THE enthusiasm for National Hunt racing oozes out of Cathal Ennis. Though not from a traditional racing background, Ennis fell in love with the winter game once exposed to it. That passion has underpinned his success in breeding, and kept him in it through the numerous tribulations that have been visited upon him in that period.

Now 41, he grew up on a mainly cattle and pig farm in Castletown-Geoghegan. By his early teens, his father, Stephen bought a few half-bred horses and a thoroughbred filly. Around the same time, he started going racing during the summer holidays at nearby Kilbeggan and bought into it the sport completely.