Youth shines at the Christmas show

Cheshire riders carried the honours in The Young Show Jumper of the Year competition, as James Davenport and Jemima Daly produced the only double clear rounds to take the first two placings riding Florie Du Moulins and Bally Rose.

Just three of the nineteen starters managed initial clear rounds over Bob Ellis’s track, and it was James Davenport who set an unbeatable standard from first draw with Martin Dawes’ Florie Du Moulin, who finished clear in 41.06.

The seven-year-old by Jalisco was bought twelve months ago, and James took her to Reims this summer as his top horse.

“She has loads of scope, and is ultra careful.She makes a lot of ground up, so I just had to watch some of the distances, but she listens to you all the time, and I never had an anxious moment. It’s always difficult to jump first, but I was hopeful that we had done enough” said a delighted James.

Florie Du Moulin is now at the top end of Grade B, and may well probably be rested now, as James is due to spend some time with Jan Tops in January.

Second drawn Jemima Daly, who is trained by Keith Shore, also conjured a brilliant second clear from Bally Rose. The pair were well in contention running to the final fence, but they finished just in arrears in 42.14.

Last drawn Jessica Russell from Essex, produced the fastest round of all. The fast finishing Temple Navigator, a seven-year-old bred by Jimmy Small, broke the beam in 39.46, but the final rail fell to earn them a well-deserved third place.

The Young Show Jumper of the Year Competition results. 1, Florie Du Moulins (J Davenport); 2, Bally Rose (J Daly); 3, Temple Navigator (J Russell); 4, EMR Rebound (S Tobin); 5, Same Again (R Whitaker); 6, Libra K (R Lickley).