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By Rod Fuller

A recent reward for consistency at Muswellbrook has placed Invasive Dreams ($2.70 favourite on TAB) at the head of discussions for the $65,000 Port Panthers Queen of the North at Port Macquarie on Friday.

Following a strong third in Highway company at Rosehill last June and solid placings before heading for a spell, the daughter of Invader returned with a dominant display when accounting for Speck at Muswellbrook three weeks ago.

The Kristen Buchanan-trained mare burst through the centre of runners and raced clear to score by just under two lengths and continue the great run of success being enjoyed by the prominent Wyong mentor.

Invasive Dreams (Lauren Van Tijn) scores at Muswellbrook. Image by Bradley Photographers

Buchanan tasted success at her home track late last year when Rennata stormed down the outside to claim a decisive win before Broadway Bouncer overtook Pocket Eights in the shadow of the post at this circuit a month ago.

Invasive Dreams has an imposing record of 14 starts for three wins and six placings and it is significant that Lauren Van Tijn has been engaged to continue her association with the mare and to take advantage of an apprentice claim.

Lauren is one of our promising young apprentices who rode her first winner in July last year at her first ever ride when steering Cupid’s Kiss down the outside to score at Muswellbrook.

In a short period of time Lauren has ridden nine winners on a variety of tracks including Coffs Harbour, Bowraville, Taree together with multiple wins at Muswellbrook.

The task to claim the Queen of the North won’t be easy as the feature holds many dimensions with Dreams of Thunder ($8) holding plenty of interest following a successful return to racing at Hawkesbury in early December.

The Rod Bailey-trained mare is only lightly raced but displayed above average ability when accounting for Pins and Needles in July and returned to the winner’s circle from a four-month hiatus with a narrow victory over Lady Shenanigans.

Floss’s One ($7) has an undeniable chance with the Glen Milligan-trained chestnut winning two recent starts at Kempsey and Taree while Whispering Muriel ($17) broke her maiden status in commanding fashion with a Super Maiden win at the circuit last month.

Call Me Super ($13) has been a model of consistency for the Trevor Whittington stable while Wannawinwin ($12) is resuming from a spell of eight months.

John Sprague trains the daughter of Wandjina at Port and a treble of wins at Grafton when last in work together with a solid record when resuming and the engagement of Aaron Bullock for the mount provides plenty of interest.

Nathan Doyle makes the journey from his Newcastle training base after an amazing run of success in recent times and hold the key in many events on the day commencing with The Eyes Have It ($1.70 TAB favourite) in race two.

The filly deserves to break through following four placings in her five overall appearances and is coming off a good second behind Prosperous Dragon at her home track a fortnight ago.

The all-conquering combination Doyle has created with leading jockey Ash Morgan looks set to continue with The Eyes Have It followed by a debutant in the shape of New Frontier ($12) in the following event.

The stable holds the key to the race as they also have Formal ($2.90 fav) and Sharoha ($31) engaged while Battle Hym ($5) is a first starter from the Bjorn Baker yard and heads up the highway with strong metropolitan barrier trials in preparation for the assignment.

Two last start winners do battle in the Kove Kitchen at Panthers Handicap in the shape of Wing Nut ($4.80) and Raised by Wolves ($6) while Hypothermia ($8.50) has been racing well and deserves some form of success.

Cutepi ($6.50) returns to the circuit following a recent second behind Sneaky Sofia and the Kris Lees-trained chestnut filly looks to possess above average ability in her quest for another victory in the fifth race on the program despite drawing a very wide barrier.

Bodhi Boy ($3.40) took the progression from maiden to class one company with ease here a fortnight ago and the Lyndall Olsen-trained gelding is well placed to continue his unblemished record in the Panthers Kids Backyard Handicap.

The Queen of the North has developed into a wonderful race with Boncassie coasting to a comprehensive victory for the Ray Spokes and Brett Bellamy combination in 2023 before the track underwent a full course proper redevelopment.

Wayne Wilkes has enjoyed wonderful training success in this classic having posted victories with Bellastar, Lucciola Belle and Shotgun Roulette over the previous six years.

Lucciola Belle tasted victory six years ago and progressed to score in the district Country Championships Qualifier before finishing a gallant second to Noble Boy in the Final at Randwick.

Heavenly Glow heads the honours list for the Queen of the North after winning the race in 2008 and then progressing to victories in the Group 1-Storm Queen Stakes, the Gr 1-Australian Oaks followed by the Gr 3-Doomben Roses in succession.

Heavenly Glow’s earned overall prizemoney of just under $800,000 and was ridden by now retired jockey, Robert Thompson, who also piloted Leviosa to victory in 2012.

Al Nova has the honour of winning the race on two occasions for the popular Neil Godbolt and Alison Threadwell combination following success in 2013 and a repetition the following year.

Port Macquarie Race Club is delighted to be associated with Port Macquarie Panthers in the staging of one of the feature meetings on the racing calendar.

Located in the heart of beautiful Port Macquarie and overlooking the Hastings River, the club strives to deliver a customer centric experience through quality food, free entertainment, live shows, promotions and activity propositions.

All ladies will be offered free entry and a champagne on arrival as part of the day’s festivities and prizes will be awarded for the best dressed lady and best fascinator.

Entry is also free to Panthers Port Macquarie members by showing their membership card at the gates and there will be great music throughout the afternoon to complement the top-class racing.

General admission tickets can also be pre-booked or purchased on raceday with further information regarding reserved seating and tickets for the Clydesdale Room available by contacting the Port Macquarie Race Club office on 02 6581 1964 or email on admin@portmacquarieraceclub.com.au

There are plenty of great viewing and seating areas available with refreshment, dining and wagering facilities in full operation throughout the grounds together will the amazing food being served by Char Bar Catering.

With the reconstruction of the course proper receiving rave reviews from all racing participants, particularly following the successful transfer of last Sunday’s meeting from Taree, Port Macquarie Race Club is honoured to stage the $150,000 Mid North Coast Country Championships series opener, returning to the circuit for the first time since 2019.

The prestigious event will be conducted on Sunday 16th February with the first two qualifiers progressing to the Final at Randwick in April.

Following the successful introduction for Port Cup Day last October, there will be a lawn party catering for the younger patrons and all steps are being taken to showcase the Championships card for the racing enthusiasts together will the local economy.

SELECTIONS
Race 1 - 1:00PM LIVE MUSIC AT PANTHERS COUNTRY MAIDEN HCP (1006M): 2 El Beatle, 1 Craig’s One, 4 Humphree Bear
Race 2 - 1:35PM PENRITH PANTHERS PREMIERSHIP DYN4STY MDN PLATE (1206M): 11 The Eyes Have It, 1 Gigaton, 2 Firework
Race 3 - 2:10PM PANTHERS EVENT CENTRE MAIDEN PLATE (1106M): 2 Battle Hym, 3 Formal, 8 Sweet Patriot
Race 4 - 2:45PM KOVE KITCHEN AT PANTHERS BM 58 HCP (1509M): 4 Wing Nut, 7 Raised by Wolves, 6 Hypothermia
Race 5 - 3:20PM THE AUDITORIUM AT PANTHERS CLASS 1 HCP (1206M): 6 Cutepi, 2 Nightcapped, Knot Another Kiss
Race 6 - 4:00PM PANTHERS KIDS BACKYARD COUNTRY CLASS 2 HCP (1006M): 6 Bodhi Boy, 7 Cool Fizz, 2 Boambee Beach
Race 7 - 4:40PM PANTHERS PORT QUEEN OF THE NORTH - F&M BM 74 HCP (1206M): 4 Invasive Dreams, 5 Dreams of Thunder, 7 Floss’s One
Race 8 - 5:20PM TAPP BAR AT PANTHERS BM 66 HCP (1106M): 9 Magnucat, 13 Sapphire Kiss, 12 Super Impressive

View the final fields with full form & race replays for Port Macquarie here