Horse trainer vows to win Cox Plate for son battling cancer
A horse trainer has vowed to win Saturday’s Cox Plate for his son who is battling cancer, despite his 100-1 shot taking on superstars "Winx" and "Hartnell".
Pat Webster hopes to pull off a miracle with his horse ‘Happy Clapper’. He’s a rank outsider but that is not stopping him.
Mr Webster wants to win for his son Wayne.
The 38-year-old father of three has been struck down with cancer.
Before he fell ill, Wayne spent night and day nursing "Happy Clapper" through a serious tendon injury.
Mr Webster said: “I’d have to say he is the one that got him back to the track."
Wayne underwent surgery for lymphoma four week's ago - the same day "Happy Clapper" ran in the Epsom Handicap.
Mr Webster said: "As he is just coming out of the anaesethic, he didn't say where's my wife and where's my children, he said how did he ride him? He said did he ride him all right?"
In a desperate attempt to see his favourite horse race in the Cox Plate, Wayne drove down to Melbourne from Sydney.
Sadly, due to his ongoing cancer treatment he is not well enough to make it to the track tomorrow.
“Happy Clapper” jockey Brenton Avdulla said: “I'm sure "Happy" will be doing his best for him and so will I so we can only hope.
“Stranger things have happened, favourites get beaten every day of the week so let's hope the favourite gets beat in the Cox Plate on Saturday."
