A small field of just seven two-year-olds will take to the Rosehill Gardens track on Saturday in the Silver Slipper Stakes 2017 on way to the world’s richest race for juveniles next month.

Golden Slipper favourite She Will Reign heads a small seven horse 2017 Silver Slipper Stakes field at Rosehill this weekend. Photo: Steve Hart.

Running as Rosehill Race 5 at 3:10pm (AEDT), the $250,000 Group 2 Silver Slipper Stakes (1100m) is a key lead-up to the lucrative $3.5 million Group 1 Golden Slipper Stakes (1200m) back at the track on March 18.

Current favourite in futures Golden Slipper Stakes odds at Ladbrokes.com.au at $5 for the win is the Gary Portelli-trained Manhattan Rain filly She Will Reign.

She will be out to retain her flawless career record racing first-up in the Silver Slipper Stakes from barrier five with Ben Melham aboard.

After winning her opening two starts in Sydney during December, She Will Reign also blitzed a Warwick Farm trial over 808m on February 6 by nine lengths.

Her latest victory was at Randwick in the Inglis Nursery where she and Melham posted a runaway four length success on a Heavy (8) track.

The other early fancy in all-in Golden Slipper Stakes odds running in the Silver Slipper Stakes this weekend is the Peter & Paul Snowden-trained Khan ($11) in the outside alley (7).

Team Snowden prepared last year’s Golden Slipper winner Capitalist (2016), while co-trainer Peter Snowden also won the classic with Sepoy (2011) for the then Darley stable.

Exceed And Excel colt Khan shapes up as their best home in the Group 1 this season after he won the Listed Breeders Plate (1000m) at Randwick on debut last October.

He has trialled twice since leading up to his much awaited return including a Gosford win at the start of the month.

Coming off a first-up win in the Listed Lonhro Plate (1100m) at Randwick on February is the also undefeated John O’Shea-trained Veranillo for the Godolphin stable.

The well-bred Medaglia D’Oro colt also won his debut at Rosehill last November and has Brenton Avdulla aboard from barrier four this weekend stepping up to Group 2 class.

The rails-run belongs to dual Golden Slipper winning jockey Tommy Berry and his Silver Slipper Stakes mount Showtime for Hawkes Racing.

The Snitzel colt has had two starts to date, the latest a credible fourth behind subsequent Blue Diamond Prelude runner-up in Melbourne Pariah in Rosehill’s Group 3 Canonbury Stakes (1100m) late last month.

Gai Waterhouse has prepared six Golden Slipper winners – most recently Vancouver (2015) – and in the Silver Slipper Stakes field on Saturday has Mystic Empire in the mix.

The daughter of All Too Hard has had two runs and chases her maiden win on the back of an eye-catching second to Teaspoon at the track in the Group 3 Widden Stakes (1100m).

Rounding out the field are Lonhro Plate fourth-placed Sepoy gelding Lightz and Anthony Cummings’ returning Pluck filly Lucky Louie who ran second to Invincible Star in the Group 3 over 1000m at Flemington back on Melbourne Cup Day.

Check out the full Silver Slipper Stakes 2017 field, barriers and jockeys below before heading to Ladbrokes.com.au to back your favourite two-year-olds this weekend and in futures Golden Slipper Stakes odds.

2017 Silver Slipper Stakes Final Field & Barrier Draw

Rosehill Race 5 (3:10pm) – 18/02/2017