Taylor errs to ensure Clark is all smiles at Bramham

Under unexpected Sunday 
afternoon sunshine, Aoife Clark and Fenyas Elegance became Ireland’s first winners of the main event at the Equi-Trek Bramham International Horse Trials with Northallerton ace Wilson’s mount close behind in fourth.

But there was heartache for Banbury’s Izzy Taylor, who again saw her Bramham hopes dashed on the final day of competition.

Still boosted by Friday’s supreme dressage score of 28.1, Taylor and Orlando needed a clear round for victory as the last combination tackling yesterday’s showjumping.

Sitting second after cross-country, Clark and Fenyas Elegance had piled on the pressure by going clear, with Taylor admitting she was desperate to avoid a repeat of 2005 when she squandered the lead on the final day of the Bramham CCI three-star Under-25s competition on Flint Curtis.

History was to repeat itself nine years on as Taylor put one pole down to hand the title to Clark, one of just four of the last 10 combinations to go clear.

Another of those, William Fox-Pitt and the Yorkshire-owned Freddie Mac, were back in third, narrowly ahead of Northallerton’s Wilson and Annie Clover, who went clear over both Bramham’s cross-country and show jumping tests.

Huddersfield-born Oliver Townend was also clear on ODT Ghareeb over Saturday’s cross-country test, which he tackled four hours before dashing off to be best man at friend Peter Clough’s wedding at Ripley Castle.

Townend returned to Bramham yesterday but having two down in the showjumping demoted the former world No 1 to 15th.

The show belonged to Clark who had nothing, but warm words to say about Bramham 2014.

“I’m absolutely over the moon,” said 32-year-old Clark, whose Vaguely North finished 12th. “But I’m still in a bit of a shock to have won because I know Izzy and Orlando very rarely have a rail down. I certainly didn’t think that, even with our clear, we would end up in this spot. I’m thrilled with the mare.

“She’s a superstar and to win at Blenheim and here is amazing. I absolutely love the event here and the ground was amazing given the weather they’ve had.”

The weather caused chaos on cross-country Saturday with four fences eventually taken out by the day’s relentless downpour.

In muddy conditions, cars became stuck in the grass car parks and needed towing while wellington boots were the only sensible footwear option.

Bramham soldiered on stoically with Taylor managing to keep her lead after her clear cross-country round on Orlando, who lit up the trials on Thursday with a phenomenal dressage score.

That meant even picking up 14.8 cross-country time penalties could not budge Taylor from first place, but it proved costly when the rider put one fence down to the gasps of a large crowd in yesterday’s showjumping finale.

Despite again being denied at the finish, Taylor was looking on the bright side.

“I’m delighted with him,” she said. “To finish second, if you’d have told me that at the beginning of the week I’d have been thrilled, and he put in a good performance.”

As did Fox-Pitt’s inexperienced Freddie Mac, who climbed from 15th after dressage and seventh after cross-country into an eventual third. It meant a first and third for Fox-Pitt, whose Chilli Morning bagged the CIC three-star event. Freddie Mac is regarded as more of a long term project and Fox-Pitt beamed: “I couldn’t be happier with him and it’s been a big step up for him in his first CCI three-star. He’s a terrific horse for the future.”

He finished 1.2 points clear of fourth-placed Annie Clover and Wilson, whose One Two Many came a cropper on Saturday’s cross-country test when 13th after dressage.

Annie Clover was only 20th after dressage but stayed on her score of 49 to net fourth. Wilson said: “I’m thrilled with her and it’s fabulous to finish on her dressage mark and in the top 10 at my most favourite event.”

Annie Clover leapfrogged the likes of Pippa Funnell and Or Noir De La Loge and Sir Mark Todd’s NZB Campino, who sat third and fourth respectively after dressage but crashed out at cross-country. Todd’s Amacuzzi was fifth after dressage but had a calamitous cross-country and was withdrawn.

Belgium’s Karin Donckers and Lamicell Unique, second after dressage, finished sixth.

Yesterday began with the final showjumping stage of the Bishop Burton College CCI three-star Under-25s event. Victory went to Tom Jackson on Waltham Fiddlers Find who edged out Germany’s former Harrogate Grammar School student Niklas Bschorer, now based in Wiltshire, on Tom Tom Go 3.

Early indications were that numbers were only slightly down on last year’s near 60,000 across all four days, despite the adverse weather conditions.