There’s no room for any mistakes
Michael Blake, Chef d’equipe of the Ireland equestrian team, can’t abide being second best or any human error
In attendance are, from left, Mayor of Tuamgraney Mary Coffey, Jerry Sweetnam, father of Team Ireland rider Shane Sweetnam, Horse Sport Ireland chief executive officer Dennis Duggan, Team Ireland rider Max Wachman, Ireland team manager Michael Blake, Team Ireland rider Cian O'Connor and team vet Marcus Swail as the The Aga Khan trophy is brought to Tuamgraney, Clare, following Ireland's victory in the Longines FEI Jumping Nations Cup at the Dublin Horse Show. Photo: Sam Barnes/Sportsfile
The hamlet of Tuamgraney sits in the north east corner of Co Clare, near the shores of Lough Derg, less than a mile south of Scarriff.
Its centrepiece is a garden of remembrance dedicated to those from east Clare who participated in the struggle for independence between 1916 and 1921. Opened in 1952, it is beautifully maintained to this day. On Wednesday, it hosted a homecoming ceremony for Michael Blake, Chef d’equipe of the Ireland equestrian team that won the Dublin leg of the Nations Cup series a month ago.
