Most jockeys these days ride as freelances, but a link to a powerful stable will make a huge difference to a rider's career trajectory.

There here are few more powerful set ups than the two-state Godolphin operation for which Sydney-based John O'Shea is the head trainer and David Charles the boss of the Melbourne subsidiary.

And it is a long-established connection between Charles, himself a one-time champion apprentice jockey, and four-time Victorian champion Craig Williams, which could prove crucial for the latter as he seeks to regain a premiership he last claimed in 2008-09, when he tied with Damien Oliver.

Williams steered home three winners at Caulfield in the royal blue of Godolphin on Saturday to put himself at the top of the premiership table with 52 winners, two more than the suspended Dwayne Dunn (50) and five clear of Oliver (47), who is also suspended after falling foul of the stewards at Flemington on Anzac Day.

The 38-year-old, who has won most of Australia's top races as well as big events in Europe and Asia, often leaves his home country at this time of the year to pursue big-money features in Japan and the UK.

But this time Williams is looking to win a fifth premiership, and will, aside from trips to Brisbane and Adelaide for their major carnival days, stay in Melbourne to slog through the winter in pursuit of more winners.

His hat-trick at Caulfield came on three promising Sheik Mohammed-owned three-year-olds - the filly Antelucan ($3.70) in the opening event, and two young staying types with plenty of upside in Tarquin ($4.60), who made it a running double in the second event when he beat the older horses over 2000 metres, and Unbreakable ($4), who did the donkey work out in front but was still too hard to run down in the 1800m handicap for three-year-olds.

The latter two ran at Caulfield to see whether they were up to a tilt at the 2500m SA Derby at Morphettville later in May, and the duo passed with flying colours.

Antelucan, who many believed had not quite lived up to her early promise (she had won a group 3 race on debut as a two-year-old during the Melbourne Cup carnival) relished the chance to run over 1600m and showed she too might be worth aiming higher than her Saturday target, a handicap for three-year-old fillies.

Williams was quick to pay tribute to the Godolphin set up as he explained how pleased he was to be a part of an organisation and how much he owed to a long-established relationship with Charles.

"The stable had been so happy with them, they were very bullish with their chances and the way to ride them today. I spoke to John this morning in Hong Kong [where O'Shea is supervising the preparation of Godolphin's Sydney trained Bow Creek, who is running in the big Champions Mile race at Sha Tin on Sunday].

"I never get a pick [of the horses]. I leave that up to John, David Charles and my manager [Mark Guest]. But they have got three really strong chances [Etymology, runner up in the VRC St Leger on Anzac Day is their other contender] going into the SAJC Derby if they choose to go that way with them."

Williams said both Tarquin and Unbreakable would "derive a lot" from their efforts at Caulfield.

"I don't think that either of them had their ideal run in the races, but still found themselves to be too good."

Williams, with his thorough preparation, media smarts and dedication looks an ideal fit for a stable which, by dint of its ownership, is always conscious of its image.

"I am not retained by Godolphin but they have given me a lovely opportunity and I am starting to do more for them.

"I have enjoyed the team work. It's amazing how the circle of racing evolves. Their head in Melbourne is David Charles and he was my master at the apprentice school. He taught me there.

"Henry Plumptre [Godolphin's racing manager] has always been a really good supporter of mine, and John O'Shea always used me when he used to come to Melbourne [before he became Godolphin's head trainer]. It's great to get the opportunities in the Godolphin blue.

"Their operation is very unique, its like being a Formula One driver, they only get me down to test a couple of horses [before riding them on the track). The way that Melbourne and Sydney work in tandem, you just become one little piece of the bigger operation. They have a system that works really well."