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By Ray Hickson

There’s no doubting champion trainer Chris Waller has strength in numbers as he aims for his fifth Group 1 $750,000 Furphy Metropolitan (2400m) at Randwick on Saturday but there’s also no doubting who his number one seed is.

Trainer Chris Waller (Pic: Bradley Photos).

While plenty of attention will be on Chalk Stream, who was owned by the late Queen Elizabeth II and now racing for the new monarch King Charles III, it’s runaway Wyong and Newcastle Cup winner Durston that Waller sees as the horse to beat.

Durston is in his first preparation for Waller and though the early stages of his campaign were promising he admitted the ease of both victories took him by surprise.

Waller accepted with seven stayers but indicated Durston, Chalk Stream, No Compromise, Kukeracha and Hameron will take their place.

“He’s number one, the others you can state a case for all of them,’’ Waller said.

“He was trialling enormously and he’s kept improving all the way through. He’s flying, simple as that.

“I didn’t expect him to do it twice and to do it better (at Newcastle). He just needs to switch off and relax and be able to use that turn of foot.”

The seven-year-old, $3.60 favourite with TAB on Thursday, will be partnered by Kerrin McEvoy and while he is yet to be tried in heavy ground Waller said there’s no reason to think he won’t cope especially considering the form he’s in.

“They’ve been on better tracks (his recent wins) and that would be the only query,’’ he said.

“He’s just gone from strength to strength in terms of confidence. As long as it’s fine on the day and he gets reasonable footing who knows he might handle it.”

While earlier in the week he was unsure whether Chalk Stream would take his place in the Metropolitan, due to the mourning period following Her Majesty’s death, Waller said in his weekly preview it’s an honour to have the horse running for King Charles III.

Waller has made a host of gear changes to the five-year-old, who last raced when fourth in the City Tattersalls Cup on September 3, in an effort to bring out his best.

Kathy O'Hara will wear the famous Royal silks.

“We missed a run while the Royal Family were in mourning, with Her Majesty’s passing, but is he really a horse that needs a lot of racing,’’ he said.

“He’s naturally a very fit horse, we’ve done quite a bit of work with him, experimenting with gear, getting him to run straight.

“We’re hoping the different gear gives Kathy a bit of an opportunity to steal the show.”

Chalk Stream’s only Australian placing to date came in the Queen’s Cup back in March, a race won by No Compromise who has been quietly hitting the line in his three runs from a spell.

Durston wins the Newcastle Cup

A proven wet tracker, the six-year-old was placed in the Chelmsford Stakes (1600m) second-up before finishing two lengths from Alegron in the Kingston Town Stakes (2000m) two weeks ago.

“It’s his distance, good jockey, good draw,’’ Waller said.

“He’s okay in the heavy, I’d much rather him on a heavy 8 than a heavy 10. It’s his type of race, he’s a genuine Group 2 horse and this isn’t the strongest Group 1.”

Of his other duo, Waller said 2021 Queensland Derby winner Kukeracha is a little out of form on the track but his work suggests he’s in good order while the Metropolitan was an afterthought for the lightly raced Hameron who jumps from a third in a Benchmark 88 over 1900m last weekend.

Come Play With Me in 2019 was Waller’s latest Metropolitan winner.

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