Scott Brash leads Britain to win Dublin Nations Cup
Britain won the Furusiyya FEI Nations Cup today at the Discover Ireland Dublin Horse Show.
Victory in the Aga Khan Trophy secured Britain 3rd place overall in Europe division 1 of the Nations Cup and ensured qualification for the final in Barcelona (26-29 September).
“We came here under pressure as we haven’t had the best year in Nations Cups, but when they come under pressure these guys are fantastic,” said British chef d’equipe Rob Hoekstra.
Scott Brash spearheaded Britain’s success with 2 fantastic clears on Hello Sanctos.
“He’s been fantastic the last 6 or 7 shows — he’s been clear all the way since London [GCT show, pictured],” said Scott.
Nick Skelton (Big Star) and Ben Maher (Cella) each contributed a 4-fault round and a clear. Robert Smith and Voila had 2 fences down in each round to be the discard score.
The Netherlands finished 2nd, while Ireland and the USA tied for 3rd.
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“We’re disappointed,” said Irish chef d’equipe Robert Splaine. “We wanted to win it for the crowd. They fought hard, but it just didn’t happen on the day. But Britain needed a big result and fair play to them.”
Germany and Spain finish bottom of the overall rankings in Europe division 1. Germany will miss the Nations Cup final, but Spain are allowed to take part as host nation.
Switzerland topped the standings, with France 2nd, Britain 3rd, the Netherlands 4th, Ireland 5th and the Ukraine 6th.
Full report on showjumping and showing from Dublin in H&H magazine next week, out Thursday, 15 August.
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Pippa is a true eventing geek and has been H&H’s eventing editor since 2005. She has first-hand experience of competing up to British Eventing intermediate and international CCI2*-L level, and has worked in the industry on a top event yard. Pippa enjoys nothing more than immersing herself in the sport at the highest level, reporting from the five-stars and international championships, including the Olympics.