CARLISLE is not Haydock. Apart from the fact that they are located generally in the same part of the world, the two tracks don’t have much in common.

Haydock is left-handed and flat with a long home straight and a flat finish. Carlisle is right-handed and undulating, pear-shaped, they say, with a stiff uphill finish.

The Betway Achilles Stakes is still going to be a stiff test of speed, and that could be ideal for Celandine.

Ed Walker’s filly hasn’t won since she won the Lowther Stakes at York’s Ebor meeting as a juvenile, but she ran some notable races in defeat last season, most notably when she was only just beaten in a listed race at Chester in August by Chester specialist Roman Dragon.

She proved that day that she could operate away from York, and that hypothesis was consolidated on her return this season in the Listed Kilvington Stakes at Newmarket’s Guineas meeting, when she finished fifth behind Flora Of Bermuda. She can be marked up significantly on the bare form of that run, as she missed the break, she was always playing catch-up in a race in which the pace held up well, as it usually does on the Rowley Mile.

She moved up nicely that day on the run into the Dip, and she looked a real threat on the run to the furlong marker.

Took its toll

In the end, the energy that she had to expend in order to manoeuvre herself in a challenging position from off the pace probably took its toll, and she just kept on to finish fifth, but beaten just over three lengths.

The race has been working out well since. The runner-up won a listed race at Haydock last week, and the fourth horse finished second behind her.

Celandine should come forward from that run, and it is interesting that Ed Walker is dropping her back to five furlongs for today’s race. A stiff five furlongs or an easy six is probably ideal for her.

She is nicely drawn in stall two, and her trainer has his team in good form, as advertised by Almaqam’s win in the Tattersalls Gold Cup at the Curragh last Sunday.

Reverence Handicap

Earlier in the day, Rousing Encore looks over-priced in the Betway Reverence Handicap.

You can mark Ruth Carr’s horse up on the bare form of each of his last three runs. At Newmarket’s Craven meeting, in the race that Double Rush won before he went on and won again at the Guineas meeting, he was back in the field early on, and he finished off his race strongly to take fifth place, nearest at the finish.

On his penultimate race, in a six-furlong handicap at Doncaster at the start of this month, he led at a strong pace against the stands rail, and was easily overhauled in the closing stages of the race by rivals who raced behind him and more towards the centre of the track.

Then last time, in the big Churchill Tyres Handicap at York’s Dante meeting, he just couldn’t get a run. Out in the centre of the track and back in the field, he was continually denied a clear run when rider James Sullivan wanted to go forward. You can just put a line through that run.

His draw in stall 15 is higher than ideal, but he is a horse who likes to be held up and delivered late anyway, as he was when he won at Ayr last September.

It looks like the pace is going to be strong, which will be ideal. A strongly-run, stiff six furlongs suits him well, and he could out-run his odds by a fair way.

Recommended:

Rousing Encore 2.00 Carlisle –

1 pt win @ 10/1 (generally)

Celandine 2.33 Carlisle –

1 pt win @ 11/2 (generally)