Chris Waller isn’t letting the barrier draw sway him from regarding Kovalica as the top seed among his quintet as the stable chases its second $10 million James Squire Golden Eagle (1500m) at Rosehill on Saturday.

Whether it's a matter of being philosophical is up for debate, but when you have five runners you're more than likely to have at least one or two come off second best.

He's quick to point out that star mare Fangirl was beaten in a close photo last year having jumped from gate 17 so barriers don't always have the final say.

The Waller charges have drawn – Kovalica 16, Rediener 3, Osipenko 8, Age Of Kings 11 and Vienna Princess in 9.

"Barrier draws are a talking point pre-race, post race you can occasionally use them as an excuse,'' Waller said.

"The way I see it is it's a 20 horse field, there'll be plenty of pressure, I think the best horse will win the race. Of course if you're covering extra ground it makes it difficult but we had Fangirl in the race last year from barrier 17, she was beaten a nose.

"If you draw an inside barrier you still need luck, when you've got 20 horse fields, to get out.

"(With Kovalica) we've got a good jockey aboard that believes in the horse and if we can get some cover at some stage through the race at least he will be in a position to get out and get rolling when he needs to rather than being held up and only getting going when a gap presents.

"This year's race the James Squire Golden Eagle is a target for our stable, it's out in the west of Sydney where we are based at Rosehill.

"It's a privilege to be running on your home track, such a big race that's capturing the attention around the world as we've seen this year."

Chris Waller on Kovalica (Tommy Berry): "He's probably had a different type of preparation than most, when you're racing for $10 million including the charity money, we've brought him back from a Queensland Derby where you might traditionally be running in a Caulfield and Melbourne Cup. We think he is sharp enough. Tommy Berry agrees, he's been very happy with him. The blinkers go on to find that extra gear but we feel he's sharp enough to win the race. The blinkers have been a big help to finding that extra speed and over that 1500m distance he will need it. From barrier 16 we won't get too much into tactics. Ideally if we could be in front of a few that would make the job a bit easier as they thunder down the straight."

On Osipenko (Jason Collett ): "Things haven't really gone Osipenko's way, he's a talented horse and he's been Group 1 placed behind some very good horses. Similar to Kovalica, the blinkers go on Osipenko. He's drawn okay, he'll get a nice run and he will be very strong over 1500m."

On Age Of Kings (Craig Williams ): "He's won a similar type of race to the Golden Eagle, it was Royal Ascot 1400m up the tough Ascot straight and he held off all the challengers. Since coming to Australia he's done everything right, his appetite's good, he's a nice relaxed calm type of horse. I can't fault the horse, he's had two barrier trials in Sydney and he's been a little bit plain in both but I think under race conditions you'll see a completely different horse. He's a horse way under the radar and bringing international flavour to the race."

On Vienna Princess (Kerrin Mcevoy ): "She's won a Group race at three but now she's four she's unbeaten. Her two runs have both been good victories, one was the Silver Eagle which was the race to qualify for the Golden Eagle and she couldn't have been any more impressive. She had a tough run last start, she'll get a better run on Saturday and she can be fighting out the finish."

On Rediener (Kathy O'Hara ): "He's a Group 1 winner now coming out of the Epsom at Randwick. He's had a defeat since but that was against the best milers in the country at weight-for-age level and he drops back to his own age group. He's drawn well again, we've got a confident jockey in Kathy O'Hara on board. He's going to get a lovely run from where he's positioned in the barriers and he won't be far away."

Kovalica is the shortest priced of the quintet at $11 with TAB on Thursday though prior to the draw he was pressing for favouritism.

Waller, who won the inaugural running in 2019 with Kolding, said, aside from the huge prizemoney for the Golden Eagle, the charity aspect of the race is important as it highlights in only a small way how racing gives back to the community at large.

Ten per cent of the prizemoney earned by every horse will be donated to a nominated charity and Waller's charges are running for the National Jockeys Trust (Kovalica), Redkite (Rediener), Team Tye Foundation (Osipenko), Ingham Institute For Applied Medical Research (Age Of Kings) and Royal Flying Doctor Service (Vienna Princess).

"It's a very family orientated industry. When people are in need they're the first to hand out, they are very generous with time and money and helping where they can,'' Waller said.

"So plenty goes back into the community but it's good to be able to highlight it where $1 million is given out to charity."