A WARM Friday and a positive weather forecast provided hope for the organisers of tomorrow’s Dubai Duty Free Irish Derby that Sea The Stars will be among the lineup.

The colt’s trainer, John Oxx, was concerned about conditions becoming too soft at the Curragh after 12 millimetres of rainfall on Thursday night.

A going change to good to yielding in places was also not music to his ears.

Oxx is biding his time before making a concrete decision about the participation of his brilliant Epsom Derby and 2000 Guineas winner, but has declared Sea The Stars to take on a field of 12.

Paul Hensey, the Curragh’s racecourse manager, said: ‘‘It has been a nice day, the sun is shining and the ground is drying.

‘‘The forecast is for lovely weather on both Saturday and Sunday. Obviously it will be John’s decision whether he wants to run.

‘‘We’re in the lap of the gods, but we’d be really hopeful the forecast is accurate.’’ Sea The Stars was joined in the field by seven runners from Aidan O’Brien’s stable, including the second, third and fifth from Epsom, Fame And Glory, Masterofthehorse and Golden Sword.

Johnny Murtagh, Seamie Heffernan and Colm O’- Donoghue will ride those horses respectively, while O’Brien gives a first Classic mount to his teenage son, Joseph, who has only ridden in public a handful of times.

O’Brien jnr is on Byzantine, who is accompanied in the line-up by fellow stablemates Drumbeat, Hail Caesar and Rockhampton.

Murtagh has a healthy respect for Sea The Stars as he links up with Fame And Glory for the first time since April’s Ballysax Stakes.

‘‘It’s going to be a great race,’’ he said. ‘‘I rode my horse last week and he felt like he had improved from Epsom. He’s a solid, typical Ballydoyle improver.

‘‘Sea The Stars is the champion and we all have to beat him.

‘‘The cards are there to be played and it all depends which horse has improved the most.’’ O’Brien said: ‘‘There is not much between the horses that ran at Epsom and it’s which ones come forward from there that is always a difficult thing to know.”