Moree Pony Club rider Gemma-Anne Ryan and Tex will be among the local combinations taking part in Sunday’s Zone 8 show jumping finale at Ashley. Image: Kerrianne Ryan.
Moree Pony Club will host the fourth and final round of the 2026 Pony Club NSW Zone 8 Show Jumping Championships this Sunday, bringing riders to Ashley for the deciding competition of the season-long series.
About 47 riders are expected at Full Gallop Farm for the September 13 event, where the final points will be collected before the overall Zone 8 championship standings are decided and presentations held at the end of the day.
The championship is an accumulative points competition, with riders required to compete at two or more scheduled Zone 8 events during the year to be eligible for the championship point score.
The series began at Bingara Pony Club on July 11 and 12, followed by Warialda on July 18 and 19 and Gravesend on August 15 and 16. Moree will now bring the four-round championship to a close.
Zone 8 includes pony clubs from Moree, Warialda, Bingara, Gravesend, Gurley, Garah-Boomi, Mungindi and Lightning Ridge, while riders from outside the zone can also compete at Sunday’s event.
For Moree Pony Club’s Kerrianne Ryan, one of the strengths of the competition is the range of riders it accommodates, from those enjoying a local day on horseback to competitors building the experience needed to progress further in the sport.
“For some, it’s just a fun day out, try and win a couple of jumps,” she said.
“But for others it’s quite serious.”
Kerrianne’s daughter, Moree Pony Club rider Gemma-Anne Ryan, will compete aboard Tex, a horse more accustomed to working cattle than clearing show jumping rails.
“He’s her dad’s stock horse and he’s usually used for mustering, but this weekend he’ll be jumping in a jumps competition,” Kerrianne said.
“Whether it gets its leg over that rail, we don’t know.”
Sunday’s program includes AM5, Grand Prix and Accumulator events, with competitive grades from A through E for junior, associate and senior riders, as well as a non-competitive F Grade open to all ages.
The grading means competitors of very different ages can find themselves riding at the same level.
“If you’re jumping D Grade and you’re a 25-year-old in the D Grade, but you’re also a seven-year-old in the D Grade, you’re competing together because of the ability,” Kerrianne said.
“I think that’s really cool.”
Competitors can ride a maximum of two horses competitively, potentially at different grades.
For those chasing the Zone 8 title, Sunday is their final opportunity to add to their championship points.
Awards include championship and reserve honours across the grades and embroidered championship rugs, along with the Ken Malone Memorial Trophy for the individual highest point score.
An overall highest point score perpetual trophy will be awarded for riders under 17, with junior and associate highest point score championship awards also among the presentations.
Once competition has finished and scoring is complete, presentations will be held for both the Moree Pony Club Round 4 competition and the overall 2026 Zone 8 Show Jumping Championships.
Kerrianne said the event also brought together riders and families with a shared interest in horses.
“It brings so many people from all around who have a passion for horses,” she said.
The course walk starts at 8am on Sunday, with competition beginning at 8.30am at Full Gallop Farm, 2 Boolooroo Street, Ashley.
The day is expected to finish at about 4pm, although organisers have cautioned the finishing time will depend on how competition progresses.
Spectators can attend free of charge, and Moree Pony Club will operate a canteen as a club fundraiser, with a sausage sizzle, lasagne and garlic bread, cakes and slices planned for the day.
