David Hayes is hoping the addition of blinkers and a dry track will bring out the best in Long Leaf (Fastnet Rock) in the Golden Rose at Rosehill.
Long Leaf will be Lindsay Park's sole representative in the Group One race over 1400m for three-year-old's on Saturday.
After running on strongly over 1100m at Caulfield on August 18, Long Leaf was switched to Sydney to contest the Run To The Rose (1200m) on September 8.
A heavy track thwarted his chances with the colt finishing eighth of the 11 runners behind Lean Mean Machine.
Long Leaf had previously performed well in Sydney in the autumn finishing sixth to Estijaab in the Golden Slipper (1200m) at Rosehill and fourth to El Dorado Dreaming in the ATC Sires' Produce Stakes (1400m) at Randwick.
Hayes is confident Long Leaf can turn around his poor showing in the Run To The Rose.
"He's not good on the wet," Hayes said.
"He'll improve out of sight with the blinkers back on and getting to the 1400 metres.
"He's worked well in the blinkers and they've worked wonders plenty of time before on race day.
"I'm confident of a very good run so long as it's dry, but if it's wet then I probably wouldn't even run him."
Long Leaf is a graduate of the 2017 New Zealand Bloodstock Premier Yearling Sale, with the son of Fastnet Rock sold from Gordon Cunningham’s Curraghmore for $750,00 to Adrian Nicol of BBA Ireland. -AAP
