MID ANTRIM - Kings Cup Winners

The Mid Antrim Kings Cup Winners

The magic of the Kings Cup never leaves us and I have enjoyed researching the history of the former winners. My good friends Ken Tompsett and Maurice Alexander have been a great help to me and it is Maurice who has done all the research of the Mid Antrim winners, four in all. For sometime I thought Mid Antrim was never going to win the Kings Cup after these great fanciers Tommy Harper and Smyth Bros both finished 2nd Open.

Then 1968 Billy Erwin made the breakthrough with the great Moonlight Mannequin one of the all time greats. On the 6th July 1968 Willie Erwins good Chequer Pied hen landed from Nantes having flown the 570 mile journey to his home at the Circular Road, Ballymena in 17 hours 3 mins with a velocity of 980. Willie became the first fancier in the Mid Antrim area to win the Kings Cup and everyone who knew him throughout Ireland and the UK were delighted for this gentleman of our sport. This great hen had won positions in the club in inland racing but when she was sent to the NIPA Derby from Dinard in 1966 she showed great promise finishing 25th Open. In the Derby of 1967 she was clocked again but not in the prizes so it was decided that she would go to the longer distance with INFC to their OB National of 1968 from Nantes and there she achieved what Willie described as his greatest thrill.

Moonlight Mannequin was bred from a cock loaned to Willie by his great friend Bob Harkness of Crumlin when paired to one of his old Osman family which originated from the Heathcote Bros of Meir, Stoke-on-Trent. This hen was a particular favourite in the loft and was named Freckles. Willie Erwins description of his success was typical of the man and his love for his pigeons. He quoted, When a fancier sees his favourite pigeon flash on the roof after 17 hours on the wing, a felling surges through him that cannot be expressed in words, and when it is confirmed that this same favourite is the winner of the coveted Kings Cup it is so difficult to realise that a lifes ambition has been achieved.

In 1974 almost 2,000 birds were liberated on Saturday morning 6th July at 6.15am in Nantes. It was a very hard day and no pigeons were timed on the Saturday but at 11.05am on Sunday morning the first gallant pigeon home flying 565 miles, was timed into the loft of Arthur Simpson & Son of Randalstown. She was a 6yo Blue Chequer w/f hen rung NU68L90517 and was on her fourth trip to the Kings Cup race. From Nantes in 1970 she finished 39th Open, Nantes again in 1971 finishing 85th Open and in 1972 she was sent again to Nantes but was reported in England in a bruised and battered condition and fortunately returned to the Ballygrooby loft where Arthur lived. The hen was brought back to health and it was decided to give her a year of rest in 1973 and then trained up in 1974 with the Kings Cup race in mind. She was entered in the Haverforwest and Okehampton races with the NIPA in preparation for her long journey and came home healthy and well. Arthur who had kept pigeons from the age of six years old was convinced she could fly France again and he definitely wanted to get the get the Hall of Fame award which was given to a pigeon timed three years in the prizes from the Kings Cup race so off she went to the race for her fourth time and the rest is history.

Kings Cup and Hall of Fame award at the same time on a day with 15mph north wind in her face and her velocity down to 712ypm. A great hen with a super performance, she was bred from a Blue cock of the Barker/Marriot strain and her dam from the Putman, Atwell and Bob Bells Nantes hen strains. It was a nice tribute when Horace Devine who was very busy but took the time to visit Arthur an his son William later that day to confirm that their bird had won them the 1974 Kings Cup - the Blue Riband of our popular sport.

On 4th July 1986 at 6.15am, 2,244 of the best pigeons in Ireland were released at Les Landes, Jersey in a south west wind to take part for what is the most coveted prize for Irish fanciers, the Kings Cup. After a long day in flight only three gallant pigeons arrived home on the day and the winner was to the Cullybackey loft of Alan Darragh. The yearling cock later named Independent Ranger was timed at 8.28pm with velocity of 891ypm for the 432 mile journey flying 14 hours 13 minutes.
Ranger had flown four races as a young bird, the longest from Dungarvan (205 miles) and was put on Widowhood for the 1986 racing season where he won a club prize from Dungravan before going to the OB Derby with the NIPA from Guernsey, a distance of 410 miles to the loft. He was sitting ten days on eggs when sent to the race where 3,220 birds were competing and after a one day holdover was clocked at 6.47am on the second morning to be placed 70th Open with a velocity of 695ypm. After this race it was decided to send him back to the Kings Cup race so he flew 842 miles in two weeks, this would be a great feat for 3yo let alone a yearling who had lost his mate between the two races and had been switched to Widowhood again. A great performance from a super pigeon.

The sire of Ranger was a stock cock from the late James Ramseys clearance sale which contained the Venner of Street bloodlines, and the dam a daughter of the old McCartney Bros of Moira cock when paired to a Yarr Bros of Crumlin hen.

The Kings Cup race of 2004 was flown from the new race point of Messac and the 2,025 birds, the cream of Irish pigeons were liberated on 1st July at 7am into a light south west wind. The winning pigeon named Rachel was timed to the loft of Cullybackey fancier Jimmy Greer, flying the 527 miles to his loft in 13 hours 27 minutes doing a velocity of 1149ypm.

This great Blue hen was 2yo and had three races in her build up to the big race, one from Tramore and two from Rosscarbery plus a few 100 mile private tosses. She was raced all year unmated till the Kings Cup race where she was sent on 16 day old eggs, a condition she must have liked as she flew her way home to be winner of the prestigious Irish National Clubs OB National. It is every pigeon fanciers dream to be presented with the Kings Cup and Rachel made sure that that Jimmys dream became a reality. Her performance in the race also won the Queens Coronation Cup for the RPRA Long Distance award.

The old fanciers were prone to say that behind every great pigeon was a great story and Jimmys hen is no exception. When on a trip to Belgium he visited the loft of Norbet Sierens and was presented with a fresh laid egg to take home with him but the problem was Jimmy had his pigeons separated before he left home. When he came back home he remembered that two cocks had been mated so put them back together again and slipped an egg below them and your guess is right, this young bird was reared and became the dam of his Kings Cup winner. The sire was one of six youngsters gifted to him by the late Alex Geddis from Scotland.

IRISH ROVER

This particular piece has been retyped by one of our pigeonnetwork.com editorial team in the interests of promoting the sport of pigeon racing in Ireland with Ronnie Johnstons approval which dates back to September 2007, for the enjoyment of our many loyal members around the world who don't have access to the Racing Pigeon Weekly or the monthly Racing Pigeon Pictorial. Homer.