Mother-and-daughter training duo Lyn Tolson and Leonie Proctor are hopeful that Melbourne’s cooler conditions will work in Curran’s favour when he lines up at Caulfield this weekend.

The veteran sprinter is set to contest the Listed Bel Esprit Stakes (1100m) on Saturday, but if the run proves disappointing, it may mark the final appearance of a career that’s yielded five wins and nearly $900,000 in earnings from a modest $600 purchase.

Curran has not found the winner’s stall since capturing the Country Discovery at Geelong in April last year, and his three runs this preparation have been below his usual standard.

Tolson admitted retirement was considered following his last-placed finish at Caulfield on May 10, but rider Billy Egan’s feedback suggested they should continue.

With Tolson’s grandson Matt Cartwright now back from New Zealand and taking the reins in trackwork, Curran is primed for one more shot at form revival.

“We had thoughts about retiring him last start, but Billy said ‘I don’t know’,” Tolson explained.

“He still feels enormous, and he said maybe he needs to get that fitness up a little bit more.”

“He feels the best since he was a three-year-old and Matt has come back from New Zealand, so we thought, we’ll put Matt on, he knows the horse really well.”

“He’s galloped him a couple of times and he’s galloped up well, so we’re just wondering whether it’s wear and tear on the lungs and throat as his action is good.”

“Matthew’s not backwards in coming forward. If he’s not right, he’ll soon tell us after we thought Billy would jump off and say something, but he didn’t give us a bad report at all.”

“That’s because he feels so good underneath, so if it was anything to do with his action, he would be retired now.”

Throat and breathing troubles have consistently troubled Curran throughout his career, but more recently, foot issues kept him sidelined for almost a year.

“We did give him time out with his feet last year, and since then we’ve had a few little issues, so it hasn’t been a perfect preparation,” Tolson said.

“And with the dust, the summer and the long dry spell, the pollens have always been a bit of an issue with him, so we’ve probably been a little soft on him too.”

“He’s had a few inflammation problems which has forced us to back off for a while, but going into this one everything’s been good, and we’ve been able to get the work into him.”

“There may be one more, maybe not, Saturday will be the day we make a decision.”

“But he’ll stay around the farm. He’s a great lead horse and he’ll stay around for sure.”