Arguably Ryves Rock is now the best greyhound that we have racing here over our four-bend 380m distance.

His claim to the No.1 spot was enhanced last Saturday evening when the dog crossed the line four-and-a-quarter lengths ahead of a field that contained some of his main rivals.

The Barry O’Sullivan-trained dog makes the most of his trap one draw and seems to be at his best when in this box.

The manner of his win at the weekend shows the dog’s true ability having only managed to trap out in fourth place and he was subsequently bumped around the first bend but showed real determination to take up the lead in the back straight.

Once in the clear, he is able to show his speed and with the likes of Crossfield Jack, Tarsna Inca and Zenas Jack trailing in behind him, he is certainly now the one that they all have to beat.

I would suggest that you keep an eye open for Ballytramon Reef who impressed me when winning her debut race here over 540m at the weekend.

Having previously had 43 races over 380m, trainer Jean Liles gave her dog a trial over the extended distance last week when she recorded a decent time of 34.61sec. Clearly this trip does not inconvenience Reef who endorsed the point when winning her S4 race in a time of 34.68.

The times tell me that she has the scope to win an S3 race and may well register a quick double, so look out for her next time.

Perhaps the unluckiest runner at the weekend was Johnnys Way who lost by just a neck in his debut race here over hurdles. He is certainly an interesting character and his race record shows that he has raced in top class events as well as open races at no fewer than 11 tracks.

As far as I can see, this was his first effort over the sticks and he certainly gave a good account of himself. He trapped out in last position had all sorts of traffic problems but still only just failed to win.

My newcomer for you to look out for is Hillberry Kat who made it a winning debut last Friday night. With a win time of 23.55 seconds in an A4 race, she has plenty left in the locker to improve further.