Eventing: National squad contenders under spotlight

Fancied Combo: Samantha Felton and Ricker Ridge Pico Boo during last year's Adelaide C1C3*. Photo/Libby Law Photography

Oceania Senior and Young Rider eventing training squad members will have their final opportunity to impress the national selectors at this weekend's Central Districts Horse Trials near Foxton.

The trials are the last short format event of the autumn eventing season and will be held on the McKelvie family property, Pukemarama Farm.

New Zealand's Oceania teams will be named before the NRM Taupo Three-Day Event from May 12-14.

The Oceania Championships, formerly known as the Trans-Tasman, will take place at the Melbourne Three-day Event at Werribee Park on Australian Queen's Birthday weekend, June 9-12.

It will be the first time both Senior and Young Rider teams have been sent away together, although Australia brought both teams to the Oceania Championships, which are contested biennially in alternate countries, to Taupo in 2015.

This weekend's Norwood Farm Machinery CIC3* class has attracted 17 entrants, including six of the eight long-listed Senior Riders.

Virginia Thompson is already in Australia with Star Nouveau, and competed at the Australian Eventing Championships at Camden, NSW, last weekend, and Clarke Johnstone has elected not to start Balmoral Sensation, trying to give "Richie" a light season following his big 2016 UK and Olympic year.

Jock Paget, now based near Taupo, will have his second start back in New Zealand on Angus Blue, having won their first start at 2* level in Hastings a fortnight ago.

He will have strong competition from Samantha Felton, the National Eventing Champion, who has two horses named in the squad, Ricker Ridge Escada, her national title ride, and Ricker Ridge Pico Boo, on whom she was third in the Adelaide CIC3* last year.

The experienced Donna Edwards-Smith also has two horses in the squad, the 2016 National Eventing Champion and crowd favourite DSE Mr Hokey Pokey, and DSE Tangolooma, who is full of running after time out with injury.

Cantabrian and former international Emily Cammock has Shaw Lee up from the South Island, fresh from a win in the CIC3* at McLeans Island, Christchurch, two weeks ago.

Andrew Daines and Spring Panorama are another combo to have Australian experience, having contested the Adelaide CCI4* last year, and they are showing the benefit of that this season, placing third in the national title class at Kihikihi.

Sadly for Sarah Dalziell-Clout, Benrose Super Star has been withdrawn because of injury.

Most of the Young Rider squad are entered in the CIC2* class, although Renee Falkner is contesting the 3* on Rubinstar HH.

She had the misfortune to be eliminated for missing a compulsory passage in the 3* cross-country at Kihikihi, having ridden the first part of the course superbly prior to being pulled up, so will be trying to emulate that form again.

The National Young Rider Champion and leader of the Mitavite Young Rider series, Abigail Long on the seasoned Enzo, formerly ridden by Annabel Wigley, and last year's winner of the title and the series, Jackson Bovill on Visionnaire, who has also competed at 3* level this season, look assured of places in the team, but nothing is certain in the world of horses.

Also hoping to make the Young Rider team are Greer Caddigan on Gymnastik Showdown, last year's Junior Rider Champions, Kimberley Rear on Delta Legacy, and Vicky Browne-Cole on Eli.

They are all training at Tielcey Park near Palmerston North this week, in preparation for this final selection trial.

Course designer John Holmes is no stranger to high profile events, having designed and built the tracks at both Pukemarama and Flaxmere for some years.

He worked alongside John Nicholson when the Horse of the Year cross-country took place at Flaxmere, so has honed his skills with the best in the business.

This weekend's event is the penultimate competition in the national series, all of which, apart from the Super League, culminate in Taupo.

The Super League has been extended to include the Melbourne Three-day Event as the Oceania team will not start in the NRM CCI3* at Taupo.

A short format CIC3* is being staged to give the team their final run.