THE presence of Zara Phillips as a competitor ensured that Wilton Horse Trials was once again a right royal occasion.

But the daughter of the Princess Royal was not a winner at the weekend, finishing eighth on Biddesden Marengo, nine points off the lead, and managing a tenth placing on Dingbat.

The horse trials, now in their 27th year, attracted a field of nearly 500 top equestrian stars.

It was once again popular with local equestrians, including Winterbourne Stoke rider Louisa Lockwood, who enjoyed a successful event with three of her rides finishing in third place.

Six-year-old Sovereign Striker excelled himself to jump a confident double clear and finish on his, much improved, dressage score in the novice section.

Blue Grey Celebrity owned by William Grant looked to be heading for a win but his 1.2 time faults pushed him down to third place - just 1.1 points behind the leader.

It was still an encouraging result for this former team chase horse, who is still relatively new to eventing.

He will now compete at West Wilts in ten days time.

Louisa's final third placing came on Sunday on Freddie Lee, who was competing for the first time at intermediate level.

This 12-year-old former showjumper took the cross country in his stride to come home inside the optimum time.

He has also qualified for the novice championships at Gatcombe in August.