Not only did the clear favourite, Ballymac Vic, make his exit but Tyrur Sugar Ray went from being a dog of big potential to the one to beat following a breath-taking victory in a scarcely believable 29.29 in the Ladbrokes Irish Derby quarter-finals at Shelbourne Park on Saturday night.

How times change!

There have been many great nights at Tralee over the years but Saturday’s Betdaq Night of Champions will surely be one of the greatest ever.

The final of the Kudos Supersprint lights up tonight’s card at Curraheen Park and Shoemakers Lad can land the spoils for owner Thomas Harte and trainer Pat Guilfoyle

Except for a few high profile absentees most of the big names will be chasing the €25,000 prize when the classic commences at Shelbourne on Saturday.

There should be a fine welcome for recently-crowned Sprinter of the Year Shoemakers Lad when he turns up at Curraheen Park for the semi-finals of the Kudos Supersprint on Saturday.

The greyhound world is on standby for the return to action of Milldean Panther.

Up to 5,000 people attended a march organised in support of Vita Cortex workers over the weekend in one of the biggest public demonstrations Cork city has seen in recent years.

THE Pat Hennerty Sales Irish Laurels is the centrepiece of a magnificent card at Curraheen Park on Saturday night.

SHELBOURNE Park is often a quiet place in the closing weeks of September as punters suffer from what is commonly referred to as the “Derby hangover”.

WITH the Derby now history for another year, the focus down south will now swing to the Pat Hennerty Sales Irish Laurels which will kick off at Curraheen Park on Friday night of next week.

HAVING completed an historic Cesarewitch double earlier in the year, Definate Opinion completed yet another amazing double at Dundalk last night when retaining his Boylesports Champion Stakes title in tremendous fashion.

PLOUGH Lane will have a strong hint of green about it this evening as the Irish go in search of yet another victory in the williamhill.com English Derby. Our two representatives, Barefoot Bullet and Razldazl George, both hold outstanding claims in the stg£75,000 contest.

IRISH hopes of winning the williamhill.com English Derby hit a speed bump at Wimbledon on Tuesday night with the elimination of Razldazl Jayfkay, but we remain in a dominant position with Barefoot Bullet, Razldazl George and Melodys Royal all hold outstanding claims in this evening’s semi-finals.

IT has been a mixed week for PJ Fahy and his son Conor but they can reap the benefit of their Wimbledon controversy in tonight’s opening round of the Hegarty Bookmakers Open 600 at Shelbourne Park.

THERE was a pulsating climax to the McCarthy Insurance Group Oaks at Curraheen Park on Saturday night where Tyrur Tinkerbell continued the fine run of trainer Paul Hennessy with a hard fought victory.

It’s another very exciting week with top class open racing at many venues.

MELODYS Royal looks likely to be aimed at the biggest competitions in the calendar in the coming months after a stunning display in the final of the Joe Dunne Memorial Puppy 525 at Shelbourne Park on Saturday.

Question: What Coursing Derby winner was not eligible to contest a Coursing Bred stake on the track?

Micheal O Muircheartaigh obviously has high hopes for his new four-legged friend. Upon retiring from his GAA commentary role last September, the Irish Greyhound Board announced that they would present him with a greyhound and the dog was handed over at a function in Shelbourne Park yesterday afternoon.

WATERFORD grabs the spotlight this week with the final of the Connolly’s Red Mills Masters topping the programme on Saturday and it promises to be a highly interesting contest.

LAST weekend’s Hennerty Sales Laurels winner Tyrur Enda will be returning to Munster for his final outings of the season after owner PJ Fahy decided to run the champion in the Red Mills Masters, which commences at Kilcohan Park on Saturday week.

TOMORROW is all about the future of Irish greyhound racing.

THE Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby only really springs to life on Saturday night as the third round invariably sees the classic move up a few gears.

FOLLOWING the luxury of four qualifying from all first round heats, the pressure will begin in the Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby this evening at Shelbourne when it will be just three to survive to the third round.

THE first heats in the 2010 Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby will be run at Shelbourne Park tonight and a sensational start looks on the cards with many of the leading fancies in action.

THE draw for the Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby was made a Shelbourne Park yesterday morning and it worked out pretty fair for virtually all the leading fancies.

Following the dramatic happenings in the Dail on Tuesday evening and the subsequent fall-out, the Government will hardly be looking forward to the vote on the Dog Breeding Establishment Bill next week.

I’M something of an optimist by nature but I can’t help but detect a number of very positive signs on the Irish greyhound front that provides renewed hope for the future of the industry.

A meeting is being sought with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade & Employment Micheal Martin by one of the unions representing workers at Pfizer's three plants in Cork.

FORMER Greencore workers have asked Cork county councillors to block any attempts by their ex-employer to redevelop the 400-acre site at Mallow — until they get their redundancy entitlements.

GREENCORE and its workers’ unions are to be brought back to the Labour Court, in the coming days, to debate the redundancy entitlements of the former workers.

UNIONS expressed concern yesterday the Taoiseach’s office “doesn’t have its finger on the pulse” in a continuing Greencore dispute.

THE National Implementation Body is expected to make a statement on the long-running battle over redundancy pay for Greencore workers when it meets again tomorrow afternoon.

THE Government’s failure to use its ‘exceptional powers’ to protect the productive potential at Greencore’s sugar plants will mean the loss of major strategic assets for Carlow, Mallow and the whole country, according to Labour leader Pat Rabbitte.

GREENCORE workers are owed a better redundancy package than the company has given them and the Agriculture Minister gave a clear backing to their claim when she announced the allocation of the restructuring package for the Irish sugar industry.

THE 80-year-old Irish sugar industry was brought to an end yesterday when Greencore closed the country’s last remaining processing plant in Mallow, Co Cork.

STRIKE action at Moneypoint power station was averted at the last minute last night as Polish workers who had been sacked and told to return home were taken on by the project’s main contractor.

Workers at a power station in Co Clare tonight called off a day of protest after a sacked Polish shop steward and other union activists were re-employed at the Moneypoint plant.

UP to 70 Polish workers employed at the ESB power station at Moneypoint are owed an estimated €600,000 in wages after a probe found they were being paid less than a third of the agreed hourly rate.

THE prospect of an all-out pay war was looming last night as unions began filing pay claims up to three times greater than employers insist they are willing to pay.

THE Taoiseach was heckled by more than 300 angry IFI workers, seeking an improved redundancy package, when he arrived in Cork last night.