The Punt Acca: Owen Goulding's three horse racing tips on Thursday

Dark Side Thunder(2.30 Southwell)

Unbeaten over course and distance, Dark Side Thunder won a pair of races at Southwell in the summer, latterly off a 7lb lower rating. He has subsequently won at Kempton and holds excuses for a subsequent defeat on the turf at Yarmouth in September. Returning to this course will certainly suit him and dropped in grade from his most recent assignment, he should be heavily involved.

Cooper's Cross(3.20 Carlisle)

It is still early days for Cooper's Cross, who was a gutsy winner at Sedgefield three starts ago and went close in two of his next three starts. He was last seen going down by a head at Ayr in May off a 2lb lower rating and he has a decent record fresh. He remains unexposed as a chaser and on his sixth start over fences, he can resume his improvement after a summer break.

Killybegs Junior(3.55 Carlisle)

This is a weak race on paper and Killybegs Junior is the interesting one in the contest. He posted some weak form under rules in Ireland back in 2020/21 but won two point to points earlier this year. He has joined a yard with a decent record with new recruits and the booking of Harry Skelton is always a positive. This ground will suit and he holds obvious claims against some modest opposition.

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