O'Connell to see specialist tomorrow Eddie O’Connell is hopeful of returning to the saddle sooner than expected following a heavy fall in the Boylesports.com Handicap Hurdle at Leopardstown last Saturday. The leading conditional rider could be back in action by the end of next week, although the situation will become a lot clearer after he attends orthopaedic surgeon Paddy Kenny tomorrow. Initial fears that he may have broken his right elbow following a fall from the Eoin Griffin-trained Baracas were not confirmed by xrays taken at St Vincent’s Hospital. However heavy swelling in the area meant the tests were a shade inconclusive. O’Connell’s agent Niall Cronin explained, “Eddie is going to see Dr Kenny tomorrow, and hopefully he will get the all clear. He is still a bit stiff and sore but is a lot better than he was. “To be honest his back is giving him more pain at the moment than his elbow. If he could get back by the end of next week that would be a lot better result than we feared after the race last Saturday. But we’ll have to see what happens tomorrow.” O’Connell is currently sixth in the National Hunt jockey’s table this season with 29 winners.
