SPORT// EQUESTRIANISM
The road to Windsor:
face as she exited the arena said it all;
we were all so proud of her despite the
8 faults.
Last to compete for the team was
Amelia on Welton Tarantella or Daisy;
unenviable pressure now rested on the
duo to go clear. The first few fences
were going well, we watched with
baited breath, we knew they could do it.
However, fence 4, a seemingly innocent
fence, proved to be the downfall of yet
another team member. Again, a light
tap was all it needed – luck really wasn’t
on our side. Amelia went on to jump the
rest of the course with such poise – it
really was a pity that she had gained the
4 faults.
With the best three scores counting and
a total of 8 faults we were unfortunately
out of contention this time, finishing
17th. The girls, without exception,
rode and conducted themselves well
throughout – Pocklington should indeed
be proud of them!
The equestrian team has qualified for
the Royal Windsor Horse Show in
May, a huge achievement in the face of
tough competition from schools across
the north. This prestigious event is held
annually in Windsor Home Park, to the
eastern side of Windsor Castle.
The qualifying event at Epworth,
Lincolnshire, attracted a large
competitive field, as it was one of the
few which were accessible for northern-
based schools.
The 90cm team of Georgina Elliott,
Hattie Thompson, Bea Nicholson and
Mimi Jackson really felt the pressure
as they entered the ring, especially as
Mimi and Bea are on relatively new
partnerships with their horses.
They all rode magnificently to secure
a final team score of zero faults with
only the time being the barrier between
qualification or not! Pocklington were in
the lead right up to the last few schools;
there really could not have been a more
nail-biting finish to the end of the class.
Lady Manners and Scarborough
College were last to go and everyone
knew that they were capable of ending
the Pocklington dream. Both schools
went clear so in the end, it all came
down to time. Lady Manners had
been quick and they achieved a much-
deserved first place but who would be
second?
Pocklington pipped their rivals to
clinch second place by 0.19 seconds,
a tiny margin over three rounds.
The team were ecstatic about their
achievement and with the dream now
a reality, excitement about competing
in the Royal Windsor Horse Show has
already begun to build!
Miss
Bracken,
Deputy
Head
Pocklington School and teacher
i/c equestrian said: “This is a huge
accomplishment for the girls and we are all very
proud of their achievement. We wish them all
the very best as they begin to prepare both horse
and rider for such a grand stage.”
NSEA COUNTY
SHOWJUMPING
CHAMPIONSHIPS
BURY FARM
Pocklington School’s equestrian team experienced the highs
and lows of national competition in the finals of the National
Schools Equestrian Association’s County Showjumping
Championships, held at Bury Farm, Buckinghamshire
The competition got off to an excellent start when Harriet
Hodge completed a lovely clear round on the Friday evening
in the 70 cm ‘warm up’ class. All boded well for Saturday and
the start of the main competition.
High hopes rested on riders Harriet, the East Yorkshire
Individual 70cm Champion, Emma Forsyth in the 90 cm class
and Hattie Thompson in the 1m class.
THE POCKLINGTONIAN
65