Having partnered improving three-year-old Tempered to a narrow win at Sandown, jockey Damian Lane is upbeat about the chances of the gelding's elder sibling in the Group Three Standish Handicap.

Tempered rallied in the straight to post his first city win by a nose in Wednesday's Polytrack Handicap (1600m) coming off an Echuca maiden win.

His half-brother Durendal is the clear-cut $2.80 favourite in early markets for Friday's Group Three Standish Handicap which has attracted a field of 12.

Lane rode Durendal to a last-start win at Flemington in an Open Handicap down the straight 1200m-course in a pointer towards the Standish over the same course and distance.

"He's an ever-improving horse," Lane said.

"I couldn't have been happier with the way he won down the straight at his first go and generally speaking they improve at their next go down the straight. So I'm excited to see how he goes.

"I think he really gets his chance."

Simon Zahra, who trains in partnership with Mathew Ellerton, believes Durendal has drawn perfectly in barrier six.

"He can get a bit of cover and come out and he's going to get every chance from there. There's no excuses," Zahra said.

"He's doing everything right so we're confident going in there that he's going to run a good race."

Last year's Christmas Stakes winner Tried And Tired is on the second line at $6.50 along with the John O'Shea-trained four-year-old Sarajevo, one of two horses from the Godolphin team with Barbed the other.

Tried And Tired will be ridden by Mark Zahra whose only other ride on the Leon and Troy Corstens-trained galloper producing a win at Caulfield in April, 2014.