DEDERANG trainer John Rooney had his Melbourne Cup day all planned.
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![A DAY TO REMEMBER: Dederang trainer John Rooney and his daughter Louise Dove with galloper Macca's Magic. Picture: ELENOR TEDENBORG A DAY TO REMEMBER: Dederang trainer John Rooney and his daughter Louise Dove with galloper Macca's Magic. Picture: ELENOR TEDENBORG](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/PhHnA5GT9TJUUFksUAkH55/2d8bb30a-140b-4c20-a3f1-1db53825b9a6.jpg/r187_384_4413_3001_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
It started perfectly when his galloper Macca’s Magic saluted in the first race at Corowa.
Jockey Brad Vale led from start to finish to give the Rooney camp every reason to think it was going to be their lucky day.
But things slowly took a turn for the worse from that point.
Rooney was in a hurry to get to Albury to watch his daughter and Kiewa trainer Louise Dove’s two starters when he received a tap on the shoulder from stewards.
“We wanted to get back to Albury to have a look at Louise’s runners in the last two races,” Rooney said.
“But the vet wanted a swab and I was worried it was going to take an hour.
“Thankfully it didn’t take too long but it put us back a little bit.”
Rooney was soon on his way to Albury when disaster struck on the Corowa side of the Barnawartha saleyards.
“We have a dual fuel car and it was low in gas and backfired so we stopped and I flicked it over to petrol but it wouldn’t start,” he said.
“We were on the edge of the road with semis and cars going past and no one was stopping.
“Thankfully a good Samaritan from Rutherglen came along.
“He wasn’t a mechanic and said he didn’t have a clue about cars but he had a look at it and started pushing at things and noticed two wires were out.
“It started straight away and we were off again.
“I didn’t get the Rutherglen bloke’s name but I’ll buy him a few beers if I ever find out.”
The Rooneys cancelled the tow truck and family help that was on the way and they soon found themselves on the highway.
They made it to the Albury racecourse just in time for the final two races.
Dove’s horses - Nariel Dash and Why Do We Do It – finished fourth.
“They both ran good races,” Rooney said.
“You wouldn’t believe what happened though.
“Bugger me dead, a bee got in my bloody hair and bit me on the back of the head.
“I was walking around with an ice pack on my head and was pretty crook for a while.”
The Rooney camp has a tradition of buying KFC for tea after landing a winner and the day’s dramas weren’t about to stop that from happening.
Unfortunately, it didn’t quite go to plan.
“I forked out $50 and my wife said we have 18 grand kids and 24 great grand kids and pointed out it probably wasn’t enough money,” he said.
“We had a good laugh about it.
“It was one of those days that’s for sure.”