Temple Hall has benefit of experience in Tapeta sprint

ETOBICOKE, Ontario – Eight first-time starters will line up against second-out runner Temple Hall in Thursday’s fifth race at Woodbine. The experience edge that he has on his rivals is significant, but the diminutive gelding is certainly no cinch in the six-furlong maiden special for 2-year-olds.

Trained by Cary Brooks, Temple Hall had worked nicely heading into his debut in a 6 1/2-furlong maiden special on Aug. 25. Sent off at 18-1, he made the lead before fading gradually in the final furlong to finish five lengths back in fourth while earning a 62 Beyer Speed Figure.

Temple Hall breezed five-eighths in 1:01.40 on Sept. 8. Brooks, who is putting him on Lasix, was 2 for 12 (17 percent) with maiden second-time starters during the past five years, with a positive return on investment of $4.20. David Moran will ride him again from post 8.

Trainer Robert Tiller sends out Back River, Souper Tuscan, and Stratus, all for different owners.

Back River, who has the rail, beat company in a quick five-furlong breeze in 1:00 on Sept. 5. The $28,000 yearling purchase is by superb 20 percent 2-year-old debut sire Reload, the sire of the Tiller-trained Canadian champion sprinter Patches O’Houlihan.

Souper Tuscan is by Breeders’ Cup Classic victor Vino Rosso, who has sired 10 percent debut winners. Her dam, Ciuri, was a stakes-winning sprinter at 3 for Tiller.

Stratus is a full brother to the useful claiming sprinter-miler Three Sonny Sideup. Both are by Breeders’ Stakes winner Danish Dynaformer and from a first-out winner at 2 at Fort Erie.

“I don’t think I have any rockets, but I think they’ll all win races,” Tiller said. “They can all run a little bit. Stratus is pretty fit. He was going all winter. Back River hasn’t shown super speed, and I’m not a lover of the one-hole. He’s going to have to get lucky in there. Souper Tuscan will probably want to go farther. He was in Kentucky all winter, so that will give him a little edge.”

Trainer Sid Attard entered Clarksburg and Yorkton’s Honour, two sons of stakes-winning Tapeta sprinter Yorkton, who’s had one debut winner from 10 starters in his initial crop. That 5-1 winner came in a seven-furlong maiden special on the dirt at Parx Racing.

Clarksburg is out of stakes-placed router Niigon’s Legacy, who ran third in the Princess Elizabeth Stakes at 2. Her dam produced the improving maiden Saccharine, who was third in the 1 1/4-mile Wonder Where Stakes on the grass.

Yorkton’s Honour is half-brother to three stakes-placed runners, including Niigon’s Legacy and Niigon’s Glory.

Between the two Chiefswood Stables homebreds, Attard prefers Clarksburg, who breezed a half-mile in a quick 48 seconds last Saturday.

“He worked good, nice and easy,” Attard said.

Trainer Kevin Attard sends out Mansetti, a son of 6 percent 2-year-old debut sire Collected and an unraced mare who dropped the precocious stakes winner Straight Up G.

Somekinda Mischief has worked quickly for trainer Steve Flint. By the good 16 percent 2-year-old first-out sire Maximus Mischief, the Kentucky-bred is out of a modest producer.