KEY POINTS:
A blistering workout last Thursday convinced Ben Waldron it was time to return to Auckland.
The 37-year-old Ashburton trainer honed his skills working for top trainer Steven Reid years ago but has never had a horse of his own good enough to bring north.
Until now.
Waldron trains outstanding 4-year-old Mr Molly, who makes his Alexandra Park debut tonight as a build-up to the much more daunting task of taking on Changeover and Gotta Go Cullen in the Taylor Mile next week.
Taking on two of the best pacers in Australasia on their home track would hardly seem great fun for a horse like Mr Molly, who has yet to race in open class.
But he has shown he can mix it with the best, splitting them in last year's Harness Jewels at Ashburton.
After Mr Molly's usual pre-Christmas form lull - one Waldron struggles to explain - Mr Molly has been fantastic in the second half of the season.
So while form isn't a problem Waldron had one more box to tick before he confirmed the trip north.
"We all know some horses from down our way struggle at Alexandra Park so we gave him a really good hitout right-handed last Thursday," he explains. "We took him to Chertsey, which is a tight, flat track and worked him 3:8 for 2400m, which is quick for there. He handled it perfectly. He actually felt great, like he could have paced his last 800m in 55 seconds so he is fit and the track doesn't bother me."
Waldron says he has deliberately left some room for improvement in Mr Molly knowing he had the weekend trip up and tonight's race before next week's big Mile.
"We are there to win this week and I think he can but he will be a better horse next week," he said.
While he faces a 20m handicap tonight, Mr Molly should have plenty of room to move as there are only two horses off that mark and none off the 10m. This means he shouldn't settle too far from the leaders.
On form and ability he should win, but with southern visitors to Alexandra Park always a touch vulnerable punters wouldn't want to be taking any odds shorter than around $3.
He does meet some talented opponents who have the potential to make his northern debut difficult, especially race-hardened foes like L E Operative, Running On Faith and Power Of Tara.
L E Operative chased home Gotta Go Cullen in the Kumeu Stakes last week and will be hard to beat if he can step safely tonight. He may not be as sharp as Mr Molly yet but he has handled every step on a steep improvement curve this season.
Running On Faith is a wonderful mare edging her way to peak mental and physical fitness and is a must for trifectas while Power Of Tara and Hastilea are upset hopes because of their standing start manners.
Waldron also lines up Washingtonintime (race three) and Breath Of Life (race 10) and rates the former his best winning hope.
Tonight's meeting sees an influx of southern visitors, with Tim Butt bringing north a big string of talented trotters. While he has winning hopes with Lotsa Speed (race seven) and Roydon Flash (race nine) in similar trotting events, he rates pacer Goldie Blue in race five as his best prospect.
SOUTHERN RAIDER
* Mr Molly leads the southern invasion at Alexandra Park.
* He was good enough to split Changeover and Gotta Go Cullen in the Harness Jewels last season.
* He faces a 20m handicap as he builds toward next week's Taylor Mile.
