Progressive Lindsay Park stayer The Western Front is set to continue his demanding campaign in Saturday’s $150,000 Banjo Paterson Series Final at Flemington.

This 2600-metre event marks the tenth start of a preparation that began with a fourth placing in a benchmark 70 over 1600m at Flemington on January 10.

The five-year-old gelding has since achieved four victories, notably the Listed Sandown Cup (3200m), and while co-trainer Ben Hayes expressed surprise at the campaign’s longevity, he remains pleased with the horse’s condition and believes there are more goals to pursue.

“When you get them fit you keep them happy and in a rhythm and these days, with technology, trainers are able to keep horses up for longer,” he said.

“It’s good for them, they enjoy being in work. Some don’t, so you put them in the paddock.

“He’s a horse we’d like to get his rating up a bit more to target maybe the back-end of spring with him.

“He could bob up over Cup Week running in one of those staying races.”

Hayes confirmed that the Group 3 Queen Elizabeth Stakes (2600m) on Champions Day is a more probable target this year than the $10m Melbourne Cup (3200m).

The Western Front enters the race following a second-place finish to Vegas Jack at Flemington on June 20, a run where he experienced a difficult passage from the outside barrier. Hayes is confident the gelding can improve his placing with more favourable racing luck.

“He probably had the hardest run in the race,” Hayes, who trains in partnership with brother Will and JD, said of the 1-1/4-length defeat.

“He had no luck at all. He was wide the whole trip, had to work in the middle stages, hit the front early and just got run over late.

“But he’s come through the run well.”

The Western Front, to be ridden by Daniel Stackhouse, will meet Vegas Jack 1.5kg better at the weights from their last start and will break from barrier six, while Vegas Jack is drawn in barrier nine.

The gelding is currently the $4.20 favourite, with Vegas Jack at $7. Wuddzz is rated at $5.

Consider placing a bet on The Western Front with leading online bookmakers for the Banjo Paterson Series Final.

Lionel Messi has once again rewritten FIFA World Cup history, surpassing Kylian Mbappe and Pele to set a new record. The Argentina captain netted the first goal against tournament debutants Cabo Verde to set the record in the ongoing round of 32 clash in Miami (July 3, ET).

The strike gave him 12 goal contributions in World Cup knockout rounds, the most in the history of the competition. That number puts the 39-year-old ahead of both Kylian Mbappe and Pele, who had previously been tied for the top spot on 11 each.

He scored in the 29th minute to break a tense stalemate that had frustrated the reigning champions early on. The goal itself was a signature of his genius: Lisandro Martinez’s inviting pass over the top sent Messi gliding past the Cabo Verde defense with a perfect run. He controlled the ball beautifully in his stride before lifting a composed effort over Vozinha to put Argentina 1-0 up.

The strike also took his run to eight consecutive FIFA World Cup matches on the scoresheet, a streak which has not been equaled by anyone. And on top of that, Lionel Messi has now scored against 14 different teams. It is the most by any player, surpassing the likes of Miroslav Klose, Ronaldo Nazario, and Jurgen Klinsmann, all of whom have 10.

Lionel Messi at the FIFA World Cup so Far

Lionel Messi arrived at a record sixth FIFA World Cup with question marks over his fitness after nursing a minor hamstring issue in the build-up. But any lingering doubts were quickly dispelled in Argentina’s Group J opener against Algeria in Kansas City.

His terrific hat-trick in the 3-0 triumph pulled him level with Miroslav Klose as the tournament’s all-time leading goalscorer. He didn’t wait long before making that record his own in the next match, against Austria. He scored twice to surpass Klose’s tally and increase his overall total. His influence went beyond the goals and ensured his team dominated the group stage with maximum points.

Lionel Messi rounded off the group stage against Jordan, coming off the bench to curl in a trademark free-kick. That gave him six goals in the group stage, level with Mbappe at the top of the scoring charts going into the knockout rounds. His goal against Cabo Verde was his 20th goal at the FIFA World Cup.

If Argentina can survive this tie, they’ll meet Egypt in the round of 16 in Atlanta on July 7. For a country dreaming of back-to-back trophies, their talisman appears far from finished.