Pool Play captures Valedictory; Casse takes fourth straight training title

Pool Play captures Valedictory; Casse takes fourth straight
training title

Pool Play improved upon his third in the 2009 Valedictory (WEG/Michael Burns Photography) W.S. Farish Jr.’s POOL PLAY (Silver Deputy) advanced on the final turn and stayed on resolutely to capture Sunday’s $176,816 Valedictory S. on closing day at Woodbine. Trained by meet-leading conditioner Mark Casse and ridden by Patrick Husbands, the 4-5 favorite mastered Eye of the Leopard (A.P. Indy) in midstretch and edged three-quarters of a length clear. Pool Play completed the 1 3/4-mile marathon on Polytrack in 3:01 2/5, while not asked for any extra effort once victory was assured. The five-year-old Ontario-bred, who was coming off a track record-setting allowance score going 1 5/8 miles, has now earned $540,429 from his 24-5-5-5 line. Successful in the 2009 Durham Cup (Can-G3), Pool Play missed narrowly in the Dominion Day S. (Can-G3) earlier this season, and his resume also features third-place efforts in last year’s Autumn S. (Can-G2) and Valedictory.

Casse fell short in his chase of a 15-year-old record, but managed his fourth
straight Woodbine training title as the track’s eight-month live Thoroughbred
season came to a close on Sunday.

Casse was three wins away from tying the mark of most wins in single season
by a trainer at Woodbine (set by the late Frank Passero in 1995 with 89 wins),
heading into the final card, but managed a sole tally to finish with 87 on the
campaign.

It was Casse’s fifth Woodbine training title overall. Casse, who took the
purse earnings title with $4,920,111, also won the 2002 championship. Reade
Baker was second this year with 66 wins, while Sid Attard was third with 46.
Roger Attfield had the most stakes wins with 13.

Jockey Eurico Rosa da Silva collected his first Woodbine riding championship
with 190 scores, 18 ahead of nearest rival Husbands (172). Chantal Sutherland
was third with 136 wins, including a colony-leading 18 stakes victories.

Husbands, by virtue of his score in the Valedictory, did end up winning the
earnings title on the final day, finishing with $9,228,622.

Sam-Son Farm topped the Woodbine’s owner standings with purse earnings of
$2,563,412. Bear Stables Ltd. was second with $1,883,987 and had the most wins
with 39. Melnyk Racing Stables, Inc. was third with $1,789,573.

Once again, the winner of this year’s C$2 million Canadian International
(Can-G1), JOSHUA TREE (Ire) (Montjeu [Ire]), led all horses at the meet with
$1.2 million in earnings.

Da Silva guided Terra Racing Stables’ BIG RED MIKE (Tenpins) to a
wire-to-wire victory in the Queen’s Plate over Hotep (A.P. Indy) and Roan Inish
(Elusive Quality), who won the Woodbine Oaks.

In the other major stakes events, COURT VISION (Gulch) won the Woodbine Mile
(Can-G1), and MIAMI DECO (Limehouse) won the Breeders’ S., third jewel in the
Canadian Triple Crown Series, paying the biggest price ($132.10) in the race’s
Triple Crown history.