Those punters that took the short odds about Cylinder in his return run at Caulfield would be grateful for the never-say-die attitude of Blake Shinn.

The James Cummings-trained three-year-old got the bob in right on the line to claim the Group 3 Vain Stakes (1100m) on Saturday to set up a promising spring campaign.

Sent off the $1.50 Boombet.com.au favourite under Blake Shinn, Cylinder got his head down on the line to grab the leader Ouroboros ($11) and win by a nose with I Am Unstoppable ($11) charging home for third, a half-neck away.

Shinn said Cylinder was still a little ring rusty and would only improve as his spring campaign progresses.

“He was a little bit ring rusty, but full credit to the second horse, they made a race of it,” Shinn said.

“They put it to us in the early stages and they put it to us prior to the turn and my horse was out of his comfort zone early.

“When the chips were down, he was off the bridle, but he never stopped trying and he showed great determination.

“I wasn’t sure that we got there, but his class shone through.

“He’s got a lot to offer this horse and he’s only going to get better into the prep.”

Shin said there would be a lot of improvement to come from Cylinder who proved himself one of last season’s best two-year-olds with his placing in the Golden Slipper and with the potential to prove himself one of the country’s best three-year-olds.

“This wasn’t his main target today, but it looks good on his CV being a three-year-old colt and he’ll measure up to whatever James and the team aim him up at,” Shinn said.

“This is a great steppingstone today and it’s nice to get the job done on him.”