{"id":3632,"date":"2026-10-23T21:33:18","date_gmt":"2026-10-23T20:33:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/branches.pcuk.org\/flamstead\/?post_type=news&p=3632"},"modified":"2026-10-29T16:54:07","modified_gmt":"2026-10-29T16:54:07","slug":"awards-night","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/branches.pcuk.org\/flamstead\/news\/awards-night\/","title":{"rendered":"Awards Night 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n
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Flamstead Pony Club Awards Night 2026<\/h1>\n

Welcome to this year\u2019s Awards \u2013 in recognition of our members and their ponies who have represented Flamstead so wonderfully throughout the year at a variety of Pony Club competitions.<\/p>\n

Tests Passed & National Championships Qualifiers<\/h2>\n

Everyone who passed a test in the last 12 months received a prize. Also, everyone who qualified for the National Championships was awarded a badge.<\/p>\n

Pony of The Year<\/h2>\n

As voted by our members.<\/p>\n

Elvis Macfarlane: Originally mum Helen’s pony, this delightful dun has stepped up yet again this year and has been a wonderful Pony Club pony in lots of arenas.<\/p>\n

Hermione McNamara: A joy to ride, giving her absolute best on every occasion with any rider whether it’s Games, flatwork, SJ or XC.<\/p>\n

Smurf Scriven: Stunning Smurf is the king of PC dressage and eventing. Where does Sienna keep all those sashes?!<\/p>\n

Dusty Afolami: A super cool dude with the hair style to match, Dusty is a genuine pony who excels in multiple fields, hunting, SJ and XC.<\/p>\n

Storm McNamara: A cross country machine of a pony with a smart dressage test in him too – any rider’s dream PC pony.<\/p>\n

Sophie Neale: Supermodel Sophie is famous from her regular appearances on PCUK marketing materials and rightly so – this beautiful mare excels at the very top of Pony Club in Eventing, SJ and Dressage.<\/p>\n

Panda Hudgell: The ultimate fun pony club pony, speedy when asked, but also safe and sane for everything, from hedge hopping at Gorhambury to pony swaps at camp, or zooming round a SJ course, she does it all.<\/p>\n

Playboy Latham: This feisty little bay is a veteran of FPC who has introduced a succession of kids to the joy of Pony Club at Flamstead.<\/p>\n

WINNER: PANDA HUDGELL<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Sammy\u2019s Shield<\/h2>\n

Rising Stars Pony Sammy\u2019s Shield is an award for Rising Stars ponies that consistently look after their riders, across a range of disciplines. This year the short list is:<\/p>\n

Tilly Thomas – Lovely Tilly has taken Mia from minicamp to main and proved herself to be a lovely all-rounder with wins in dressage and eventing. She is a firm favourite at rallies and camps.<\/p>\n

Nigel McNamara – Nigel is always a solid dependable pony at camps and rallies. He also dabbles in a bit of showjumping and tetrathlon, always looking after his little riders.<\/p>\n

Roo Vigor – Roo is a sweet pony who excels in introducing her riders to pony club, proving safe and sensible at camp, rallies and competitions.<\/p>\n

Hippi Afolami – A little pony with a super jump! Hippi has guided novice riders through minicamp and introduced them to main camp, he has a go at everything.<\/p>\n

Strawberry Phillips – Proving that rising stars ponies do not need to be tiny! Strawberry remains the perfect PC “starter pony”, she is unflappable at camp and rallies but has a neat turn of speed when her riders are ready to do more.<\/p>\n

Peter Pan Grimston-Stewart \u2013 We are so sorry to learn of the passing of this gorgeous pony, who introduced so many kids, including Harriet most recently to pony club.<\/p>\n

WINNER: ROO VIGOR<\/p>\n

Eventing Senior<\/h2>\n

Erin – Another very successful year eventing for Erin and Sophie, who were part of the winning team to represent Flamstead at Bishop Burton Festival of Youth in the PC110<\/p>\n

Liv – Olivia and Moose have gone from strength to strength and were part of the elite team at PC110 at Bishop Burton<\/p>\n

Josie – Josie represented us at Areas and then the National Champs in the Chairman’s Cup, and then went on to be part of the PC110 winning team at Bishop Burton<\/p>\n

Jemima H – Jemima qualified at areas and represented Flamstead in the 90cm class at National Champs.<\/p>\n

WINNER: JOSIE REID<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Eventing Junior<\/h2>\n

Ciara –\u00a0Ciara and Raffy rode fantastic rounds at areas and the Regional Champs to finish 4th individually and help the team secure 2nd place.<\/p>\n

Hugo – Hugo and new pony Molly gelled quickly to do well individually and be valuable team members to the 70cm team which went to the Regional Champs and finished 2nd.<\/p>\n

Frank – Frank and Roy successfully qualified for the Regional Champs after areas and were part of the 70cm team.<\/p>\n

Violet – Violet and Hugo rode some foot perfect rounds to come 3rd individually at Regional Champs and helped their team achieve 2nd place.<\/p>\n

Florence – Florence rode a lovely double clear at the Regional Champs in the 80 team to help them finish 5th overall.<\/p>\n

Molly D – Molly also made up part of the 80cm team at Regionals and has been lovely to see her doing more eventing this year.<\/p>\n

Sienna – Sienna and Smurf rode lovely rounds as part of the 80cm team at Regional Champs, securing 5th individually too.<\/p>\n

Zoe – Zoe showed great horsemanship skills when she took Storm, whom she had only ridden a couple of times, to areas and then to Regionals, securing a double clear and achieving 6th individually and being part of the 80cm team.<\/p>\n

WINNER: VIOLET GRIMSTON<\/p>\n

Show Jumping Senior<\/h2>\n

Riders considered and shortlisted throughout the 90 – 110 classes who compete regularly for Flamstead including at the Spring Festival qualifier & Championships, Area Qualifier & National Championships are as follows.<\/p>\n

90cm section – Amelie Langan, Jemima Martin, Jemima Hunnisett, Chloe Issott, Penny Reid and Zoe Hooper<\/p>\n

100cm section – Jess Rainbow, Molly Batisovszky, Erin Neale, Millie Monico, Josie Reid<\/p>\n

110cm section – riders to be considered at this height are Maya Thon (v close 2nd at Spring Festival Qualifier and 2nd at the Spring Festival Final), Erin Neale (1st in the 110 qualifier and 3rd at Area Showjumping championships), Millie Monico, Josie Reid and Jess Rainbow.<\/p>\n

WINNER: MAYA THON & ERIN NEALE<\/p>\n

Show Jumping Junior<\/h2>\n

We had a lot of members moving on up into this category this year with the next 12 months likely to be very promising as they gain experience at this height. Some of our more established members at this height remained very dominant.<\/p>\n

Hugo Hooper – A super qualification for Spring Festival on Tom, as well as Regionals on the relatively inexperienced Molly. The next 12 months will be exciting for this combination.<\/p>\n

Chloe Issott – Has had some super results with Freckles and was well placed in the 80cm Winter points league.<\/p>\n

Nicole Issott – Finished well in the Winter league on the relatively inexperienced Lupin and qualified for the Spring Festival at 70cm.<\/p>\n

Jemima Hunnisett – puts in a consistent quick clear at 80cm and finished with a well-deserved top 10 placing in the Winter Points League.<\/p>\n

Zoe Hooper – Won the 70cm and 80cm Winter Points League and qualified for Spring Festival. Zoe and Tom are almost unbeatable on their day.<\/p>\n

WINNER: ZOE HOOPER<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Show Jumping Mini<\/h2>\n

The Flamstead 50cm and 60cm teams this year remained the teams to beat at branch competitions with some super competitive riding. This list also celebrates some riders making their entry into competition and gaining in confidence over the course of the year.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Jess Hudgell – Jess and lovely Panda put in consistently quick clears at 50 and 60cm this year, rewarded with an excellent and close fought 2nd in the 60cm Winter Points League.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Hugo Hooper – Hugo has had a fantastic year on not one, but three ponies! Consistently quick and competitive he won the 60cm winter points league and was placed in the 50cm League.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Euan Hamilton – Another consistently fast rider, Euan won the 50cm Winter points league by a significant margin and was well placed in the 60cm.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Charlotte Coker – Charlotte has had some fantastic results at 40 and 50cm, gaining in confidence and also in speed as the year has gone on with placings in both heights at Interbranch.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Holly Cathcart – Holly has made huge improvements at 50 and 60cm this year, culminating in an excellent show at Interbranch.<\/p>\n

WINNER: EUAN HAMILTON<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Team of the Year<\/h2>\n

Shortlisted are: National Champs Quiz Team (Chloe, Zoe, Hugo, Nicole, Amelie & Violet); Regional Champs 70 Eventers (Hugo, Frank, Violet & Ciara); National Champs Bishop Burton 110 Eventers (Erin, Liv & Josie), Intermediate Dressage (Zoe, Sienna, Megan & Erin)<\/p>\n

WINNER: PC110 EVENTING<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Mini Dressage & Prix Caprilli<\/h2>\n

We are so pleased to see our younger members starting out on their dressage and Prix Caprilli journey.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/strong> and her lovely little pony Tilly have put in some fabulous online dressage tests over the winter. They came an epic 2nd in the Area 12 dressage league as a result of their consistent effort.<\/p>\n

Rose<\/strong> riding Pebbles delighted us with a beautiful dressage test to take the win (70%) in the walk trot and 40 cm classes at the Area 12 ODE Championships. Pebbles is known for his superfast showjumping lines, so it was lovely to see him ridden so accurately on the flat.<\/p>\n

Penelope V<\/strong> produced a lovely walk trot test to come 2nd (67.25%) in the walk trot dressage class at the Area 12 ODE Championships.<\/p>\n

WINNER: MIA THOMAS<\/p>\n

Junior Dressage<\/h2>\n

Frank<\/strong> rode 2 outstanding tests at the Area 12 dressage qualifiers to finish 2nd in both the PC70 and PC80, also riding very well at the Regional Championships. Frank has been riding consistently impressive tests all winter in the online dressage series, coming 2nd in the Area 12 winter dressage league in both the PC70 and PC80.<\/p>\n

Ciara<\/strong> rode 2 strong tests at the Area 12 Qualifier, coming 4th and 6th in the PC70 and PC80, and followed up with some great test scores at the Regional Championships, placing 7th in both the PC70 and PC80.<\/p>\n

Araiya<\/strong> rode 2 stunning tests at the Regional Championships to finish an amazing 2nd and 5th across the PC70 and PC80. We are beyond proud of how the partnership has developed over the years, culminating in such a strong finish at the Regionals.<\/p>\n

Violet<\/strong> rode 2 fabulous tests at the Area 12 Qualifier to finish 3rd and 4th in the PC70 and PC80. Violet has been developing her dressage on both Monty and Hugo, and both ponies have been showing great progress.<\/p>\n

WINNER: FRANK HAMILTON<\/p>\n

Senior Dressage<\/h2>\n

Erin<\/strong> was part of the winning Intermediate team at the Area 12 Qualifiers, making her way to the Pony Club National Championships again in the Intermediate dressage. Erin and her pony always look the part and produce a beautiful test together.<\/p>\n

Megan<\/strong> was part of the winning Intermediate team at the Area 12 Qualifiers, making her way to the Pony Club National Championships again in the Intermediate dressage, and also as an individual in the Open section. Megan adores Betty and has worked consistently to develop the partnership, earning the success she had in coming 3rd at the Qualifier.<\/p>\n

Zoe<\/strong> was given a wonderful opportunity to borrow the beautiful Smurf, generously lent by Sienna, at the Pony Club National Championships, which allowed the branch to progress to the finals as a team in the Intermediate section. Zoe has since returned at the Spring Festival Qualifier on her pony Tom to produce 2 fantastic tests and qualified as part of the winning Intermediate team for the Finals in 2027.<\/p>\n

Sienna<\/strong> wows again and again. She qualified for the National Championships in both the Intermediate and Novice at the Area 12 Qualifier, winning both classes. Success continued at the Spring Festival Qualifier, with a win and individual qualification in the Novice, and a win as part of the Intermediate team to qualify for the Spring Festival Finals. Always a top contender in any arena.<\/p>\n

Penny<\/strong> has produced delightful tests since her fab 4th place in the Novice section at the Area 12 Qualifier and rode a beautiful test as part of the winning Intermediate team, qualifying for the Spring Festival Finals in 2027. It has been a pleasure to see the partnership develop so successfully.<\/p>\n

WINNER: SIENNA SCRIVEN<\/p>\n

Horse and Pony Care<\/h2>\n

Zoe<\/strong> has been a member of many national quiz and horsemanship National Championships qualifying teams over the years. She shows great knowledge and skill, and is equally keen to share it, running quiz nights through the year for any willing members.<\/p>\n

Chloe<\/strong> is often mentioned as the best team member on the score sheets at any qualifier or championship. She has been a very knowledgeable member of many national quiz and horsemanship National Championships qualifying teams over the years.<\/p>\n

Amelie<\/strong> has been a dedicated and enthusiastic addition to the team. Her help at the National Champs this summer was pivotal to team morale, and she kept learning new skills and knowledge right through the final stages of the competition. We love the passion she shows for improving her knowledge of all thing\u2019s horsemanship, and the positive impact she has had on the team spirit.<\/p>\n

WINNER: AMELIE MORRIS<\/p>\n

Mounted Games Most Improved<\/h2>\n

Rory<\/strong> has gone from strength to strength this season improving his accuracy and speed across all races. Rory has even been attempting to vault, which we are so pleased to see. When riders go from struggling to mount quickly to trying to vault, it is a wonderful show of progress.<\/p>\n

Charlotte<\/strong> has continued to develop her accuracy and horsemanship skills. She is always a kind and willing member of the team, riding with a smile. She is so often willing to ride any pony in any race and is such an asset to the team.<\/p>\n

Casima<\/strong> has shown some great advances in skill in her first season with the games team. We are so pleased to have her as part of the team. She has progressed to mounting unaided and completing mugs accurately off lead.<\/p>\n

Elia<\/strong> has been improving all season from a wobbly novice to cantering off lead. We hope she will continue to enjoy racing with us as part of the team. What a great start to her first season with the games team!<\/p>\n

WINNER: RORY MCNAMARA<\/p>\n

Mounted Games Award<\/h2>\n

Issy<\/strong> has gone from strength to strength this season. Her hand-eye coordination in the mug race at speed is pretty hard to beat. Her skills in all other races are becoming highly accurate at ever-increasing speed. She has become a brave rider this season and we are delighted to see the speed she now enjoys.<\/p>\n

Zoe<\/strong> has had a fun season competing in the senior team riding alongside Lyra in the pairs races at Zones as a season highlight. Zoe has shown great skill in developing her pony Tom from a showjumping pony into a mounted games enthusiast. The speed they gallop is thrilling and occasionally nerve-racking to watch.<\/p>\n

Macey<\/strong> always shows such incredible skill and speed on any pony she is given to ride. Macey rode with Issy in the pairs at Zones and is always brave and fast with her vault.<\/p>\n

Lyra<\/strong> was an excellent member of the senior team and a pairs partner, advancing to Zones this summer. Her speed and accuracy have always been top level, and she continues to develop her skills backed up by a strong vault.<\/p>\n

Hugo<\/strong> has been an excellent member of the junior team. Since he was just 6, learning to mount from the floor without assistance, he has developed one of the strongest vaults of the senior team. He is brave and fast, with some pretty strong skills, leaning low at a gallop to reach for equipment has become his party trick.<\/p>\n

WINNER: ISSY MCNAMARA<\/p>\n

Tetrathlon<\/h1>\n

Senior Tetrathlete of the Year<\/strong><\/p>\n

It is fantastic to have such a strong Senior squad this year, and I am excited to see the section continue to grow and develop as we build an even stronger Branch team in the future.<\/p>\n

Nominees: Jess, Molly, Josie and Jemima<\/strong><\/p>\n