Payline due for a change of fortune

Four starts on three of the four Melbourne metropolitan tracks have left the pair lamenting their lack of luck since arriving in Victoria in late August. 

Payline is back for a fifth attempt at success in Melbourne for the spring when he contests The Damien Oliver (1400m) at Flemington on Saturday. 

Having been ridden by Justin Huxtable in his first three starts in Melbourne and then Blake Shinn in his most recent outing, Craig Williams takes over on Saturday having partnered the gelding in a gallop at Flemington on Tuesday morning. 

Chris Munce said Payline was going well but just needs some luck to go his way. 

"He's had four runs down here and he's run into a bit of traffic on all occasions," Munce said. 

"He's in terrific order. He galloped well at Flemington on Tuesday morning and the big track over 1400 metres, I'm hoping it will suit him." 

Payline's first three runs in Melbourne were over sprint courses before rising to 1400m when fourth behind Private Eye in the Moonga Stakes (1400m) at Caulfield on October 18. 

The gelding did run fifth in the Group 1 Stradbroke Handicap over 1400m at Eagle Farm in the middle of the year and Munce said as Payline gets older, the extra trip is more to his liking. 

"The 1400 metres probably suits, and he could get a mile, the way he is going," Munce said. 

"I don't fear the 1400 (metres) the way he went the other day. He's handling his workload and he's doing well down here."

Munce said depending on how Payline performs, the gelding could back-up into the Champions Mile (1600m) on Saturday week. 

But Munce also has the Queensland Summer Carnival in mind for the galloper. 

"If he put them away very easily, maybe we could back-up, but he's still got a few races ahead of him in Brisbane during the summer," Munce said. 

"He's a Magic Millions horse. He won the $1 million syndicate race up there last year, so there's plenty of races up there he can run in."