ Delux Van T&L.
There was disappointment for reigning Olympic, world and European champions Sweden, along with Great Britain. Both failed to qualify as one of the top eight teams progressing to the second round, finishing ninth and 10th respectively in a high-calibre contest that featured 16 of the top 20 riders in the world.
The series now returns to Europe, with the next leg in St Gallen at the end of May.
“My lads showed that they thrive on that pressure”