Hundreds of spectators line the street as the procession moves out into the surrounding countryside for the traditional fixture that continues to attract large local support. The hunt will “draw a couple of coverts”, searching for foxes, in nearby lands with the permission of local farmers.
Pat Dillon with his daughter Harriet (6) at the St Stephen’s Day Hunt in Kells, Co Meath, which is organised by the Meath Hunt. Photo: Mark Condren.
Just last week, a Bill aimed at banning hunts like this was defeated after the three largest parties in the Dáil – Fianna Fáil, Sinn Féin and Fine Gael – refused to back it, although one spectator remarks: “They’ll try it again, no doubt about that”.
For Pat Dillon, chair of the Meath Hunt, the occasion is about far more than sport. Standing alongside his children, Harriet (6) and Jeremy (4), he describes a tradition passed down from one generation to the next. “My father hunted before me, my grandfather hunted — my grandmother, my great-grandfather,” he says, calling it an inheritance shared by many of those gathered.
Eoin and Grace Murray from Kells at the Hunt in Kells, Co Meath. Photo: Mark Condren.
“It’s important that it wasn’t banned because we’re horse people. Ireland is a nation of horse people.
“We’re known for it throughout the world. Maybe Mongolia and the Native Americans have as much of a name for being horse people as the Irish do. And that’s why it’s important to support it. It’s part of our tradition, it’s part of our culture.
“It’s part of what it means to be Irish. And that’s why it’s so important that we got the support that we did from our TDs and we’re very grateful [for] that. And we’re incredibly grateful for the support of these people who are here today. Because without their support, we don’t have anything.”
Keeping an eye on the St Stephen’s Day Hunt in Kells, Co Meath. Photo: Mark Condren.
The huntsman, Kenny Henry, is in charge of directing the hounds with a member of the Henry family involved for the past 65 years. “It’s a long family tradition for them. Barry Finnegan is our whip as well, and those boys take incredible care of those hounds,” Pat says.
The two masters for the hunt are Niall O’Regan and Cathal Cassidy with amateur whips Thomas Tuite and Brian Black.
Pat Dillon points to the numbers out in support for the event, not just from Kells, but from the wider surrounding areas.
“They come from miles around to cheer us along. And you’ll be able to see that now as you go through, the support and goodwill that the Hunt has, so we’re really, really privileged to have that.”
The St Stephen’s Day Hunt going through Kells, Co Meath. Photo: Mark Condren.
The Animal Health and Welfare Bill 2025, proposed by People Before Profit-Solidarity TD Ruth Coppinger, would have prohibited using dogs to hunt or flush out foxes. Last week it was opposed in the Dáil by a vote of 124 to 24. Deputy Coppinger has described fox hunting as cruel and inhumane, while Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon said hunting operates under clear codes of conduct, licensing and welfare standards.
On the attempts to ban foxhunting, Pat Dillon says that some people in suburban areas may be against it, but those living in rural communities support them.
“We’ve got hundreds of farmers who will be here in support today. All the local people who get to see what happens, they support it. And it’s very important that they that we have their support because they’re the ones who see it, who understand it, who feel it and who live it…they see what we do. They see what we do every day, and they don’t object to it.”