Sean was born on April 7, 1971. His father, Matt, and grandfather, Paddy, had both worked for the legendary Irish trainer Paddy Mullins: indeed, Matt had ridden two Irish Grand National winners for the stable, Vulpine (1967) and Dimwit (1972).
Since his early teens, Sean had accompanied his father each year to Liverpool where they would walk the course together.
Paddy Mullins trained at Goresbridge Stables, County Kilkenny, and it was to here that Sean followed to uphold the family tradition.
However, after a span of nearly five years and despite having had plenty of riding opportunities both on the Flat and over jumps, Sean had no winners on the board and decided to try his luck in England.
He rode initially for Ginger McCain, then Ferdy Murphy with limited success.
Sean then joined the stables of Jacqui Doyle, taking the ride on Killeshin when that horse won a long-distance chase at Taunton in 1996.
Killeshin's regular rider, Gary Brown, had recently been forced out of the game, having taken a career-ending fall at Uttoxeter. Sean stepped in for the ride, and was in the saddle again when the horse next won the Eider Chase at Newcastle.
Unable to qualify for that year's National, he was entered in the following year's, the one that was to be forever remembered because of its postponement to the following Monday due to Irish terrorists.
By that Monday, the ground had dried out considerably and Killeshin's chances of winning gone. Sean finished seventh on the fast going, a commendable effort.
The ground was very much in Killeshin's favour the next year but, having refused and dislodged Sean, he finished sixth after the jockey had remounted.
Sean's third consecutive ride at Aintree came on Cavalero, whose saddle slipped with a circuit to go.
Sean retired from riding and took out a trainer's licence in 2006. His best horse was Iris De Balme, who won both the Kent Grand National at Folkestone and the Scottish Grand National at Ayr on 19 April 2008, with Charlie Huxley in the saddle.
Numerically, his best season as a trainer came in 2013 with 12 winners.
Sean trains at Hartford, Oxon.
Sean was once out for six months with a lacerated liver, having taken a kick in the back from a horse which he was schooling.
