The weather continues to dominate the greyhound headlines and it was a blank countrywide last night with both Shelbourne and Kilkenny called off due to safety reasons.

SLIPPERY Bob was the star in an eventful second round of the Kerry Agri Business Irish St Leger at Limerick on Saturday evening.

THE meeting of litter brothers Farley Turbo and Farley Blitz in Heat 5 is the most intriguing clash in the second round of the Kerry Agri Business St Leger at Limerick this evening.

THESE may be depressing times but for greyhound followers there is some consolation in the quality of racing being staged countrywide.

Within shouting distance of Christmas and here we are in a situation where the greyhound action is absolutely red hot with the Kerry Agribusiness Irish St Leger commencing tomorrow at Limerick Stadium while on Saturday at Shelbourne the first round of the Comerford Cakes National Puppy Stake will fire into action.

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.

TOMORROW is all about the future of Irish greyhound racing.

THE well-fancied Tyrur Bucko will not run in Saturday’s second semi-final of the Pat Hennerty Sales Irish Laurels at Curraheen Park due to a serious injury.

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.

IT was a typical opening night in the 2010 Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby at Shelbourne Park last night with a few major upsets and some very fast racing, writes Michael Fortune.

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.

IT is every greyhound person’s dream to have a runner in the Ladbrokes.com Irish Derby but Galway owner P.J. Fahy is not the typical owner.

WITH a €20,000 carrot on offer the Boylesports Dundalk International never fails to attract a brilliant line up and tonight the 2010 one-off invitation should again produce a thrilling spectacle.

Irish greyhound racing will break new ground next Friday at Harold’s Cross when the Gain Feeds Corn Cuchulainn final will be broadcast live around the world via the RTE website.

FATBOYZ Tyson, trained by Pat Gordon in Enniscorthy, is the 11-4 favourite with the sponsors for the Boylesports International to be run at Dundalk on Monday night next.

THE BIG question mark in advance of Saturday’s Sporting Press Irish Oaks final is whether Skywalker Queen can hit top form at just the right moment to win the bitch classic for the second year on the trot.

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.

ONLY twenty four greyhounds remain in the Sporting Press Irish Oaks, but the competition remains wide open following an intriguing second round on Saturday.

LESS than a month after going off favourite for the final of the English Derby, Toomaline Jack will be back at Wimbledon contesting the first round of the Williamhill.com English National.

This year’s Vetsearch Irish Grand National has provided a marvellous fillip for hurdle racing in this country and has proved yet again that hurdling could become popular here if given the proper promotion by the authorities.

THERE are four Kerry- owned speedsters involved in the quarter-finals of the Paddypower.com Irish Derby at Shelbourne Park tomorrow night and there will be plenty of support with the Kingdom’s fans in town for Sunday’s All-Ireland SFC semi-final against Meath.

With still two days to go before the deadline, the entry list for the Paddypower.com Irish Derby had reached 100 and the signs are that the final number will be very close to the ideal number of 144.

Last year’s Irish Derby finalist Headleys Bridge has been withdrawn from Saturday’s heats of the Boylesports.com Champion Stakes at Shelbourne and he will be replaced by first reserve Slick Sioux.

MORE than double the number of required entries was received for the Boylesports.com Champion Stakes which is set to commence at Shelbourne Park on Saturday.

FOLLOWING her brave victory in Sunday’s Boylesports International at Dundalk, Skywalker Queen was yesterday confirmed a definite runner in the Boylesports Champion Stakes which will commence at Shelbourne on Saturday night.

WINNER of the Irish Oaks just two weeks earlier, the Frances O’Donnell-trained Skywalker Queen won a thrilling Boylesports International in front of a huge crowd at Dundalk last night.

A HUGE crowd looks certain to pour through the stiles at Dundalk tomorrow night for one of the most anticipated races of the year, the 2009 Boylesports Dundalk International.

We’ve all grown up to the culture of the Spring, Summer and Winter Sales in the stores and other retail outlets. Well the Sales culture has now hit the greyhound world and Curraheen Park has come up with an enticing July Sale which will see racegoers qualify for half price racing!

PATSY Byrne’s Ballymac Ruso is the 2-1 favourite to win the Boylesports International at Dundalk on Sunday following College Causeway’s withdrawal shortly before the draw was made by Boylesports’ representative Leon Blanche at lunchtime yesterday.

The bitches may have dominated the scene last week but it will be the turn of the stayers tomorrow night when the final of the Accelerated Drain Cleaning Corn Cuchulainn will be the main event on a gala Harold’s Cross card that will be featured live in an hour long programme on Setanta Ireland.

CASHMANS Bookmakers will again be sponsoring the Laurels at Curraheen Park this year.

THE stage is set for a thrilling conclusion to the Sporting Press Irish Oaks at Shelbourne Park tonight. The competition has been one of the best in memory and this evening’s decider certainly has the making of a real thriller.

Timor Blue is unlikely to race again after sustaining a serious wrist injury in a first bend fall in last weekend’s Kerry Agribusiness Irish St Leger final at Limerick.

Leading fancies Shelbourne Aston and College Causeway have been handed very difficult first round tasks in the BCR Print Easter Cup which gets under way at Shelbourne on Saturday night.