That’s the message from Warrnambool Greyhound Racing Club manager Craig Monigatti as several out-of-town trainers plot success on the opening night of the club’s seaside festival on Thursday.

While Melbourne-based group-winning trainers have nominated for the first night of the eight-meeting carnival, Monigatti said south-west chasers had a strong chance.

“The beauty of the festival is that you have that mix of people travelling from afar with our local dogs,” he said.

“There’s a myriad of really strong local dogs – you’ve got guys like Ray Drew who have a few in, and Trevor Steel is another.

“You’ll always get a strong showing from the Mugavin kennels, too. There’s a lot of local dogs right up there.”

Monigatti said the festival’s feature races were geared towards emerging greyhounds.

“We’ve got some opportunities for our younger, talented greyhounds,” he said.

“It’s for those dogs who we hope can build strong careers.”

The first race will kick off at 5.47pm, while the last clocks in at 9.28pm.