On Wednesday, Greyhound Racing NSW announced that the two race meetings slated for Gunnedah in August would be rescheduled.

It said racing was due to resume at Gunnedah on August 5, pending the completion of essential infrastructure upgrades at the track in preparation for TAB racing.

“These upgrades have not yet been completed due to club contractor delays in carrying out this work,” the sport’s governing body said. “At this stage, racing at Gunnedah is expected to resume in early September.

“The two race meetings planned for Gunnedah in August will be rescheduled to a later date, including the first of the new TAB C meetings that Gunnedah was due to host on Sunday, 13 August.”

Speaking on Thursday morning, Rose said 20 millimetres of rain was recently dumped on the track. He said the club contacted Greyhound Racing NSW to inform officials it would be safer to postpone the meetings.

He said a new rail was being installed, with 220 posts added. Holes are also being dug to lay electrical cables, he added. “It’s just a delay,” he said. “We’re down here doing it now. It’s easier and more safer to postpone ... We didn’t want to rush it. We wanted to make sure it’s spot on.”

Rose said rescheduling the meetings would not cause an issue. In fact, he said it could even be a blessing in disguise, although he would have preferred the meetings to go ahead as scheduled. “It doesn’t affect anyone whatsoever,” he said. “It will give us more time to do things here. We’re not as rushed.”

Just over 12 months ago, the NSW greyhound racing industry was thrown into uncertainty when then-premier Mike Baird announced greyhound racing would be banned from July 1, 2017. The ban didn’t go ahead.

Gunnedah has secured 13 TAB and 15 non-TAB meetings over the next 12 months.