Samsung Super League - Next Stop is Dublin

Germany's Alois Pollmann-Schweckhorst at Hickstead (GBR)

As the 2005 Samsung Super League series moves to Dublin, Ireland next Friday the home side lie last on the leaderboard despite a gallant
effort in Hickstead last week.

However the Dutch are only 0.5 points ahead of them while the Belgians have just a single-point advantage, so much could change after this
sixth leg of the series which is drawing to an exciting climax.

Following last Friday's bruising encounter at the British fixture it is the Germans who hold pole position, and they are likely to prove formidable opponents once again this week as exactly the same squad has been called into action. Ulrich Kirchhoff, Thomas Muhlbauer, Alois Pollmann-Schweckhorst and Rene Tebbel showed great resolve when refusing to be intimidated by the tough Hickstead track and should find the Dublin arena to their liking.

In an unusual move, course-designer Bob Ellis lowered two fences in the second round last Friday when the yielding ground conditions and big, difficult obstacles created a competition that was a thrill-a-minute for the spectators but a little too exciting for some of the competitors. The French withdrew after the elimination of their first runner Philippe Rozier and a cricket score for new recruit Nathalie Paillot, but their fellow-countryman Frederic Cottier will be designing the international tracks at this week's show so perhaps they will be feeling more at home.

Cottier, 51 years old and from Neuilly sur Seine, has an interesting curriculum vitae. French national show jumping champion in 1980 he competed on 25 winning nations' cup teams and at both the Los Angeles and Seoul Olympic Games. He is also a legal expert on equestrian matters for the Versailles Appeal Court, the Vice Mayor of Poingy la Foret - a town of about 1,000 inhabitants 50km south of Paris - an author and the father of two children. Mons. Cott”\Ãw€ë ier's portfolio suggests then that multi-tasking is not solely the prerogative of the fairer sex.

Paillot and Rozier step bravely out again this week to fly the flag along with Pierre Jarry, Stefan Lafouge and Jean-Marc Nicolas but French Chef d'Equipe, Jean-Maurice Bonneau, will be expecting greater things. Lying fifth going into this round, there is a deficit of 10.5 points between France and Germany at the top of the order.

The USA lies second, just 2.5 points behind the leaders, and they have had to change their line-up after McLain Ward broke his collarbone last Friday. The penultimate double of Hickstead ditches caused plenty of heart-stopping moments and Wards crashing fall there gives Jeffrey Welles an opportunity to show what he can do when he steps into the breach this Friday alongside Laura Kraut, Beezie Madden and Kimberly Prince. Defeated by only one fault last week, the Americans will be giving the Germans plenty to think about again this time out.

Lying third on the leaderboard, five points adrift of the USA, Britain fields an almost all-Whitaker line-up with brothers Michael and John joined by John's son Robert while Nick Skelton and William Funnell have also been selected. There is always great rivalry between the Irish and British at Dublin Horse Show - the home team always likes to win but, even if they don't, the Irish will want to finish ahead of the British no matter what happens.

The Swiss send their Hickstead side out again. Lying fourth on the league table, they are only 0.5 points behind the British, but Chef d'Equipe Rolf Theiler will be looking for a better end-result than the one he got last week when they finished with a colossal 52 faults on the board after Sprunger fell victim to the dreaded ditches. Despite the presence of plenty more ditches and water at Dublin, Sprunger has been cal”\Ãw€ë led up again alongside Beat Mandli, Niklaus Schurtenberger and Pius Schwizer.

With Jos Lansink and Gregory Wathelet lining out this week the Belgian side looks very strong indeed. Lansink and his lovely grey stallion Cumano came close to an individual medal on the final day of the European Championships in San Patrignano just two weeks ago while Wathelet was in fine form at last weekend's big fixture in La Coruna, Spain. Jean-Claude Vangeenberghe produced one of the rare clear rounds at Hickstead last Friday and with Dirk Demeersman and Philippe Le Jeune also on call Belgian Chef d'Equipe Lucien Somers is in a better position than he has been in for a long time.

The Dutch send just four riders but they too are looking confident. Bolstered by their superb team bronze in Italy they comfortably slotted into third spot at the Samsung Super League clash last week and, armed with Mathijs Van Asten who jumped a clear and eight-fault round at Hickstead and Harrie Smolders who picked up just six faults, they should be a force to be reckoned with as Gerco and Wim Schroder reinforce the team effort.

The stronger the Dutch and Belgians look, the harder it is for the Irish. They've only got three chances left to show that they deserve their place amongst the best eight teams in the world. The absence of Jessica Kurten has left a huge gap in the defences and although Cian O'Connor and Waterford Crystal produced a first-round clear last week the Irish know they cannot rely on them alone to keep their hopes alive. Billy Twomey was the hero of the day when claiming the honours on home soil last summer but his top horse, the stallion Luidam, is only back after another long injury break and is a doubtful nations'
cup starter. Twomey may ride the mare Anastasia instead while Chef d'Equipe Eamonn Rice has Harry Marshall, Clem McMahon and Capt Sha”\Ãw€ë ne
Carey also available to him.

Failte is the Irish word for welcome and the Irish tourism board, Failte Ireland, is sponsoring the Dublin fixture again this year but while the welcome will be a big one over the first two days of the show it will melt away at 15.00hrs on Friday afternoon when the gloves will be off as the Irish battle to stay in the premier league of international show jumping.

SAMSUNG SUPER LEAGUE LEADERBOARD (after Round 5 in Hickstead):
1. Germany - 31
2. USA - 28.5
3. Great Britain - 23.5
4. Switzerland - 23.0
5. France - 20.5
6. Belgium - 12.5
7. The Netherlands - 12.0
8. Ireland - 11.5.