Australian and New Zealand shearers competing in the trans-Tasman event at the Golden Shears. Image – Golden Shears.

SA shearer Nathan Meaney digs deep in the trans-Tasman event. Image – Golden Shears.

NEW Zealand’s trans-Tasman shearing trio exacted payback with a close win at the Golden Shears in Masterton New Zealand on Saturday.

The New Zealand shearing team of Nathan Stratford, Stacy Te Huia and Leon Samuels staged an amazing comeback to win a trans-Tasman shearing test against Australian visitors national champion Daniel McIntyre from New South Wales, Nathan Meaney from South Australia and Sam Mackrill from Victoria.

The black singlets had been given a sound beaten in the season’s first test in Bendigo, Victoria, at the Australian championships in November, with the Australian shearers winning on tough weather-affected sheep with 231.93 penalty points compared to the Kiwi’s 298.20 points.

But at Masterton on Saturday evening, the Kiwis sprung the surprises by being in charge over their six Merino wethers for the first half of the contest, and pushing this advantage into their preferred three full wool crossbred sheep and three short woolled (second-shear) crossbreds.

The TAB had favoured the Australians, but the Kiwis defied the odds to win with 203.61 penalty points versus the Australian’s 210.751 points.

Smith wins eighth Golden Shears open title

Champion NZ shearer Rowland Smith achieved the goal he’d set all season when he won an eighth Golden Shears open shearing title in Masterton tonight.

Capping three days of a fever-pitched return of Golden Shears after two years of pandemic cancellations, and taking a break from driving his tractor in the Hawke’s Bay cyclone recovery, Smith won the right to represent New Zealand at the 2023 Golden Shears World Shearing and Woolhandling Championships in Scotland on June 22-25, where among the toughest opposition will be brother expatriate kiwi Matt Smith, representing England.

Hawkes Bay shearer Rowland Smith commands the ringer’s stand to win the Golden Shears open shearing title for an eighth time in Masterton on Saturday night. Photo – Pete Nikolaison, Golden Shears Media Group.

Smith, who won the world title in 2014 in Ireland and 2017, claimed victory on Saturday night by more than three points from runner-up, Marlborough shearer Angus Moore, despite being only third off the board.

Moore, in the open final for the first time, but having earlier in the night won the multi-breed PGG Wrightson Vetmed National Shearing Circuit final for a third time, bolted into the lead on the second sheep. He remained in front until the eighth when Masterton shearer Paerata Abraham hit the front and, shearing at a consistent pace of a little over 40 seconds a sheep, stayed there till the end, finishing in 15min 43.88sec..

It revived memories of Abraham’s only previous Golden Shears Open final, when he cleared the 20 sheep in 15min 50.234sec in 2016.

The fastest time final of all was when David Fagan shore 15min 27.4sec in 2003 with John Kirkpatrick second off the board in 15min 43.8sec, when they were ultimately winner and runner-up respectively.

Third place went to near-perennial beaten finalist and Invercargill shear Nathan Stratford, despite being last to finish, in 16min 57.959sec. Fourth was first-time finalist Hemi Braddick, of Eketahuna, Abraham was fifth and four-times winner Kirkpatrick was sixth.

RESULTS from the 61st Golden Shears International Shearing Championships at the War Memorial Stadium, Masterton on Thursday-Saturday March 2-4, 2023:

Trans-Tasman shearing test (12 sheep – 6 merinos, 3 long wool, 3 second-shear): New Zealand (Leon Samuels 15min 55.799sec, 65.957pts; Nathan Stratford 17min 53.382sec, 68.003pts; Stacey Te Huia 16min 2.991sec,69.65pts) 203.61pts beat Australia (Sam Mackrill 17min 11.512sec, 69.992pts; Nathan Meaney 18min 6.205sec, 70.31pts; Daniel McIntyre 17min 28.975sec, 70.449pts) 210.751pts.

Shearing – Open final (20 sheep): Rowland Smith (Maraekakaho) 16min 6.801sec, 52.64pts, 1; Angus Moore (Ward) 16min 2.184sec, 55.609pts, 2; Nathan Stratford (Invercargill) 16min 57.959sec, 55.698pts, 3; Hemi Braddick (Eketahuna) 16min 10.131sec, 56.357pts, 4; Paerata Abraham (Masterton) 15min 43.848sec, 56.592pts, 5; John Kirkpatrick (Hastings) 16min 56.583sec, 58.629pts, 6.

Senior final (12 sheep): Clay Harris (Piopio) 13min 2.892sec, 44.645pts, 1; Adam Gordon (Masterton) 13min 4.634sec, 44.649pts, 2; Cory Tiwai Barrowcliffe (Piopio) 13min 7.988sec, 44.982pts, 3; Te Ua Wilcox (Gisborne) 13min 30.571sec, 45.779pts,  4; Joseph Gordon (Masterton) 13min 3.326sec, 45.916pts, 5; Paul Swann (Wairoa) 13min 49.341sec, 48.134pts, 6.

Intermediate final (8 sheep): Will Sinclair (Balclutha) 10min 11.604sec, 36.705pts, 1; Dalton Tangiwai (Pahiatua) 11min 1.001sec, 39.175pts, 2; Sam Green (England) 10min 15.076sec, 39.254pts, 3; Jack Pringle (Balclutha) 11min 11.919sec, 40.971pts, 4; Tini Papanui (Feilding) 10min 56.809sec, 41.465pts, 5; Jacob Taylor (Dannevirke) 9min 30.019sec, 43.626pts, 6.

Junior final (5  sheep): Tyran Cochrane (Goodooga, NSW) 7min 16.889sec27.044pts, 1; Jake Goldsbury (Waitotara) 6min 30.912sec, 29.746pts, 2; Cody Waihape (Gore) 8min 46.864sec, 31.543pts, 3; Emma Martin (Gore) 9min 10.982sec, 32.749pts, 4; Dan Rogers (Raetihi) 8min 39.114sec, 32.756pts, 5; Ryka Swann (Wairoa) 7min 43.711pts, 33.586pts, 6.

Novice final (2 sheep): Maaka Nikora (Taumarunui) 3min 26.084sec, 20.304pts, 1; William Clarkson (Martinborough) 4min 13.344sec, 21.667pts, 2; Flyn Innes (Martinborough) 3min 54.901sec, 22.745pts, 3; Stirling McKelvie (Tikokino) 3min 47.936sec, 23.397pts, 4; Tom Clarkson (Martinborough) 4min 5.628pts, 23.781pts, 5; Ged Biling (Masterton) 7min 23.272sec, 29.664pts, 6.

PGG Wrightson Vetmed National shearing Circuit final (15 sheep – 3 merino wethers, 3 fullwool, 3 corriedale, 3 lambs, 3 second-shear): Angus Moore (Seddon) 17min 24.33sec, 65.416pts, 1; Leon Samuels (Invercargill) 17min 22.7sec, 66.535pts, 2; Brett Roberts (Mataura) 18min 40.485sec, 67.624pts, 3; Stacey Re Huia (Alexandra) 18min 13.408sec, 69.804pts, 4; Nathan Stratford (Invercargill) 18min 56.99sec, 69.917pts, 5; Jack Fagan (Te Kuiti) 19min 41.469sec, 74.082pts, 6.

Maori-Pakeha Teams (8 sheep): David Gordon (Masterton) and Jacob Moore (Marton) 62.270pts, 1; Whakapunake (Naki) Maraki (Flaxmere/Feilding) and Paul Hodges (Geraldine) 68.326pts, 2; Reuben Alabaster (Taihape) and Matthew Hunt (Waikaka) 69.588pts, 3.

Women’s Invitation (6 sheep): Pauline Bolay (Canada) 28.71pts, 1; Laura Bradley (Papatawa) 29.054pts, 2; Emily Te Kapa (Scotland) 32.25pts, 3; EmmaMartin (Gore) 38.982pts, 4; Lydia Thomson (Rangiora) 40.706pts, 5; Amy Silcock (Tiraumea) 43.658pts, 6.

Student Shearing Challenge (2 sheep): Smedley (Scott O’Connor/Benazzi Ward) 3min 56.319pts, 1; Pukemiro (Zach Hall/Renee Garrett) 7min 26.627sec, 30.831pts, 2; Feilding High School (Camden Bolton-Smith/George Peacock) 6min 39.103sec, 32.955pts, 3; Napier BHS (James Robinson/Max Free) 5min 17.349sec, 33.367pts, 4; Palmerston North Boys High School) 6min 11.211sec, 35.561pts, 5; Growing Future Farmers (George Parke/Ella McMillan) 5min 47.145pts, 6.

Speedshear: Open: Jack Fagan (Te Kuiti) 18.49sec, 1; Jimmy Samuels (Marton) 19.11sec, 2; Hugh De Lacy (Rangiora) 19.218sec, 3; Stu Connor (England) 20.192pts, 4. Senior: Clay Harris (Piopio) 22.15sec, 1; Allan Oldfield (Geraldine/Hurr Valley) 22.41sec, 2; Jeff Winders (Invercargill) 24.694sec, 3; Jayden Mainland (Wellsford) 4.