A relieved Luke Hillis with the lamb he was looking for and some of his support crew.

A YOUNG Hamilton-based shearer has shorn 830 crossbred lambs in nine hours to raise money for the men’s health awareness campaign Movember.

At the Hawkesdale district property, Bermuda, in south-west Victoria on Saturday, 23 year-old Luke Hillis started shearing at 6am, exceeding his goal of 800 just after 5pm, but pushed on until 5.30pm.

“We shore 830, so times that by $4 and that’s what we raised today,” he said.

His run tallies under the eye of his timekeeper Josh Lilley were 179, 160, 157, 169 and 165. The current official world nine hour strong wool lamb record of 872 lambs was set by Stuart Connor in England in 2021.

Luke has been shearing fulltime for about four years and his previous personal best tally was 470 lambs in a day in South Australia last week. Saturday’s effort had “changed his mind” about making an official attempt on the nine-hour lamb record, he said.

“I’ll regroup after this one and find a plan on what I feel like doing.”

Luke Hillis pushes hard to finish another lamb, watched by sister Melanie, timekeeper Josh Lilley and his catchers.

Luke thanked his big support crew that included his partner Teneeka Andreazza, and sisters Melanie and Anna. He also thanked his sponsor Heiniger, Bermuda’s owner Blair O’Toole and his manager, “the boys out the back” and his masseuse.

“I don’t think I would have got through the day without her.”

Luke said he grew up in New Zealand, that has the highest teen suicide rate among member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.

“I grew in Southlands and when I was in high school there was about one a year of my mates taking their lives.

“So that was a big driver for me all day, I’m suffering to raise a bit of awareness,” he said.

“I want to suffer with them.

“I wanted to do a tally day, but I wanted a bit of a ‘why’ behind it.”

Luke said training for the day including daily gym sessions for the past six months, apart from Sundays.

If you need support call:

Lifeline on 13 11 14

MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978

Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467

Beyond Blue on 1300 22 46 36

Headspace on 1800 650 890