Refreshed from his English riding stint, Hugh Bowman returns at Rosehill on Saturday determined to recapture his premiership-winning form of three seasons ago.Bowman arrived home on Tuesday after spending two months in the UK and got back into the swing of Sydney racing with 12 rides at Thursday's Warwick Farm trial session.He has four rides to kick-off his 2011/12 campaign at Rosehill on Saturday including Group One winner Pressday in the Listed Starlight Stakes (1100m).Bowman finished fourth i
Refreshed from his English riding stint, Hugh Bowman returns at Rosehill on Saturday determined to recapture his premiership-winning form of three seasons ago.
Bowman arrived home on Tuesday after spending two months in the UK and got back into the swing of Sydney racing with 12 rides at Thursday's Warwick Farm trial session.
He has four rides to kick-off his 2011/12 campaign at Rosehill on Saturday including Group One winner Pressday in the Listed Starlight Stakes (1100m).
Bowman finished fourth in last season's Sydney premiership and notched 17 stakes wins for the season including four at Group One level.
"I didn't ride as many winners last season as I did the couple before that but I had my best stakeswinning season," Bowman said.
"That will be my aim this season, to be as competitive as I can at the top end.
"That doesn't mean I'm not going to be working at the bottom end either, when I say that I mean I'm going to look to be riding as much as I can at the provincials and in the city and get a bit of momentum again and try to find the form I was in in 2008."
Bowman won the Sydney premiership in 2008/09 with 98 wins and believes that's when he was at his best.
"I've probably been a bit lazy the last 12 or 18 months and it's something that hasn't gone unnoticed, by me anyway," he said.
"So I'll be looking to rectify that this season."
Pressday failed to find his best form during the autumn in a three-run campaign and makes his return in the Starlight Stakes with Bowman to ride the four-year-old in a race for the first time.
The winner of the Group One TJ Smith Stakes (1600m) in Brisbane as a two-year-old and Group Two Sandown Guineas (1600m) winner last spring, Pressday is the $6 third favourite with TAB Sportsbet for the Starlight behind joint favourites Soul and Master Of Design ($4.60).
"Pressday had a disappointing preparation last time but he was a bit of a boom horse before that," Bowman said.
"I don't know how he's going, I haven't discussed him with Chris (Waller) just yet.
"I'm delighted I've got the ride.
"His temperament probably let him down a bit last prep but if he wasn't ready to race and run competitively I'm sure they wouldn't be running him.
"He is a good horse and he's certainly up to winning the race."
Bowman will also ride the Waller-trained The Warrior Woman and Aspinal at Rosehill, with his other ride being Bay Window for trainer Gwenda Markwell in the final race.