Following a two-year absence from the calendar, the Angus Show committee will face an uphill struggle if they want to continue running their light horse classes a week apart from their main agricultural show event.
Entries were low across the board and, with no general public in evidence, there was little sense of any occasion at the Brechin Castle show field.
The embossed wording ‘Angus Show’ on the equestrian rosettes was ultimately the only clue the gathering had any connection to what was once a leading county event.
Nonetheless, some quality horses were forward for competition, with numbers on the field helped along the way by the cancellation of the Fife Hunt Pony Club’s one-day-event, which had been due to take place the same day at nearby Auchlishie.
Having already caught the eye of two section judges during early competition, Rebecca Copland’s coloured cob mare Dolly XIII rose through the overall championship to stand as show supreme.
“As a traditional horse, she has everything you would look for,” explained Rothienorman’s Mary Sivewright, who had first taken the mare as coloured champion before voting in her favour for the supreme.
“She’s so scopey in her canter and she really just blew me away.”
It is not the first time Dolly XIII has achieved a supreme accolade under Mary’s watchful eye on this show site, after she stood reserve supreme at the Brechin Spring.
She was also supreme champion of the Ingliston Grand Slam on an earlier outing this year.
“She’s a really good mover,” agreed another of the overall judges, Martyn Adams from Fyvie.
“She’s mannerly, nicely put together and went really sweetly.”
The consensus from all the section judges was to bring Victoria Mylius and Rosalind Low’s yearling pony Castafiore Emerald forward to stand reserve overall for Angus 2014.
“He might still be a little immature and have a wee bit yet to go, but he’s very pretty, is a nice mover and will certainly have his day in years to come,” said Martyn.
Emerald, a son of Strinedale Matador, was home-bred out of the ladies’ renowned show mare Lyndrose Tiny Dancer.