THE Royal Ascot kitty can be bolstered if ITS ONLY MOSSY lives up to expectations at Carlisle.

Jennie Candlish has done a fine job since this three-year-old gelding made the switch from Ireland, winning at Wolverhampton on his British debut before easily following up at the same track last month.

Indeed, he might well have arrived in Cumbria on a four-timer had fate not intervened a month ago at Hamilton.

Its Only Mossy was well backed into 6-4 favouritism for a six-furlong handicap but he was derailed early on when a loose horse rifled him across the track.

The son of Moss Vale was always up against it from then on, so he actually did really well to claw back a modicum of momentum to finish third.

Chaplin Bay was an easy winner but who knows what might have happened had Its Only Mossy enjoyed a trouble-free passage.

The betting certainly pointed towards a big run, so any market positivity ahead of division one of the Molson Coors Handicap should be seized upon.

With a turf rating of just 69, and Tom Queally on board, today's nap selection remains a very interesting horse in this sort of company.

PALMERSTON is similarly due a spot of better fortune ahead of the £25 Free Bet At 188Bet Handicap at Thirsk.

Mick Appleby's three-year-old is winless from six starts but he was really unlucky at Beverley.

Palmerston was the subject of an eye-catching plunge in the market but the game was up when his saddle slipped halfway through a 10-furlong handicap.

That was not the end of his troubles either, as the gelded son of Oasis Dream had to be pulled wide for a run once he finally got on an even keel.

To that end, a fourth-placed finish behind Livella Fella has to go down as a pretty big performance and bodes especially well with a race like this in mind.

Palmerston reverts to a mile in North Yorkshire, which should not be a problem, while a rating of 67 is there to be exploited as Alistair Rawlinson takes the ride.

MUSHARRIF is respected in the £25 Free Bet At 188Bet "Restricted" Handicap at Nottingham.

The Declan Carroll-trained four-year-old made a nice impression on those in attendance at Newmarket last month, when he finished third in a strong six-furlong handicap.

Formerly trained by Sir Michael Stoute, the gelded son of Arcano will find this humdrum encounter much less demanding.

JOE PACKET'S encouraging return at Goodwood, when second to Pettochside, puts her bang in contention for the six-furlong Bet In Play With Ladbrokes Handicap at Windsor.

Jonathan Portman's chestnut is quite hard to work out – she has only won six times from 60 starts – but he looks to have been shrewdly placed in a race which lacks strength in depth.