A brilliant ride from champion Damien Oliver gave Melbourne trainer Danny O'Brien some early winter carnival success when Ballack scored a last-stride win in the Group Three Chairman's Handicap at Doomben.Oliver continued his great autumn carnival form from Sydney when he booted Ballack through a needle-eye opening along the rails over the final stages to down the Gai Waterhouse-trained Rabbuka by three-quarters of a length in the 2020-metre feature.Gallant New Zealander Sir Slick again tried va

A brilliant ride from champion Damien Oliver gave Melbourne trainer Danny O'Brien some early winter carnival success when Ballack scored a last-stride win in the Group Three Chairman's Handicap at Doomben.

Oliver continued his great autumn carnival form from Sydney when he booted Ballack through a needle-eye opening along the rails over the final stages to down the Gai Waterhouse-trained Rabbuka by three-quarters of a length in the 2020-metre feature.

Gallant New Zealander Sir Slick again tried valiantly to lead all the way and fought on bravely to fill the minor placing a further half-neck away.

Oliver is yet to finalise his mount for next month's Group Two Brisbane Cup (2400m) at Eagle Farm but all but declared he would ride the Melbourne five-year-old in Queensland's premier staying race.

Ballack and Rabbuka are likely to meet again in the Group Three Premier's Cup (2200m) at Doomben in a fortnight.

"I haven't looked that far ahead to the Brisbane Cup yet but I think I'll ride him," Oliver said.

"It was a good win. I was hoping to get a run along the fence and I could see Sir Slick was moving off the fence.

"When the run came he ducked through the gap really fast.

"I never had a lot of options in the run so I persevered where I was and it paid off."

O'Brien brought Ballack to Brisbane at the tail end of last year's Brisbane winter carnival and was successful with the Montjeu gelding in the Group Three Tattersall's Cup (2200m) at Eagle Farm.

"I brought him up to Brisbane earlier this year and it's been a good start," O'Brien said.

"He won the Tatt's Cup last year here and failed in the Caloundra Cup but since then he's been to Western Australia and ran third in the Perth Cup.

"He's by Montjeu and as they get older they seem to find a length or two.

"It was a great ride from Damien and it'll be hard to sack him for the Brisbane Cup."

Mel Norton, who is in charge of Waterhouse's Brisbane team, was delighted with Rabbuka's effort.

"He got held up at the top of the straight and he's a one-pacer who takes a while to wind up," Norton said.