Paul Darragh: Paul Darragh, who died last Monday aged 51, was one of the leading Irish showjumpers of his generation.
He has been described in tributes by fellow showjumpers as a true team player, a born motivator, a brilliant rider, and a fantastic competitor. Capt Con Power said: "You could never be sure you had won an event until Darragh had jumped."
During his 35-year career he won four Junior European medals; took the Hickstead Derby, was first in 10 major international grand prix events, crowned Irish champion of 1989 and twice took the League title. He was capped more than 50 times on Irish teams and with them shared the winners podium 10 times. He also won the accolade of "World Speed Champion" for his exploits with the gelding P.J. Carroll, on whom he won more than 100 individual classes.
It is often said that none of that would have happened but for a hole in the hedge of the home of his parents, Austin and Terry Darragh, in Killiney, Co Dublin, in the early 1960s. Alice-in-Wonderland-style, he made his way into the magic world of ponies and horses in a neighbour's riding school.
Having convinced his parents that this was the life for him, he took lessons with the great Iris Kellett and went on to start a winning career with a pony named Peggie Sue. His first international outing came in 1969 when he helped the Irish side to its first ever junior European medal as he took silver with Errigal. In 1970 he was on the bronze medal team and the following year at Hickstead he took individual silver once more and with Diana Conolly-Carew's Woodpecker II he joined Charlie Curtis, Marilyn Dawson and Kevin Barry in winning team gold.
Training sessions with Poland's Colonel Zgorelski and Britain's Harvey Smith followed until he was united with Iris Kellett's Pele for a 1975 victory in the Hickstead Derby. A marching band paraded him home to his stables at Kill on that occasion.
Next came his famous partnership with Jimmy Flynn's fiery mare Heather Honey. With her he became part of the most talented team Ireland ever fielded - himself, Eddie Macken, Capt Con Power and James Kernan. These four became as brothers as they scored three Aga Khan wins in a row (1977-1979), and have remained so.
Eddie Macken and Darragh sparked off each other in often hilarious fashion. Once, after a disagreement, Darragh, in a moment of remorse, went to Macken's favourite pub in Kells, rang Macken and said: "I've bought you a drink, come on down". Macken did and the friendship was cemented once more.
After flying back from Canada for the funeral, Macken said: "He was a strong team member. You could always depend on him giving of his very best and he was brilliant at motivating us all to do the same."
Another rider, James Kernan, said: "If Paul could do you a turn at all he would do it and that was true of his team effort as well. Many times I saw him put the team first when he might have had a chance of winning an early class at a show. No, his horse was saved for the cup which was foremost in his mind."
In competition he was an all- rounder. As Con Power notes: "It did not matter whether it was a speed class or a grand prix or the puissance, he went at it with the same style and determination."
In the early 1980s Darragh had his shot at the puissance wall on the giant-sized King of Diamonds gelding, Carrolls Young Diamond. It won for him at Olympia and Aachen and was second in Milan. Because of the horse's size, Darragh's small stature looked all the more diminutive as he approached the big wall. This fact may have solidified the name by which he was affectionately known among the other riders - "Little P".
Most of his best grand prix wins came in the late 1980s and 1990s. With the less than brilliant Trigger he was a long shot in the Dublin Grand Prix of 1987 but defied the odds to come out a popular winner. Killilea then brought consecutive big wins at Franckfurt, London and Oslo. Cera, owned by his pupil, HRH Princess Haya of Jordan, was to score for him at Barcelona, Brussels and Seville, where he won the World Cup qualifier.
Also owned by Princess Haya, the nimble but headstrong mare Scandal gave him one of his most memorable moments as his international career was drawing to a close. It was 1997 and back where it all began in the Aga Khan at the RDS. Ireland was in a tight contest and the cup was won only when Paul delivered a hair-raising and unforgettable double clear. Into that effort he poured all the skill and determination that was his hallmark. He lived among the greats and matched their prowess.
Paul Darragh: showjumper, born April 28th, 1953, died January 3rd, 2005.