PUNTERS wending their way along Roman Road to the races on a winter's afternoon back in 1984 were about to witness a special day in the life of a man destined to become a legendary champion.

Richard Dunwoody was later to describe it as the day when 'Hereford was heaven'.

It was uncommon for a seven-pound claiming amateur to have a full book of rides on a seven-race card, but Dunwoody did. He rode four winners, a second and two thirds, astounding the onlooking Captain Tim Forster who had gloomily declared "You'll never get through it".

In his autobiography 'Obsessed', Dunwoody later recalled: "Before Hereford, I was perceived as an OK young amateur but that changed overnight. Suddenly people were asking when I was going to turn professional and what my plans were for the future."

Hereford was to figure large on several other occasions in the illustrious career of the National Hunt great whose triumphs included two Grand Nationals, the Cheltenham Gold Cup, the Champion Hurdle and lifting the Champion Jockey title three years in succession. And also playing a major role in the Dunwoody story was one of Hereford's most famous sons, jockey Peter Scudamore.

"If I had a hero in the weighing room, it was Peter Scudamore," wrote Dunwoody who added: "In the weighing room of my youth he was the epitome of the great jockey. It is hard to admit somebody else might be better. For as long as he was there 'Scu' set the standard. To beat him you had to need winners as badly as he did."

But Dunwoody also had a compulsion to succeed and he admitted that ambition became fixation. He told how he traced this back to December 30, 1988 - a day when he hired a helicopter so that he could ride in the first at Hereford and get to Newbury for the third and later races.

It was not a profitable expedition financially, but this was not about money; it was the ever-rising need for winners.

Tense tussle

Those winners flowed in 1992-93 when he managed to stay ahead of 'Scu' even though it was not by many.

Then came the stunning news that 'Scu' - fearing a late career injury like the one suffered by his father Michael - had retired.

He wrote in 'Obsessed' how: "I put the phone down and cried, supposedly the coldest fish in the weighing room, and the tears rolled down my face.

"There was relief that I would now be champion, but there was no elation, no joy now that I had what I desperately wanted. Instead, I felt sad that 'Scu' had called it a day. The weighing room would be a lesser place without him."

Dunwoody became champion again the following year having been involved in a tense tussle with Adrian Maguire.

He recalled: "On one manic day, Adrian and I rode at three different race meetings - Hereford, Southwell and Huntingdon. Even though the pair of us should have been on our knees, the adrenaline fizzed through our veins." Dunwoody completed his title treble in the 1994-95 season, the defining moment coming at Hereford on Easter Monday when Maguire fell off 'Desert Fighter', breaking his arm and leaving the championship at his rival's mercy.

Hereford in 1984 had provided the kick-start for Dunwoody's magical career, but in 1999 it was the scene of an awful incident that marked the beginning of the end of the glory years.

Looking sure to win the novice chase, 'Premier Bay' went awry, sending his illustrious rider hurtling ignominiously from the saddle. "It was one of the most embarrassing moments of my career," he admitted.

Further falls followed, the confidence faltered and the great man called it a day.