Canya Romance set to embrace Lakeside Cup challenge

By Josh Spasaro

Canya Romance’s recent wins at Free For All and Open level will make her hard to beat in the Lakeside Cup Final at Q1 Lakeside on Thursday night.

They were the thoughts of her Booval-based trainer, Andy Mulrine, ahead of the $150,010 feature over 457 metres.

The three-year-old black bitch has outstanding form at the track, and she will jump from box five with four wins from her past six starts.

“She was racing Free For All dogs in her past six or seven starts, so she’s been up there and already done it against a lot of good dogs around the Q1,” Mulrine said.

“Some of these dogs are coming up from fourth and fifth grade.”

Canya Romance has an impressive strike rate of 23 wins from 39 races, a highlight being her victory in last year’s Group 3 Ipswich Futurity. 

Her starts and finishes have been impressing Mulrine recently.

“That’s where she wins her races. Her box manners are good. She’s been really good to us,” he said.

Canya Romance made her first start in Queensland on July 12 last year, after starting her track career for Cosi Dagostino in Western Australia.

The Bernardo and Opal Rocks chaser made an instant impression on Mulrine and Coomera-based owner Glen McKinley, winning her first three starts on the Q Straight.

She then won another three consecutive races at both Capalaba and Q1 Lakeside.

“She was over in Cannington and the owner brought her back,” Mulrine said.

“She just adapted to the Q Straight really quick. She held the record there for a while.

“And then we put her over to the Q2.”

Mulrine’s other Lakeside Cup Final starter, Row Beau, also brings good form into the race.

To jump from box two, he has won four of his past seven starts.

“If he comes out with them, he’s got explosive speed,” Mulrine said. 

“He could lead if he comes out, but if he doesn’t he’ll really be pushing up at the first turn.”

The two-year-old black dog by Shima Shine and out of Kwong Magic is a half-brother to last year’s Golden Easter Egg and Million Dollar Chase winner, Power And Glory.

Both are out of Kwong Magic.

Row Beau has started his track career in fine fashion, with seven wins from 19 starts.

“He’s not that old and he doesn’t have that much experience,” Mulrine said. 

“But he’s going well and he’s trying.

“If he can come out, he can run 25.10 seconds. So, he’s right in there with a shot.”

Row Beau had his first start for Mulrine at Q1 Lakeside on July 21, finishing runner-up in a 1-5 Restricted Wins race over 457 metres, crossing the line in 25.38 seconds.

“We saw the Gatt boys were selling him. I saw him for sale and we bought him off them,” he said.

“They had three wins with him. His best around Wentworth Park was when he ran 29.68 seconds, and I said ‘that’s good enough for up here and we can have some fun with the dog’.”

Previously based at Goulburn in southern New South Wales, Andy and Kim Mulrine moved to south-east Queensland last year, alongside their son Patrick and other family members to race consistently at The Q.

Mulrine has enjoyed the warmer weather and lucrative prizemoney on offer.

“I’m not regretting it. It’s been a good move for us with the racing,” he said.

“We’ve adapted really well to it. It’s been good.

“We’re a small, boutique kennel of 10 dogs. That’s all we’ve got.

“We don’t want to go any bigger.”