Great day at the races for Barry and Posh Paddy

BARRY CONNELL knew at the age of three he wanted to be a jockey. The thundering sound on the turf, the unbridled joy of the winner’s enclosure and the bookies’ fluctuating prices had always captivated him.

Barry's father Patrick took him to race meetings every week when he was a boy but a career as a jockey evaded him and instead he found a successful career as a fund manager.

Last Sunday week, however, Barry at 44 years of age finally discovered the thrill of entering the winner's enclosure when he rode his own horse to victory and at Cheltenham, no less, the most famous National Hunt race track in the world.