Rose Sannette is not among the biggest names in Thursday’s Group 2 Maitland Gold Cup final, but box one gives the bush speedster a genuine chance of causing an upset.
Rose Sannette took her record to 26 wins from 50 starts and, despite rarely racing in Sydney, boosted her earnings to $32,650 when she won her heat of the Cup last Thursday in a slick 25.25.
It was well short of Victorian-trained Paw Licking’s track record of 24.87 but trainer Kevin Johnson said later: "Rose Sannette is obviously not as quick as Kel Greenough’s dog but she needed box one in the final and has got it, so anything can happen.
"Rose Sannette has been a wonderful greyhound and this is her last racing campaign.
"If she comes in season before this stint of racing is over she will be retired to stud.
"She has hardly raced at Wentworth Park because at my age it’s too far for me to drive from where I am near Taree.
"But I would like to give her the chance to win one more race in town before I retire her."
Kevin also unveiled a smart rookie at Maitland when Isaac Sannette recorded a smart 25.36 in a 450m performance trial.
"I was pleased with his time because Isaac Sannette was having his first run on sand and Thursday was the first time he had ever had a rug on his back," Kevin said.
"He is very strong and is going to be a good dog but is for sale because I am winding back on my race team to concentrate more on the breeding side of the sport."
