In May this year, catastrophic floods decimated the town of Taree and its surrounding areas.
The Manning River, which weaves its way through the Mid North Coast, peaked at a record breaking 6.4 metres as destruction and devastation washed through the local community.
Unfortunately for local greyhound trainer Larry Croker, he had been in this situation before.
In 2021, his Landsdowne home and accompanying dog shed both went underwater after heavy downpours caused widespread flooding.
In 2025, he made the early call to get out while it was still possible.
“We live about 20km north of Taree and the creek that runs behind the property started filling up pretty quickly with all the rain we were copping,” Croker said.
“The rain was showing no signs of slowing down so once the water started getting close to the dog shed again, I knew it was time to move. Me and my grandson Cooper [Blake] have 17 dogs here, so Des McGeachie and Kerry Barrass came and helped us get them all safely loaded up and we got out of there before it was too late.”
Croker and Blake finding refuge at the Mid North Coast Greyhound Racing Club [MNCGRC] where they spent three nights sleeping in their car.
“It was a good thing we moved when we did because my kennels all went under and the water got within a brick of going through the house as well,” he added.
“The dogs would have drowned if I didn’t get them out but we knew the dog track had enough kennels to safely secure them all, so it ended up being our home for a few days.
“Cooper and I just laid the seats back in the car and slept there. It was pretty uncomfortable, but we got by. Pete Cassar [the MNCGRC track manager] left the canteen open for us so we could make coffee and we cooked some food on the barbecue.
“Des and his wife brought us a couple of home cooked meals as well so it wasn’t all bad…I was glad to get home to bed after a few days though, I can tell you.
Fellow Taree trainers Teasha Pye and her partner Nathan Allan weren’t so lucky.
The pair still picking up the pieces after the “1-in-500-year event” destroyed their property.
“We live right on the bank of the Manning River so we thought we might be in trouble,” Pye said.
“We made sure the kids went to their nan’s house on the Wednesday night, but Nathan and I stayed at our place with the , hoping it wouldn’t get too bad.
“We woke up the next morning at about 5am and saw the paddocks were full of water…and it was rising really fast. That’s when I started panicking because there’s only one way in and one way out of the property and that’s over a small bridge, so we had to move quickly or we’d be stuck.
A scene of destruction at Teasha Pye and Nathan Allan's place
“We got the dogs in the van and the only other things I grabbed were a few dog racing photos. I thought our first winner photo was irreplaceable, so apart from the kids, the dogs and two t-shirts, it was all about grabbing those photos because they are our pride and joy. We got in the van and just made it out in time.”
The duo safely kennelling their dogs - Mickey Dawn, Norbit Bale, Boots And All, In The Chapple and an unraced four-year-old named Keke - alongside Croker’s at the MNCGRC.
Eventually returning days later to what was left of their home.
“We got back on the Saturday afternoon and I had to climb through a window just to get into the place,” Pye said.
“The mud was ankle deep on the floors and the outside was covered in trees and other debris. Our kennels were basically destroyed, there were logs scattered through the place, my kitchen was in my lounge room and my kids rooms were at the other end of the house…I couldn’t believe it.”
“It was heartbreaking…if we didn’t have Rhonda [Nathan’s mum], I don’t know where we’d go. We’ve got five temporary kennels setup now but we’ve basically got nothing else.”
Teasha Pye and Nathan Allan's kennels after the Taree floods
Remarkably, a month on from the carnage, Mickey Dawn returned to racing with a fourth-placed finish at Taree on June 21.
A glimmer of hope for the family as they look to get back on their feet.
“After all these dogs have been through, for Mickey Dawn to come out and run fourth in her first start back was amazing,” Allan added.
“The Taree track is back up and running now and I’m not going to lie, we need it. When the floods first happened, it didn’t quite sink in how serious it was…but as the days have gone by, the depression has started to set in.
“You start to think about your future and how you’re going to take care of the kids and the dogs. One of our first thoughts was “will we be able to get back into racing?” because it’s such a passion of ours.
“We lost all of our dog rugs, we lost a bunch of temporary fencing, we lost a dog walker, the kennels are gone, we lost nearly everything. But we didn’t lose our dogs and that’s a silver lining.
The Taree racetrack not spared from the carnage either, with widespread damage caused to a section of the relatively new multi-million dollar circuit.
The Mid North Coast Racing Club in May
“The water levels started getting up pretty high on Wednesday night and on Thursday it became a real problem,” Cassar said.
“The infield had already filled up and water was lapping at the inside edge of the track, but the real problem was the external dam behind the 300m boxes. It overflowed and basically pushed its way onto the back straight and completely submerged it.”
The rising water level totally dismantling a 60-metre section of the back straight.
“Normally, the initial layer of the track is a hard road base. That’s covered by a layer of geo fabric material and then there’s a 150 millimetre layer of sand sitting on top,” Cassar added.
“Well, that entire layer of sand ended up in the infield, the geo fabric got pulled out of shape and there were potholes, some as big as 30 centimetres, throughout the road base.
Rising floodwaters caused plenty of destruction at Taree
“There was standard rutting across the rest of the track where water was running from outside to inside but very little damage otherwise. The only infrastructure we lost was an irrigation pump for the sprinkler system but all the trip starts, lights, and the rest of the facilities suffered no damage. It was a miracle to be honest.”
The process of remediating the track left to local contractors, Greyhound Racing NSW (GRNSW) staff and volunteers, with work commencing on June 9 and completed by June 13.
“The first job was removing the remaining sand and geo fabric from the back straight,” Cassar said.
“Then the damaged 60m section of road base was refilled, resealed and compacted until it was a firm surface again. Geo fabric was reapplied where needed and then we got 200 tonnes of new sand delivered to replenish the track surface.
“Once that was all done, the track was deep harrowed, regraded and reestablished for racing. We had our first meeting back on June 18 and the track is as good as ever.”
IMPORTANT REMINDER
The $200,000 GRNSW emergency financial assistance package for industry participants impacted by the flooding devastation on the Mid North Coast and Northern Rivers is still available.
GRNSW urges those affected to immediately reach out to take advantage of the package.
