A devoted Irish-Australian teamster determined to hold on to his old ways finds that his reluctance to advance with the times threatens to tear his family apart as Elizabeth O'Connor's award-winning novel comes to the screen courtesy of director Donald Crombie. Motorized vehicles are quickly gaining in popularity, and Paddy Doolan's once-popular horse-drawn carts are now gathering dust. Though his younger son, Michael, supports Paddy's devotion to the tried-and-true method of horse-drawn transportation, his older son, Will, is more in tune with the times, and coolly rejects his father's offer of partnership. As Michael slowly realizes the impossibility of halting progress and loving mother Jenny does her best to keep the stubborn father and his sons on good terms, the idealistic young boy is forced to decide between living in the past or striking out on his own in an uncertain future.