The Championships has given Sydney racing its jewel. Clarity and polish is about to be added. On and off the track, the racing product is hitting its mark – but it still needs refinement to be shown in its best light.

Last Saturday was 12 months since the opening of Randwick's new $150 million grandstand on a day made more special by the presence of Black Caviar.

That day's racing was full of virtuoso performances, with the perfect mare shining in what was her final race and It’s A Dundeel, then a dominant three-year-old, completing the Triple Crown in the Australian Derby.

That day was a rough-cut gem, pulled almost straight from the ground, and people accepted it for what it was. A year on, after a relatively successful spring, Randwick was ready to show off. Last Saturday, everything was in place – apart, that is, from the weather, with autumn proving as fickle as ever.

So day one of The Championships could not be called a brilliant gem because it still lacked finish, but there was some truly great racing. It was competitive, gritty and brave on a track that was testing in every way.

Lankan Rupee supplied X-factor in the T.J. Smith Stakes, which has developed into the best sprint in the country. Criterion was classy and strong in the Derby, while Peggy Jean and Scratch Me Lucky slugged out the finish in the Sires’ Produce Stakes.

The common factor was Sacred Falls, a still underrated miler which found a way to win his second successive Doncaster Mile, leading home a remarkable first four for the Chris Waller stable.

Nearly 25,000 patrons braved the wet, dreary conditions and that gives Sydney racing a healthy base figure it can work from. In years to come, that figure will surely climb.

Like any gem, Randwick needs light to sparkle – sunshine in the case of a racetrack – and when it gets it, the full brilliance of the set-up will come through.

While traditionalists will point to the difference between today's crowds and the masses who attended in the past, Randwick is set up to cater for the 21st-century customer, who expects quality.

The value-added areas were sold out last Saturday and they will be again for the second day of The Championships. But the Australian Turf Club should not forget about its week-in, week-out punters, who want to bet and watch the action live from a seat in a stand.

At the moment, it is doing a good job of catering to both ends of a market. It will get better.

There are still problems with managing a big crowd. Complaints about the betting ring are common, although they should be addressed in the review that will follow the carnival.

The race program is set to be tweaked to better suit the requirements of owners and trainers and a move forward a week seems inevitable.

But that is minor detail compared to the fact that Sydney racing’s major challenge has been to find its spot in the marketplace and finally it has found it.

Victorian racing has the spring, highlighted by the Melbourne Cup, in a carnival that exploded during the 1990s to become a peak social occasion and racing’s No.1 event.

When the Sydney autumn carnival left Easter and settled on regular dates, it lost its way. But the past two years have got it back on track and now there is a very real opportunity for Randwick to own its place on the calendar, as Flemington does in November.

There are also partnerships within and outside the sport that make sense. For example, the fact that fashion week falls in the days leading up to Saturday’s meeting is an opportunity that should be exploited.

Randwick now has a top-quality product, which the public has embraced. But they will want to see improvements.

And they will. Afterall, The Championships is still evolving. But it is set to give April an emerald gleam, just like the trophy.