John Denis became the first huntsman of the County Galway Hunt (the Blazers) when it was organised in 1839 / Courtesy of Noel Mullins
The Castleboy Hunt Club, established in 1803, hunted the Galway foxes until 1839. At that time a new hunt committee founded the County Galway Hunt, better known today as the Galway Blazers. John Denis, a direct ancestor of the only lady huntsman of the Blazers, Molly O’Rourke, was appointed the first huntsman.
In years past, top Hollywood stars were often seen in Galway visiting the late film director and actor John Huston, a Joint-Master of the Blazers at the time. I have great personal memories of hunting with the Blazers over the years, starting as a child over sixty years ago. In later years I had the pleasure also of serving on the Blazers hunt committee. Few had transport in those early days, so we hacked to meets sometime five and often up to twenty miles from our hometown Loughrea, especially if the meet was Athenry or Turloughmore.
My school pal Pat O’Neill and I usually started hacking three horses each, early in the morning, riding the horse in the middle and leading the other two on each side. On the return journey home after the hunt in the dark we would be delighted to see the lights of an infrequent car. I was fortunate to hunt with some really notable Blazers’ huntsmen like Lancelot Smith, Paddy Pickersgill, and Captain Brian Fanshawe. But to me, Blazers huntsman Michael Dempsey always had the edge; not only was he a superb and fearless horseman, but he was quiet with hounds and on the hunting horn, except for blowing Gone Away or Gone to Ground. Superman was one of his best horses, but that could also have been Dempsey’s other name; he could pick his way across the country with deceptive ease.
I was reminded of those great times with the passing of Paddy Lynch last season, who managed the horses and Connemara ponies for film director and former Blazers Joint-Master John Huston when he lived at St. Clerans outside Craughwell. Paddy taught Huston’s children Tony and Hollywood actress Angelica how to ride. He was always light enough to ride the Connemara ponies so he produced both the horses and ponies. It was not unusual for us to see Huston’s house guests usually around Christmas—Hollywood stars like Marilyn Monroe, Humphrey Bogart, Cary Grant, Paul Newman, Montgomery Clift, and the writers John Steinbeck and Arthur Miller following the hunt by car. They would often ramble into Paddy Brogan’s Pub in Loughrea in the evening, and I remember Hollywood actor Richard Widmark and Huston’s friends enjoying their pints of Guinness in Paddy’s hostelry.
Today the chairman is Janet Coveney, and the Masters are Michael Dempsey, Liam Clancy, Vincent Shields, Dr. Rose Dempsey, Michael McDonagh, and David McCarty. The huntsman is Tom Dempsey, son of senior Master Michael Dempsey, and the professional whipper-in is Nathan O’Connor from Duhallow country. There are three Field Masters: Willie Leahy (uncle of Tony Leahy, North America’s newly-elected MFHA president), Kevin Dempsey, and Johnny Geoghegan.
Hunts need team players, and the Blazers certainly have a trusted team member in local farmer Martin Moran who organises this meet every year, and was, as ever, mounted on his smashing grey Irish Draught hunter. In the field from Canada were Eleanor Lauri and husband Don, and Sherry Scott Flack who hunts in the USA with Tony Leahy’s Fox River Valley Hunt (IL).
(l-r) Galway Blazers Masters Michael McDonagh, David McCarthy, Liam Clancy, Vincent Sheils, Michael and Dr. Rose Dempsey; whipper in Nathan OConnor; huntsman Tom Dempsey at Craughwell meet. / Noel Mullins photo
The Blazers followers still have a reputation worldwide for producing hunters, show jumpers, and eventers, with some familiar producers out hunting on the day at Craughwell, like local producer Tom McNamara who supplies hirelings and horses for sale to many parts of the world. His daughter Maria is a multiple winner at the Dublin Horse Show, and seems to get any horse to hunt side saddle. Johnny Geoghegan is not only Field Master but supplies many of the hirelings to the adjacent hunts from his Lisnagranchy Stud. Willie Leahy, so long in the business, probably needs no introduction. Joint-Master Michael McDonagh’s sons Tim and Paddy supply customers in Ireland and the UK, and recently sent a show jumper to Mexico. Fellow Joint-Master David McCarty usually has both hunters and show jumpers available. Another regular hunt follower supplying horses is Maeve Carty of Birchill Stables who hunts and shows both side saddle and astride, and is a regular on the show circuit. She is currently breaking the Class 1 Registered Irish Draught stallion Cappa Stud Amadeus who was Reserve Champion stallion at the Dublin Horse Show this year. They have wonderful facilities for boarding and pre-sales, including a sand gallop and derby bank for schooling.
The first draw was up the Ballymana road at Morans where the bitches found a fox almost straight away. They hunted well in the covert but the occupant was not prepared to leave and was marked to ground. Ten-year-old Dean Niland, James Duggan, and Ian Moloney were to the fore as hounds moved on to Brian Geoghegan’s where they found again. This time the fox decided to make for open country, but when he discovered a flock of sheep he cutely ran through the flock and foiled the scent so the pack was unable to pick him up again. However, there was plenty of excitement as hounds entered the small covert on the Loughrea to Galway road. This fox made for Seafin a famous landmark where Anthony Daly was hanged from the shafts of a cart in 1820 for breaking into a house, and the marks of the shafts are still there to this day! The fox ran in a circle and back toward the main road into the ruins of the fifteenth century Burke Tower of Ballylin Castle. Hounds guarded the main entrance, while the fox contemplated his plan, deciding to bolt from a rear door. Whipper-in Nathan O’Connor, who displays all the skills of an experienced huntsman, viewed him away before calling hounds on. Scent faded, however, so they left him after a leisurely run.
The covert at Brucken held, and the pack had a crisp run in a right-handed circle and marked to ground again. There was great music in the wood at Kilquaine with two brace on the move. One brace left but hounds kept on the hunted fox, with the huntsman on one side of the covert and the whipper-in on the other side. This fox left the covert a few times but returned, while his partner who had a beautifully marked coat passed close by me. As darkness fell, they left him for another day.
Hunt organiser Martin Moran treated the followers to afternoon tea at the end of yet another perfect day with the Blazers.
Posted February 5, 2017
Noel Mullins is a lifelong foxhunter and sporting photo/journalist. Click to visit his website and view his books and articles.