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By Ray Hickson

It’s not unusual for Bjorn Baker to give a horse showing some talent a good grounding before coming to town and he’s hoping his patience will be rewarded when Shirvington makes his city debut at Warwick Farm on Wednesday.

The four-year-old has won four of his six starts at provincial level and on the back of successive Wyong wins this preparation he finds himself in the Keeneland November Breeding Stock Sale Handicap (1300m).

Shirvington has been a work in progress, racing once as a two-year-old then had almost a year off the scene but since then the only way has been up.

“I think it looks to have paid off,’’ Baker said.

“Early days he wasn’t quite there and he’s taken time but he’s definitely got plenty of ability and I think he’s going particularly well.

“He deserves a crack, it’s obviously a step up but he has a really good gate.”

Dylan Gibbons rides Shirvington, $5 with TAB on Tuesday, from barrier three which Baker said will give him options as his four wins have come in different styles.

He sat three wide with cover and toughed it out to score narrowly first-up on heavy ground then returned to Wyong a few weeks later and sat outside the speed then dashed away to account for subsequent winner Bodhi Boy.

Shirvington wins at Wyong on September 5

“He has good natural speed and he’s had to do it the hard way in his first two runs,’’ Baker said.

“He should be able to get a more economical run from the good gate and he couldn’t look any better. He can either lead or be right there so he can be flexible.

“He has a really good pedigree and a good win record so I’m excited about him.”

Meanwhile, Baker was pleased with Sydney Cup winner Arapaho’s performance in the Kingston Town Stakes last weekend with the $750,000 Asahi Super Dry Metropolitan (2400m) looming.

Arapaho has 58kg in the Group 1 staying contest and he’ll be fourth-up having run fourth behind Birdman after chasing the runaway leader.

“I thought he was good, he had to do a lot of the donkey work and drag the field up,’’ he said.

“It was a good enough run to go forward with a bit of confidence.”

And on classy filly Within The Law, Baker just has the fingers crossed the barrier gods are kind to her following successive wide gates have seen her concede plenty of ground in both the Furious and Tea Rose Stakes.

She heads to the Group 1 Flight Stakes (1600m) on Saturday week.

“She didn’t have any luck and out to a mile at Randwick is a different sent up. We’re just hoping she can draw a gate,’’ he said.

All the fields, form and replays for Wednesday’s Warwick Farm meeting