KEY POINTS:
After a decade in the harness racing wilderness Murray Pash is making the most of his comeback.
Which is one reason Eastburn Gee makes her northern debut at Cambridge tonight.
The in-form mare travels north from Nelson with three wins in her last four starts, form that will guarantee her strong support in the Waikato Mare's Championship.
For trainer-driver Pash it will be the first ever visit to Cambridge as the mare starts a three-race campaign which will take her to Alexandra Park next week.
"I've been to Alexandra Park though, once, only to watch the races," said the 62-year-old.
"It is great to have a horse good enough to do these things with but once race night comes along it is like any other racetrack, you are there to do a job."
Eastburn Gee has sparked a surprise resurgence for Pash, who has been involved with horses for 40 years.
She has been the star of his eight-horse stable and accounted for almost half his eight wins for the season.
While that is hardly a premiership-winning total it is as many victories as Pash had compiled in the previous 20 years.
"I had a big break from training while I worked horses with another guy down home but I took my licence back out again and it has gone really well.
"I have some nice horses at home too so I am really enjoying it."
Eastburn Gee won a double at big odds on Pash's local circuit last month but proved that was no fluke when she sat parked to win in good company at Addington last start.
"She is tough and is from a family which gets better with age," said the veteran.
"She has really come to it lately and the Addington win proved to me she deserved this trip."
Eastburn Gee's task tonight has been made easier by the scratching of talented filly Presidential Belle, who was drawn inside her, meaning she will start from barrier six.
"She has good gate speed so she can race forward," says Pash.
Pash does warn, however, that Eastburn Gee was slightly jaded after her trip north and that she could be better in time for her Alexandra Park debut next week.
She meets some talented opponents tonight, including The Black Pearl, who has also won three of her last four starts.
The Black Pearl is one of several winning chances at the meeting for driver David Butcher, who would need at least a treble to have any chance of making a race of the premiership with Peter Ferguson.
Butcher is eight wins behind his fellow Cambridge reinsman, although Ferguson will miss tonight's meeting.
The feature of tonight's meeting is the $200,000 Pick6 which contains several small fields with few winning chances, making it appealing to punters.
Debut Drive
* Murray Pash will drive at Cambridge for the first time in a 40-year career tonight.
* He brings stable star Eastburn Gee north for the feature race.
* Tonight's meeting hosts a $200,000 guaranteed Pick6.
