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The unpredictable stayer Tempelten left his bag of tricks at home on Saturday 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 it was his talent that won out and the enigmatic six-year-old showed his true worth with an authoritative victory in the feature event on the card.

“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 now.”

Tempelten responded to Sweeney’s efforts in the saddle and circled the field across the top to join the action on the turn and the Johar gelding then raced away to win by two and a-half lengths.

“Scott said he’d been disappointing and when he does turn it on he can beat this lot,” Sweeney said.

“It’s a tight-turning track and we came down the middle, as he’s got such a big stride, rather than pull him around the corner. The way he won there’s another nice race in him.”

Tempelten, whose victory ended a 22-month losing spell, was clear of Travel Wise at the post with Classcoroc, the winner of the Woodville Pahiatua Cup 12 months ago, a neck back in third.