Todd Kissick - NSW Sheep Dog Workers Inc. Rookie of the Year

I currently live on 500 acres at Laggan NSW. We run mainly Angus cattle but also have 200 merino. I contacted Mick Hudson almost 5 years ago to try and buy a well bred pup I could use for farming. I got a bit lost in my training and asked Mick for help. He showed me some very valuable things that made a lasting impression. He talked me in to trying 3 sheep trialling 2 years ago and now I’m hooked. I also spent some lovely times with Laurie Slater. He has some incredible knowledge and I was thrilled to have him share it with me. I won a couple of encourage classes this year along with an equal first but my highlight was making the open final at Bredbo with my mum there to watch. Halfway through the year, 2022, my good dog, Penny, broke her hind leg. I was lucky enough that my daughter lent me her dog, Dixie, to continue competing. Dixie was very well trained by my daughter, Emily. I hope I didn’t undo too much of that. There was some great competition in the encourage class in 2022 and I made it to a few more events than most which helped. I was also very lucky along the way. My family and I have been welcomed in to this sport with open arms and almost all the triallers are willing to offer their support and advice for which I am very grateful.

Adam James & Myamba Moss - VIC Yard and Utility Farm Dog Ass. High Point Dog of the Year

I’ve been competing in trialing for roughly 14 years, 7 of those have been with Myamba Moss. Over that time, he’s been an awesome dog to work and trial with, collecting some pretty handy awards along the way.

Probably some of his standout achievements are his National Kelpie Field Trial win and his Victorian State Utility Championship win. He’s also finished runner up in two more National Championships. Damien Clifford from Woorndoo bred him, he’s out of Jones Gemma by my old dog buster.

When I started out, Norm Severs, Rod Cavill and Travis Scott were the people I looked up to and the ones that gave me much needed advice. I’d say what makes Moss stand out is his cover and speed, not much beats past him! Along with his top knot, not the hardest, but quick and effective.

Kim Davidson & Stockman’s Fly - VIC Yard & Utility Farm Dog Ass. High Point Bitch of the Year

I’ve competed in a few different dog sports before venturing into sheep. I’ve competed and won at State and National levels in agility and obedience but doing something with a dog that they are bred for is just so amazing. I enjoy watching the natural work and building a solid partnership from there gives you the most amazing feeling.

I am just so incredibly blessed to have Fly come into my life. Mark Wheeler handed her over to me in December 2021 a week after I was talking with a friend about looking for a started dog, we started our trialling in about the February of that year.

I’ve been very lucky to have great help along the way starting with dog schools with Joe Spicer who is still very generous with friendship, guidance and support. I have two main influences that have been such help with amazing guidance, support and friendship, constantly. Travis Scott and Neil Winslade have been so generous with their time and knowledge, I value both their opinions and input so much. Neil was so kind in allowing me to annoy him often when I was in the Bendigo area. Travis’ friendship and guidance over the years, regardless of what dog I was working at the time has been unwavering. They both work along the same lines and handle anxiety ridden, self-doubting brains that overthink far too much about what could go wrong not what could go right, with good humor and understanding.

Fly is just amazing at reading her stock, I never question her, ever. Meticulous in her

“why punch when you don’t have” to is her motto in life and I’d be absolutely lost without her. Now that I’m doing a lot of stockwork, it’s easy. It really is that in a nutshell, her ability to read stock and makes my life easy.

I live and work on Holmleigh Station south of Prairie QLD and the owner of Narroonda Working Dogs. I have had working dogs since 2005 and have been competing in cattle dog trials since 2016. I have been lucky enough to represent QLD twice in the state of origin team with Narroonda Flick who I also won the 2019 QLD Futurity with. I bred Flick to Chelbrook Digby and kept a bitch pup out of the litter and named her Narroonda Tick. She was a great pup from the start; a very smart, happy, snappy little pup that liked being with me and went to work the first time she saw the sheep. She was easy and enjoyable to train. She’s very natural with a massive work drive but doesn’t try to override me, just works with me and gets along with her stock well without upsetting them. In her first two trials she ran 98s which got us into the open finals in both and won her the Maiden at Lake Elphinstone.

I had entered her in the 2022 QLD Futurity. We were up against some very successful young dogs and handlers. The cattle were exceptional at Rockland Springs and I knew Narroonda Tick and I were in with a really good chance after running a 98 in the first round. The pressure was on with a lot of high scores making it into the finals, as we needed a 97 or more to get into the final round. We drew 3 good head in the final and put them around for a 99 and won. It was a pretty special for me, to win the 2022 Futurity with Narroonda Tick, the daughter I bred out of Narroonda Flick that I also bred who had won the Futurity in 2019.

Paul Wroe & Jacksons Silver - QLD Working Cattle Dog Trial Ass. Open Dog of the Year

Jackson’s Silver was born on the 20/08/2015, her breeding is Macs Western x Yandarra Tide, bred by Tony Jackson. Tony is a man who is a fanatic about working dogs, their genetics and breeding. Silver was broken in by Trevor Percival who was a very accomplished 3 sheep trailler who represented Australia, he never had the work for her – so I purchased her from Trevor in 2018.

I started competing with Silver in 2018, she won her first trial at Alpha which was the maiden, she has since won 14 opens and ‘3 sheep dog trials’ to this date. She has won Australian Open dog of the year 2020/21/22, the QLD Novice & Open Dog of the year in 2019 & the QLD Open dog of the year in 2020 & 2022.

I have been competing in dog trails since 2003. The thing I like the most about Silver is her willingness to please. Silver has also bred on some quality young dogs, Natel Pepper (currently leading Novice dog of the year) and Natel Jaffa who is doing well in the trial arena also.

Dave Steel & Koolwai Rebel - QLD Working Cattle Dog Trial Ass. Derby Winner 2022

I’ve been trialling for 10 years and have been completing with Rebel for the last 2 years. Rebel is a home bred bitch by Crawfords Star (Dunbible Creek Slim x Munns Belle) out of Wild Card Sandy (Natel Buck x Wild Card Devil).

We had pretty good year competing last year with a few minor places at the start of the year then following them up by winning the Qld 3 year old Derby. Then we backing that up with winning the novice and maiden at Wallumbilla in a field of over 100 dogs.

I feel the think that makes Rebel a nice dog to have around us she is not just competitive in the trial arena but she is an awesome dog to have in the paddock. She has good stocksense, is trainable and has a strong work ethic. Rebel is also putting some nice pups on the ground for us. I’m looking forward to getting back out on the road with her in 2023.

Glenn Dickson & Nowlans Ziggy - QLD Cattle Dog Trial Ass. Novice Dog of the Year

My name is Glenn Dickson, I live on our family cattle property “Chelbrook” at Emerald in Central Queensland.

I have been competing with working dogs for around 15 years. Some of the highlights from my years of competition would have to be representing QLD in the State Of Origin on a number of occasions, winning 2 Futurity’s, a Derby and the Novice Dog of the Year.

I purchased Ziggy “Nowlan’s Ziggy” as a 5 month old pup from the 2018 Futurity Stock Dog sale in Tamworth. I was not intending to buy a pup but had noticed her while watching some pre-work sessions. Even though she had only had little training at that young age she displayed a lot of instinct, combined with a calm, confident disposition. During the week of competition I also got to see her sire “Amos Zone” work sheep and cattle. He was the eventual winner of the All-round Dog of the 2018 Working Dog Spectacular.

Ziggy has now been competing for 2 years. Winning the 2022 Novice Dog of the year with the QWCDTAI and (though we were not able to compete because of other commitments) her place in the 2022 QLD State of Origin team.

Her strengths I believe is being able to find and hold the pressure point, ability to be able to rate all types of stock and her ability to be able to separate her confidence from aggression. She is very consistent, doesn’t tend to upset stock and I love competing with her.

Josh Marshall - Baden Powell Victorian 3 Sheep Championship

I have been trialling for 11 years. I won the Baden Powell Victorian championships which consists of a 300 yard cast with Wondara Jazz. Jazz is by Springvale buddy and out of Wondara May, she was bred by Trevor Uhr and Laurie Slater in 2013. I got Jazz off John Perry in 2020. Together we have since won a State Championship and also another Open Trial at Wentworth in 2022. We have also ran a score of 95 out of 100 at Morvern Sheep Dog Trial, we were also in the Top 20 at the Australian Sheep Dog Championships, the Top 15 at Benalla as well as in various finals.

A few people have helped me but Laurie Slater has been a big help for me to get to where I am with trialling today. Without the help from Laurie I am sure I wouldn’t have been able to get to where I am in the amount of time I have.

What I consider makes a exceptional dog is a dog that has a strong bond and connection with you and gets on well with their stock.

Lee Jamieson & Shannandoah Steele - TAS Working Sheep Dog Ass. Consistency Award Dog Of the Year Champion & Tas. Champion of Champions Series Winner

I have been training and trialling sheepdogs for 30 years having started back in 1993 as a teenager. With no experience working with stock my first introduction to sheepdog trials was on ABC TV in the early 1990’s, it was around this time that I met the late Robin Barratt, a top sheepdog trialler at the time, who took me under his wing and helped me out with my first trial dogs.

Steele is a six-and-a-half-year-old Border Collie and was bred by Mr Bruce Dolliver, a former trialler from New Norfolk in Tasmania. Steele’s pedigree contains a lot of Somerville and Bredbo bloodlines, which are present in my entire team. I consider Steele’s best attributes are his speed and cover on light stock, he’s particularly fit and never gives up no matter how tough the job is.

I consider my greatest achievement with Steele is representing my state in the Ted Gaby Interstate challenge and qualifying to compete in the 2020 Australian Test Team, which in my opinion is the pinnacle of our great sport. In his career so far, Steele has won at every venue in Tasmania and won every major title on offer, as well as success interstate.

Ben Coster & Coopendale Lucy- NSW Yard Dog Ass. Handler of the Year & Bitch of the Year

I’m Ben Coster and I have been competing dogs since 2014. At eight months of age Lucy and I competed in our first trial at the Wagga Wagga Championship Yard Trial where we came home with a win in the encourage with a score of 99, setting Lucy a standard for the future.

Lucy has had some very successful wins since then including The Australian Stock Dog Spectacular in Tamworth, NSWYDA Bitch of the year three times, and pulling second by only a point in National Kelpie Field Trial in 2022. To me Lucy is a great dog at work and in the trial ring as she gets on with her stock well and wants too please every time.

I was lucky enough to be given Lucy as an 8 week old pup by Andrew King, although she was bred by Graham Cooper. Andrew King was the one who got me started in sheep dogs and has taught me an awful lot although, there are heaps of others and made it work for me.