Lucky 15 Tips: Cracking Carlisle card lights up our Friday

Carlisle presents a seven-race flat card on Friday, kicking in at 14:10, and it's high time we raced there once again. When my Canada-based cousin and her friend visited many moons ago I took them to this very meeting, and we had a wonderful afternoon. A glorious memory - cheers Debs.

If I ever get to Woodbine ...

Carlisle is a truly unique track, has an extremely stiff finish, and therefore stamina, resilience and determination are tip-top qualities to have in your locker up here.

Fingers crossed for a terrific afternoon.

Horse Racing odds

14:40 - Tamam Star @ 5/4

All-conquering Karl Burke trains this two-year-old Kodi Bear colt for Jaber Abdullah, and he's on a bit of a retrieval mission to be fair after disappointing slightly last time.

Two runs only thus far for Tamam Star; an excellent 2l defeat on debut in a Musselburgh maiden at this 5f trip (April), then the performance I've mentioned - a bit of a 5.25l surrender at Thirsk when last seen 27 days ago.

Appeared not to get home on that occasion, a massive worry over the minimum, but the second that day has since come out and won a maiden by 3.25l and I'm not deserting our selection just yet.

His sire was a high-class miler and it could be that actually a deal further than 5f is required already - and if so this stiff track could be ideal as it will ride more like 5.5 or even 6f given its testing uphill nature.

Fascinating heat, with the hugely-promising Jack Nicholls up top for the first time.

15:10 - Pop Star @ 7/1

Another 5f sprint, this time for older horses.

Our hope here is Iain Jardine's Pop Star, a six-year-old Sioux Nation gelding taking a considerable drop into bargain basement Class 6 territory. He needs to find a bit of his old spark to be fair and is priced accordingly, but off 64 now is beginning to look dangerously well-treated.

When joining Iain from Alice Haynes in December he was rated 78, and it's surely too soon to be writing him off. Andrew Mullen, familiar with his quirks, has the riding assignment.

15:40 - Ganthorpe @ 17/2

Should get a bit of old-fashioned value about this one, too - a three-year-old Dream Ahead gelding trained by Team Easterby at Sheriff Hutton in North Yorkshire.

Ganthorpe is presumably named after the small village about five miles from Mick and David's training base, and after nine starts he's still a maiden. He's another being given a bit of a chance by the assessor though, running off 47 today but 55 in January, for his handicap bow.

Looks clear now that that was asking rather a lot, but we might be getting into feasible waters now and once again 7lb claimer Lewis Chalkley reduces the burden significantly.

17:15 - Emerald Army @ 9/2

The lucky last is a 7f handicap and our selection is a very consistent type at this lowly level with three wins from 26 starts; but also there have been a further eight occasions when he's finished second, or third.

Emerald Army is housed with another North Yorkshire handler, Ruth Carr, and regular jock James Sullivan is on board.

Off today's mark of 53 he was beaten just a neck at Catterick eight days ago and the five-year-old Invincible Army gelding recorded a Racing Post rating the like of which he's not produced since last August, when rated 58.

Ruth has only had the horse since last month, being previously trained by Declan Cannon, and if the new surroundings at Stillington are working the oracle Friday could be the ideal opportunity to strike.

If all four of our selections won, today's notional 50p win Lucky 15, at the prices indicated (they can of course fluctuate), would return around £995 for a £7.50 total stake. If you can improve upon our selections (of course you can) - then go for it!

NAPS table with Betfred Insights.