Southern Highlands trainer Ruth Matic won the Group 3 Ladbrokes Magic Maiden with Black Bear Lee in 2015 and had finalists with Embye in 2018 and minor placegetter Persian Spy two decades earlier.
But she has never been so keen to win the race as she is on Saturday night when she trains Be Wowed for her lifelong friend Kathy Halovic in the $25,000 to the winner Ladbrokes Magic Maiden Final at Wentworth Park.
Be Wowed after his 2nd placing in Ladbrokes Magic Maiden Heat 2 on April 3.
Kathy and her late husband Allan Halovic, who raced Be Wowed's dam Miss Cover Girl, were once babysitters for Ruth and her late husband Matt Matic.
"They looked after our children when they were little so we go back a long way,'' Ruth Matic said.
"Allan and Kathy won six races with Miss Cover Girl, the dam of Be Wowed, and were very enthusiastic about the result when they mated her with Wow and she whelped puppies on August, 2022.
"Be Wowed and his siblings were educated in November and Allan, who passed away in January this year, was always confident Miss Cover Girl would produce good greyhounds when mated with Wow.
"Miss Cover Girl is a grand-daughter of Mario Abela's Wentworth Park group race-winning stayer Romantic Diva, who was a daughter of Molly's Osti, while Wow also comes from Ted Doss' phenomenal 'Osti' dam line.
"Be Wowed looks to have a nice draw in box three in Saturday's final because he has plenty of early speed and there does not look to be a lot of pace drawn inside him.
"I think Be Wowed can get to the line more strongly in the final than he did in his Heat because he had a cough in the lead-up to last week's race and I had to ease up on him a little.
"Be Wowed's first, second and third splits were the fastest sectional times in the Heats and he will have a final hit-out over 440m at Goulburn on Tuesday to top him off for next Saturday.''
Peter Spiteri's hopes of winning the $25,000 to the winner Ladbrokes Magic Maiden were dashed last year when Carbon Coby tore a pin muscle on the eve of the Heats but the Sydney owner-breeder has a great chance of making up for lost time with Marshall Kade in Saturday night's 2024 final.
Marshall Kade surprised Spiteri when he came from third on the back straight and second turning for home to run down Ruth Matic's Be Wowed in a 29.99 Heat last Wednesday night.
"JODIE and Andy Lord who train Marshall Kade reckon the dog really wants a bit further than the 520m of the Magic Maiden but the dog is only 19 months old so had to start somewhere,'' Spiteri said.
"He has box one in the final and that is where he wants to be, the draw gives him a good chance.
"I thought I had a great chance of winning the Magic Maiden last year with a bitch called Carbon Coby but she tore a pin muscle just before the series.
"A month later she won first-up in a maiden race at Wenty while her name was a mix-up because I wanted to call her Carbon Copy as she was a dead-ringer for her mother Bland Purr, a good bitch I raced who won 21 races.
"Somehow the name came back spelled incorrectly but Andy Lord told me not to worry about it, his attitude was who cares, it's only a name.
"Marshall Kade is from the first litter whelped by my bitch Sarita, a litter sister to a very fast dog I owned called Serious Object, who had 10 wins and 11 placings from 30 starts.
"Sarita had nine in that first litter to Flying Ricciardo and a week ago whelped her second litter, to Hooked On Scotch.
"Just about all of Marshall Kade's siblings can run, although Kade, who finished third in Princess Killara's fastest Magic Maiden Heat last week, broke in the quickest.''
Spiteri has used the "Kade" tag in many of his dogs, notably Jack Kade and Pierro Kade, who won nearly $143,000 from 43 wins, after becoming a fan of a NEW ZEALAND pacer called Jack Cade over two decades ago.
