Special day for O'Neill and Ministerforsport

Ministerforsport continued his winning run when delivering in Limerick for Noel O'Neill and Donie McInerney.

This made it five in a row after three point-to-points and a bumper in Gowran Park.

He landed a gamble in the process as he was as big as 4/1 this morning and contracted to 11/8 before racing. He was returned at 5/2.

McInerney steered the six-year-old gelding into a narrow lead at the second last. His partner stood off the last and jumped it big which opened the door for Celtic Rising but Ministerforsport kept on best to win by a length and a quarter.

Celtic Rising (25/1) and Or Jaune De Somoza (33/1) completed the placings in second and third respectively. Epicuris on his first start for Willie Mullins, went off 4/6 favourite but weakened to fifth. He was a former Group One winner on the Flat in France and finished fifth in the Epsom Derby won by Golden Horn in 2015.

Noel O'Neill said: "I only received my licence last week and I'll have to say a big thanks to Elaine Burke and Angie Coakley in HRI as they pushed things forward and I got to run the horse today.

"I'm originally a Ballynoe man, am based in Carrigtwohill, have three horses and I'm a farrier by trade.

"I got this horse in a syndicate with 15 lads and got him to train for point-to-points and he won three last year. He ran for Terence O'Brien in his bumper win last season and, in fairness to the lads, the reason he hadn't run until now was because the lads waited for me to get the licence.

"He's a nice horse and should improve for his first run back. He'll tip away and he is a fine big stamp of a horse. A lot people use this 'he's a chaser in the making' too much and Donie said he kicked every hurdle out of it today.

"He won't be abused this year and I think he's a nice staying type."

O'Neill is the son of the late Mossy O'Neill who lost his life in a point-to-point fall in the 1980s.

Additional reporting by Thomas Weekes