Image © Healy Racing
The first of this season’s champions has been crowned with Barry O’Neill regaining the Eastern region title, a prize that he last won in 2023.
The Wexford native was not in action at Sunday’s Meath and Tara fixture in Fairyhouse, which was the final point-to-point in his home region, having been stood down after a fall in the Ballysteen opener 24 hours earlier.
That ultimately mattered little as the 36-year-old held an advantage of six winners heading into the card at Fairyhouse over his great friend and rival Rob James, and that margin was preserved on Sunday as James elected to ride at the Killeady fixture in Dromahane.
In all, O’Neill rode 19 winners in the eastern region, from opening day honours aboard Yewtree Hill at Castletown-Geoghegan, through to doubles at Tinahely and Peppards Castle in the autumn.
More recently, O’Neill has partnered a number of impressive four-year-old winners during the spring term, including Onethingfornutting at Tinahely, Royal Response and Heron Hill, who formed part of a Monksgrange hat-trick for the Kiltealy rider in March, whilst he signed off on his Eastern season aboard Down Jones Road with an eight-length debut success at Tattersalls.
This is O’Neill’s eighth time to clinch the riding honours in his home region, a prize he wrestled off Jamie Codd in 2017, before adding further title honours in 2018, 2019 2020, 2021, 2022, and 2023.
