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By Tony Megahey

Veteran Wauchope trainer Graham Hoy is under no illusions taking on multiple TAB Highway winners Matthew Dunn and Matthew Dale in a $60,000, 1800m episode on “Winx Comeback Day” at Royal Randwick on Saturday, but remains buoyed about his outsider Allzin.

“I’m a one horse old codger and this fella goes pretty well, been competitive in harder races,” Hoy offered. “He’s been placed at Canterbury and Newcastle, beaten in photos at the Gold Coast and Ipswich, and we even had a crack at the 2015 Queensland Derby when Hughie Bowman rode him.”

Hoy has Allzin primed by two recent trials since a late October Canterbury Park BM 72, second-placing over 2700m to David Payne’s Doc Holliday. However, Hoy has stressed that Allzin needs a firm track and is concerned about early week rain at headquarters.

“I had him set for this race a while back, he’s won first up at a ‘mile’ but he doesn’t go a yard on rain affected tracks. So I’ll make a final decision late week. But I’d booked Nick Heywood to claim, and also accommodation at Coogee, just a few minutes from the Randwick track. And of course everybody involved in racing would want to be at Randwick with Winx making her comeback.

“Still there’s another suitable Highway coming up in town shortly, so we’ll be in one or the other. But this horse is trained-up, well weighted with the claim and certainly not misplaced.”

Five-year-old Allzin (Al Maher-Zin Zin) will be lengthy odds against seven-time TAB Highway winner Matthew Dunn’s Medieval, an impressive last start Doomben 1600m winner. Medieval has also been placed at Eagle Farm, re-enforcing Dunn’s formula for prolific Highway success.

Six-time Highway winner Matthew Dale is again in strong contention with Circle Game, a strong third to Dunn’s Madam De Ban in a 1500m Rosehill episode, two weeks ago. The Joseph and Jones stable, with wins at last week’s Bega Cup Carnival at the Sapphire track, and with recent TAB Highway success, has two acceptors.