Unlucky Luca Cumani back for more as Mount Athos presents him with another live Cup chance

GAME ON: LUCA Cumani and Craig Williams were rained on as the Flemington party began yesterday, but their conversation probably wasn’t about the weather.

Luca Cumani is back again for another attempt at winning the Melbourne Cup. Picture: Colleen Petch

LUCA Cumani and Craig Williams were among a well-dressed assembly who got rained on in the mounting yard as the Flemington party began yesterday, but their lengthy conversation probably wasn’t about the weather.

The urbane English-based trainer and the dapper Australian jockey share a common frustration that is starting to become well overdue for alleviation — despite being among the best in the business at their respective key roles in racing, neither has won the Melbourne Cup.

So this year they are pooling their talents and experience in a best-of-both-worlds assault on the elusive prize, with Williams taking the ride on seven-year-old gelding Mount Athos, who might have been the unluckiest runner last year.

Or would it be more accurate to suggest Cumani has been the unluckiest trainer?

In seven attempts, he has twice been runner-up by desperately short margins — with Purple Moon in 2007 and Bauer in 2008 — and Mount Athos was a fast-finishing fifth after twice being bumped by Americain in the unforgiving charge up the straight.

Convinced that was the best chance he would ever have, and still finding a way not to win, Cumani declared himself done and dusted. It was too hard. He wouldn’t be back.

But lo and behold, there he was yesterday, with his wife Sara and their glamorous daughter Francesca, joining the scramble for umbrellas as the VRC broke out the French fizz to launch arguably the biggest and best week of racing in the world.

Well, of course they were there — it’s almost unthinkable that they wouldn’t be.

The Cumanis are just about Flemington family now, Francesca even more so than her father, thanks to her TV work every year.

“My daughter is part of the furniture, so I come as an appendage to her,” Cumani said.

“But I love coming here too. I love the carnival.”

So you should never say never again?

“I was disappointed last year because I thought we had a really good chance,” he said.

“In a moment of desperation, when we were quite unlucky, I thought if he couldn’t win it with the form he was in then, it’s going to be impossible.

“It probably still is, but I’m a pretty obstinate fellow — so we are back again.

“I just want to be a part of it, and as long as I have a horse that warrants being in the field I shall be here.

“The race has to be won by somebody, so I might as well try to win it myself.

“I have the horse in as good form again so we have as good a chance as we have ever had.”

Cumani described Williams as “a great asset to have,” and the jockey said he was “very excited” to be on the $8.50 third favourite.

Williams always is. He needs little prompting to recount how he used to write stories at school about winning the Cup, how he has always dreamt about it.

Two years ago he was cruelly deprived of the winning ride on Dunaden because of suspension, and last year the same horse started favourite and finished 14th.

“Winning the Melbourne Cup would mean everything to me,” he said.

Maybe that’s what he and the trainer were telling each other as the countdown began.

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