It’s always great to see a full field in the big staying handicaps, and a good one has been assembled this year. The Sydney Cup is often a race that has a long tail, but this year you can make at least half a case for almost all of the field.

King Frankel is the “weight” horse from the Tancred into the Sydney Cup, dropping a whopping 9kg’s. He was only a length off the winner Arapaho, and was a length in front of the aforementioned Cleveland. He’s racing like he still has upside, but is an unknown quantity at 3200m.

Six horses are backing up into this out of last week’s Chairman’s Handicap, won by Surefire. There was nothing splitting him, Gin Martini and Nerve Not Verve across the line – the latter two meet the Chris Waller galloper better at the weights, and are proven at 3200m.

High Emocean was blazing fourth in the Chairman’s, which will have topped her off nicely, and the Melbourne Cup placegetter appeals as a value hope.

Selections: 1.Cleveland 2.High Emocean 3.King Frankel 4.Surefire