The unpredictable stayer Tempelten left his bag of tricks at home yesterday to complete a notable double for trainers Scott Lucock and Sally Gillespie at Thames.
The Byerley Park duo had plenty of confidence in landing the opening leg with the genuine Statham, who duly delivered in the Rating 85 sprint, and then it was an open market on what Tempelten would conjure up in the Coastwood Homes Lockwood Thames Cup.
This time his talent won out and the enigmatic 6-year-old showed his true worth with an authoritative victory in the feature event.
"I had a good talk with Mark [Sweeney] and told him we have to do something different - he's just going around and bludging," Lucock said. "I said to put him in the race and ride him hard and if he gets everything to go his way, then he's a genuine chance, but he is hard to work out. He might get to Wellington now with Statham. There are a couple of races for him and he's earned it."
Tempelten responded to Sweeney's efforts and circled the field to join the action on the turn and the Johar gelding raced away to win by two-and-a-half lengths from Travel Wise with Classcoroc, the winner of the Woodville Pahiatua Cup 12 months ago, a neck back in third.
