Brenton Avdulla won't raise the white flag yet, but the long-time premiership leader has conceded it's "highly unlikely" he can halt Hugh Bowman's irresistible charge to a fourth Sydney jockeys' title on the final day of the season.

Avdulla, who has enjoyed a career-best season but has been helpless to stop the Bowman express over the past few weeks, needs to claw back a 2½ win deficit at Rosehill on Saturday to capture a first Sydney crown he was in pole position to win for most of the year.

But despite having his biggest book of rides at a metropolitan meeting for weeks – Avdulla has eight rides to Bowman's nine –​ the multiple group 1 winner knows he needs a minor miracle to ensure there's one last twist in the title tale.

"I think it's highly unlikely, but you never know what can happen," Avdulla said. "I'll turn up, do my best and see what happens at the end of the day. I reckon they're an even [bunch of rides]. I wouldn't be shocked going home with six placings and I wouldn't be shocked going home with a couple of winners."

Bowman (81), who padded his lead with a Canterbury treble on Wednesday, is booked for heavily backed favourite D'Argento in the two-year-old opener and has Prada Miss, Zourkhan and Gold Symphony as other market toppers later in the day.

Avdulla (78.5) will lean on The Pharoah, Appoint Percy, Slumber Party and Liapari to be the backbone of his rides, as he ironically rides chances for Chris Waller, Bowman's major backer, in the last three city races of the season.

"It's been very frustrating, as obviously Hugh has had everything go his way and I've had not much go my way," Avdulla said. "He's got the support of the big stables and I've been turning up with half books.

"I've had a good season and I set a goal to try to ride more city winners than last season, put myself in the top three and ride a group 1 winner. I've achieved everything I've wanted to achieve.

"It's a little bit disappointing how I've finished the last month off, but in saying that Hugh's rated the best rider in the world at the moment. He turns up on the big occasions – whether it's the last couple of weeks of the season or a big group 1 – he gets the job done.

"What's going to make it difficult is Hugh's probably got the one to beat in the first and then it will make it very hard. ​[But] there seems to be chances there for [me] most of the day. It's definitely a book that I'm full with, which makes a change from the last few weeks."

Avdulla pinpointed the Gai Waterhouse and Adrian Bott-trained Slumber Party as potentially his best ride, as the filly returns from a brief break following a Queensland campaign to target some of the early season stakes races.

"I think Slumber Party will run well," Avdulla said. "She might take on some of the better horses [in the new season], which will be first-up or second-up, and she'll be rock-hard fit."

Bowman can cap his stunning season – in which Winx will be crowned Australian horse of the year again – with victory in the final stakes race of the year, the $150,000 Winter Challenge.

He will be legged aboard the Triple Crown-owned Gold Symphony, an impressive Civic Stakes winner that was blocked for a run most of the way down the straight in the Winter Challenge.

Avdulla will take over from Bowman on the Waller-trained Liapari, a last-start winner, in the Winter Challenge.

"It's been exciting to see [the premiership race]," Triple Crown's Chris Ward said. "Having [Bowman] on board ... he's as hungry as they come and he's the ultimate professional.

"It's a little bit of extra motivation, which is fantastic. Peter and Paul said [Gold Symphony's] a new horse this campaign and coming back to these winter races in Sydney has been ideal. He's probably not a group 1 horse in the spring, but you can go to Brisbane and then run through the winter in Sydney."

The ultimate racing form guide with free tips, live odds and alerts for all racing.