A final call on Hugh Bowman’s availability for Sha Tin’s National Day meeting will be made on Tuesday morning after the star Australian missed Saturday’s fixture with an ear issue.

Bowman missed out on two winners on the weekend because of the ailment, which is affecting his balance, and he has plenty of chances on Tuesday.

Group One winner Invincible Sage headlines his eight-strong book, with Stellar Express, Geneva and Enjoy Golf also among those who look ready to run well.

“Jockey Bowman is showing signs of improvement with his current medical condition that resulted in him having to forego his riding commitments at the Sha Tin meeting last Saturday. A decision will be made early [Tuesday] morning in consultation with club medical officers to determine if jockey Bowman is fit to fulfil his riding engagements later that day,” the Jockey Club said in a statement.

Invincible Sage is first up for the season in the Group Three National Day Cup (1,000m), where the reigning Group One Chairman’s Sprint Prize (1,200m) champion will race over five furlongs for the first time since March.

The five-year-old boasts a strong record down the Sha Tin straight, winning three of his six attempts, but trainer David Hall isn’t getting away about his charge’s chances.

“I’m really happy with his progress but Tuesday is just a starting point for him. It’s a handicap race – it ticks a lot of boxes for a few others more so than it does for him,” Hall said.

“He’s not going to be 110 per cent fit on Tuesday, but it’s a good place for him to kick off.

“I could go and trial him again but he loves the straight track. There’s a race there for him which will bring him on for where he needs to be and he’s done really well in the off-season. It will be interesting to see with a big weight on a fast track.”

Invincible Sage must lump top weight of 135 pounds in a race where six of the nine runners carry the minimum impost of 115, with five of them varying degrees out of the handicap.

The son of Thronum will jump from barrier three in his first-up assignment, with Hall plotting a course to December’s Group One Hong Kong Sprint (1,200m) with his stable star before possibly looking further afield.

“He’s a good straight horse, so there might be a Dubai option for him later in the season if his form stands up,” Hall said in reference to the Group One Al Quoz Sprint (1,200m) down the Meydan straight on Dubai World Cup night in April.

“But, of course, we want to be here on our home ground in the premier races [first].”