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By Ray Hickson

Napoleonic will likely be given his chance to rise to the level of Group 1 winner this spring and the John O’Shea and Tom Charlton stable want to see a preview in the four-year-old’s return at Randwick on Saturday.

The stable has taken its time with the entire, he was a Group 3 winner at the end of his spring campaign last year and wrapped his three-year-old season with three Group 1 attempts including a Doomben 10,000 placing.

Tom Charlton said a lot will be learned about where he stands after the Group 2 $300,000 Kia Ora Stud Missile Stakes (1200m).

“He’s clearly a talented horse and if he can improve again, and there’s no reason he can’t, it puts him in the mix,’’ Charlton said.

“He didn’t have long off so he’s quite forward for this assignment.

“It’s probably an above average Missile Stakes but there’s no reason why he can’t be very competitive.”

Trainer Tom Charlton (Pic: Grant Guy).

Back in the autumn Napoleonic, $6.50 with TAB on Friday, bumped into TAB Everest runner-up Tempted when he resumed in the Eskimo Prince Stakes then chased home Ninja, one of his Missile rivals, in the Hobartville Stakes.

He beat Ninja in the first of his two trials before the result was reversed in the second of them and Charlton is just looking for a good steer from Chad Schofield, who replaces the suspended Zac Lloyd.

“We haven’t got any firm plans leading into the remainder of the spring but this is a race we thought he’d be competitive in at Group 2 level,’’ he said.

“There looks to be a few bits of speed in the race so hopefully every horse gets its chance.”

The O’Shea/Charlton stable won the last edition of the Missile Stakes with Schwarz, who progressed to win a Group 1, back in 2024 with last year’s renewal washed out.

Import Sam Hawkens is yet to live up to the promise he showed prior to landing in Australia but Charlton is hopeful in his second full preparation for the stable he can win back some fans.

The six-year-old was unplaced in three runs in the autumn and he’ll resurface in the TAB Premier’s Cup Prelude (1800m), a race still well short of his pet distances, with a good base for his first-up assignment.

“He was a bit disappointing last preparation, we went into the autumn with some high hopes for him and it didn’t quite work out,’’ Charlton said.

“We’ve given him extra time which can be of benefit for an imported horse.

“He’s trialling well, his first one was soft but we wanted to make sure he was focused in the second one and remind him what we’re coming to expect and have a nice enough galop for 1800m first-up.”

Tom Charlton on Kenmare Bay (race 5): “He’s racing very well, it’s a step up in grade but he’s a consistent horse who should enjoy a stiff mile. He doesn’t have a lot of early gate speed so he is often dictated to, he could probably use the gate a little bit but he is what he is.”

All the fields, form and replays for Saturday’s Randwick meeting