Blue Diamond Stakes winner and Golden Slipper placegetter Samaready returns to trainer Mick Price's Caulfield stable on Wednesday to prepare for a spring campaign full of hope tinged with nervous tension.

The preparation that began a few weeks ago with pre-training in NSW, continues against a background of illness and injury that robbed the star filly her three-year-old season.

This time last year Samaready returned from her winter break as a potential headline act of the spring carnival.

But the journey that was intended to progress to the Thousand Guineas ended after only one run in which she finished fourth when favourite in the Quezette Stakes at Caulfield.

After spending the spring in a paddock, Samaready returned to training in the autumn, progressing well until suffering a muscle strain in her hindquarters.

Again connections abandoned the campaign, sending the filly back to the paddock.

"She struck a heavy track first-up last spring and she had a bug, so that was that," Price said.

Before her autumn injury Samaready had trialled brilliantly with regular rider Craig Newitt declaring her back to the form she showed as a juvenile.

Price said all reports from pre-training were positive and he looked forward to Samaready arriving at Caulfield "bigger and better than ever".

By missing the autumn, Samaready not only had a good rest, but dodged an intended clash with Black Caviar in the Lightning Stakes, a meeting that was probably best avoided.

For Samaready's part-owner Vinery Stud, a spring campaign for Samaready is all the more anticipated by her owners thanks to the retirement not only of Black Caviar but also of her half-brother All Too Hard.

Samaready's part-owner Vinery Stud acquired a share in All Too Hard due to the unravelling of Nathan Tinkler's racing empire and retired the colt after an outstanding, undefeated autumn.