Melbourne Cup 2019: Local hero fends off the raiders

The Melbourne Cup has returned to Australia after the star local stayer Vow And Declare poked his nose ahead in a thrilling finish.

Winning jockey Craig Williams holds the Melbourne Cup yesterday after surviving a tight finish. Picture: Jason Edwards

The Melbourne Cup has returned to Australia after star local stayer Vow And Declare poked his nose ahead in a thrilling finish to claim a courageous victory at Flemington.

The 159th running of Australia’s famous race proved a triumph for Australian horsemanship, breeding and ownership, with the winning connections of Vow And Declare based along the eastern seaboard from Melbourne to regional Queensland.

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The four-year-old was given the perfect run by jockey Craig Williams, who pressed to the lead from barrier 21 early, settled his mount on the rails and stayed there until the finishing post.

Before the race, trainer Danny O’Brien described what lay ahead for the gelding as a “David and Goliath” challenge given the strength of the international contingent. But Vow And Declare, who started at $11, proved up to the task courtesy of a masterful training performance from O’Brien and a wonderful ride from Williams, who won for the first time in 16 attempts.

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When challenging for the $7.75 million race, Vow And Declare was bumped into the running rail with just 100 metres to go by interference caused by legendary jockey Frankie Dettori aboard Master Of Reality.

Vow And Declare cops a bump to hold out Master Of Reality, third from right. Picture Jay Town

Rather than lose momentum, the four-year-old kicked to reel in the Italian’s mount and held off Prince Of Arran and a surging Il Paradiso to win by a head.

Stewards subsequently lodged the Cup’s first protest since 1991 which saw the Joseph O’Brien-trained Master Of Reality relegated from second to fourth for checking the run of Aiden O’Brien’s galloper Il Paradiso, which made ground from well back and was unlucky not to win. Prince Of Arran was promoted to second place and Il Paradiso third.

As the protest played out in the stewards room, the Australian O’Brien celebrated the biggest moment of what has proven a rollercoaster career.

“It is a pretty overwhelming thing to be a boy who grew up in country Victoria and to stand here today. It is an amazing, amazing feeling,” O’Brien said.

The photo finish. Picture: Channel 10

It is only 18 months since the 49-year-old was effectively cleared after a long-running cobalt inquiry threatened to ruin a career than started when he spent a period strapping for the legendary Bart Cummings.

Managing owner Geoff Corrigan, a former NSW Labor politician, read every word of transcripts from inquiries that ended up in the Supreme Court a couple of years ago. He backed his judgment in sticking with O’Brien based on personal meetings between the pair.

“I started to read all these articles, but I always find you judge people and treat people on how you find them and you judge your character and that is why I went with Danny,” Corrigan said. “I still think, even to this day, he is a good bloke. He is an even better bloke now.”

While O’Brien said the win by Vow And Declare showed Australian horses could compete against the internationals, he doubted the resistance would occur on a regular basis in the future.

“It has certainly got a more elusive target for a local trainer,” he said. “To do it with a locally bred horse, again, it is not something that is going to happen very often. It is getting further out of reach but obviously today shows it can be done.”

O’Brien has now trained the winner of Victoria’s three great races, with Master O’Reilly winning the 2007 Caulfield Cup and Shamus Award claiming the 2013 Cox Plate. Williams famously missed the winning ride on Dunaden in 2011 while suspended and instead went to the cinema heartbroken. The 42-year-old has become just the eighth jockey to complete the grand slam of racing after previous successes in the Golden Slipper Stakes, Cox Plate and Caulfield Cup.

“It wasn’t going to define me but it is very special to win our greatest race because I feel very proud of what my team and we have been able to accomplish,” Williams said. “I would have loved to win it earlier, but it is how it is and how it works out. I am so lucky that I can share it with my family.”

Dettori, who is desperate to win the Melbourne Cup after 17 failed attempts, instead departs Australia with another hefty suspension, this time for nine meetings, and a fine after producing another controversial ride. Dettori will have to delay the start of a four-week contract to ride in Japan. Michael Walker, who rode Prince Of Arran was fined $10,000 and banned fior seven meetings for excessive whip use while Brett Prebble copped six meetings for the same offence on Steel Prince.

Race favourite Finche finished seventh, while reigning champion Cross Counter was beaten by less than two lengths in eighth.

Rostropovich was pulled up and later found to have cracked its pelvis, though veterinarians were confident it could be saved.

The TAB reported a 5.9 per cent downturn in wagering on the Cup, a theme which has all continued all spring. There was also a dip in attendance, with the crowd of 81,408 the lowest since 1995. It is the fourth year in succession the crowd has dropped below 100,000.