19 minute read
Wales White Washed at Worlds
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Congratulations to Gwion on his fantastic achievements at the World Champioships. We are very proud to be working with him here at Heiniger UK.
Gwion Evans World individual Machine Shearing Champion
"It has been great to be a part of the Heiniger UK8 team this year. The comb of choice for me at the world championships was the Heiniger Chargers used along with my Heiniger Cyclone handpieces."
It was a day the Welsh will never forget – a World Champion and runner-up and two team wins at the World Sheep Shearing Championships, Scotland 2023.
Since its inception in 1977, the Welsh first had a finalist in the World Machine final in Perth, Western Australia in 1986 – the fourth World Champs – in the shape of John Davies in fourth place. He was sixth at the next event in 1988 in New Zealand
Wyn Jones took fifth in the Bath & West Worlds in 1992, but it is ‘The Power from Gower ’ – Nicky Benyon – who has tallied the most finalist placings for Wales over the last forty six years and nineteen championships making the cut on five occasions
Nicky was third, behind Kiwi greats, Allan MacDonald and David Fagan on home turf, when the Royal Welsh hosted the event for the first time in 1994.
He slipped to fifth place in 1996 at Masterton, NZ behind David Fagan (his third win) and left-handed shearer Colin King. Scots Tom Wilson and Geordie Bayne took out third and sixth respectively, while Englishman Alan Derryman was fourth.
The 1998 Kiwi team of David Fagan and Paul Avery took out the top two spots in Gorey, Ireland with Steven Lloyd of England in third. Nicky secured fourth that year with Irish Willie Jones sandwiched in fifth between the Welshmen – Benyon and Pugh.
Only southern hemisphere shearers made the grade for the 2000 World Machine final in Bloemfontein, South Africa. But Nicky was back in the mix when the Royal Highland Show staged the shears in 2003. David Fagan topped the billboard for a fifth time, while Nicky settled for fourth behind local Tom Wilson and Kiwi Dean Ball. Steven Lloyd (Eng) and Kieran McCullough, Northern Ireland were fifth and sixth
Toowoomba, Australia heralded only Gavin Mutch from the northern hemisphere in fifth in 2005 and the Welsh also failed to cut the mustard in Norway 2008
Back on Welsh soil at Buith Wells in 2010 the Kiwi contingent of Cam Ferguson and David Fagan took champion and reserve with a new burst of Welsh blood in the form of Gareth Daniel and Gareth Evans in third and fourth respectively. Mutch and McCullough had to settle for fifth and sixth.
Gareth Daniel secured fifth place in Masterton, NZ, 2012, the year Mutch was crowned World Champion for Scotland and Gareth was then fourth in Gorey, Ireland 2014, where Mutch was bridesmaid.
The Welsh were missing from the line up in Invercargill, NZ, 2017 but certainly made up for it in Le Dorat, France in 2019. Richard Jones of Llangollen blew the competition away, taking out the silverware and sought after title for the Welsh for the first time.
On the day at the Royal Highland Show 2023, Gwion Evans found form and powered through his score of Cheviot hoggs, leading the all UK line up with Calum Shaw in hot pursuit. Once the points were tallied it was the two Welshmen, Evans and Jones who came out on top, with Shaw, O’Sullivan, Scott and Berry behind in that order.
While the press mingled on stage with the Welsh winners, Sir David Fagan came over to congratulate Evans and told him that he too had shorn on stand one when he took out the title twenty years prior, in Scotland, 2003!
Latest World and UK Records
by Doug Laing
Australian shearer Ethan Harder has set the pace for a new world record season by adding 20 to a Merino lamb record set less than a year ago.
Eathan, who is from Bruce Rock, inland West Australia, shore 624 lambs in eight hours at Woolakabin, about 160km southeast of Perth.
He was always ahead of the target of 604 – the record shorn by Kiwi, Keon Black who is based in Australia last October.
Ethan had to overcome a knee injury over the last hour, completing the day from the 7 30 am start with successive two-hour runs of 160, 156, 153 and 155
It was done under the rules of the World Sheep Shearing Records Society overseen by four judges, convened by New Zealander Johnny Fraser and assisted by Australian judges Mike Henderson, Ralph Blue and David Brooker.
At the wool weigh before the judges on Sunday, 20 sample sheep from the flock were shorn at an average of 1 062kg of wool per lamb, just edging over the minimum required for the record attempt to go ahead Thus, more than 660kg of fine wool was shorn during the day.
Ethan is no stranger to world records, having missed a ewe shearing record bid at the age of 20 in February 2020.
Observer and shearer Rocky Wegner, who spoke with Harder afterwards, said the outstanding feature – apart from Harder ’ s obsession – was the teamwork behind him
This comprised of his family, including brother Gage, friends and workmates, including woolhandler Janelle Hauiti, originally from Ohai, in Southland, and Elton Hokianga, from Hawke’s Bay.
Another big part of the team was Harder's parents Suzie and Boof, present in the woolshed throughout a day where supporters and spectators grew to over 150 people.
Harder has been a goal-setter in the woolshed since he first picked up a handpiece He shore 100 lambs in a day for the first time when he was 7 years old, 200 at the age of 12, 300 at the age of 14, 400 at 16, 500 at 17, 600 at the age of 18 and 700 at 19.
His record is one of eight notified to the records society for the 2023-2024 year, the first, in the UK last month.
Steve Rowberry (34), who farms in Shropshire attempted a world shearing record at the beginning of August.
His aim was to set a new British 8 hour lamb record and try to beat the World record of 754 lambs held by New Zealander Jack Fagan. His attempt was at Abbeydore in Herefordshire’s Golden Valley on August 4th.
Steve managed 181 lambs in the first run, 180 in the second, 176 in the third, and 169 in the fourth, totalling 706 lambs. He fell 48 lambs short of the 754 needed to take the world title from Jack Fagan, but as he was first to ever tackle that particular record in the UK he is now the British record holder.
Senior Shearing Royal Highland
by Eilidh MacPherson
A record 90 shearers competed in 16 heats in the Senior sheep shearing section at the Royal Highland Show
Kiwi shearer Adam Gordon, from the home of the Golden Shears, Masterton, New Zealand pumped his 4 ovines down the porthole in a speedy 4 minutes and 45 seconds. Teamed with the cleanest pen (22), Gordon qualified in top spot into the four heat semi finals
Frenchman Juliean Sureau clocked off on 4m 44s, 1 second before Gordon and slipped into 24th place – last man into the semi-finals. The other speedster Jacob Taylor (4m 43s) was 74th, with a cricket score out the back!
Another two shearers Ellis Rees from Wales and Northern Irish farmer Russell Smyth, punted out their quota in under five minutes – 4m 44s and 4m 45 sec respectively. They both kept a check on quality control on the boards and out the back and Smyth was second top qualifier with Rees in third.
Englishman Henry Cornthwaite, Frenchman Felix Cesbron, Canadian Team member Donald Metheral, Northern Irishman Ryan Adams, Scot, Stuart Robson and Polish Machine Team member Krystian Jarosz made the top 10 into the 24-strong semi-finals.
From the five ladies shearing in the Senior event Scottish lass Emily Te Kapa was 14th and Irishwoman Joanne Devaney came 16th.
The heat was turned up in the six Suffolk x Mules sheep semis and speed cranked up from an average 1m 27s per sheep in the heats to 1m 15s in the semis.
In the first heat Aaron Magee (NI) was motoring, but it was Sassenach Henry Cornthwaite, on stand number 2, who was in for his second at the 54 second mark. He had a sheep round Joe Boylan of Cavan, Ireland and two round Joanne Devaney as he went in for his fourth and by the time sheep number five was on the board he was in a class of his own. Second cuts may have been flying but with the cleanest pen over the four semis and second fastest time he secured himself sixth place into the final, slipping two places from the heats. Magee punched his red stop button 24s later and qualified fifth into the final.
Heat two was a race between Russell Smyth and compatriot Sam McConnell, who was also representing Northern Ireland in the Blade shearing. Smyth was in first for his fourth even although he had a wriggler on the board, Lewis Harkness was still in the mix at this juncture. By number six McConnell had the catch, completing his six in 6m 16s, with Smyth 16s behind Russell Smyth, moved from second place to top spot, into the final, with the tidiest job on the board, while Sam McConnell, moved up from mid-field to second.
They were joined in the final showdown by Andrew Rea and Ryan Adams in third and fourth places.
The Senior final was pretty much an all Irish event with five Irishmen and one lonesome Englishman – Henry Cornthwaite! They were faced with 10 Scottish Blackface hoggs.
Ryan Adams took an early lead and was in for number four at 3m 10s. By number five Smyth was in second and Rea third Adams struggled on six with a kicker and the Pom popped in for number seven just before him. Smyth and Magee followed suite.
Smyth kept quality to the fore and took out the Senior title. Andrew Rea and Ryan Adams were second and third. Aaron Magee came fourth with Cornthwaite in fifth and McConnell in sixth.
Junior Shearing Royal Highland
by Eilidh MacPherson
The World Sheep Shearing Championships staged at the Royal Highland Show kicked off in blazing sunshine on the first day of the four-day extravaganza.
With an influx of overseas competitors having travelled for the Golden Shears, an encouraging thirty-nine Junior shearers took to the boards for the chance of a stand in the 12-man or woman semi finals.
The past decade has seen a huge increase in the number of female shearers and the Junior section reflected this with an amazing 11 out of the 39 competitors – 28% of the field – being of the fairer sex.
Welshman Harvey Samuel led the way in both the heats and the semi finals with top quality work on the boards and out the back. Teamed with a steady 6mins 38 seconds over the three sheep in the heats he upped the ante to secure his pole position in the semi-finals by whacking over two minutes off his time in the three sheep semi.
Irishman Frazer Caldwell was second qualifier into the semis followed by Welsh man Iwan Robert Ellis, Ulsterman Steven Wilson of Ballyclare, Northern Ireland in fourth and Peter Losly in fifth.
First of the ladies to make the cut was Kiwi based German shearer Robin Krause who works for Pleasant Point shearing contractor Ant Frew. Perthshire lad Callum Simpson, whose father and uncle Mark and Brian Simpson have both travelled the world shearing was seventh followed by two lassies: Sassenach Chloe Lund and Eilidh Little of Callendar. Southern Irishman Paddy Dunne, John Jenkinson from the North of England and Highlander Ewan Bennett took up the remaining slots.
Steven Wilson sharpened his gear for the semis and cleaned up his board work, zipping his trio out a speedy 3 minutes 58 secs, 7 seconds slower than John Jenkinson. He pushed Caldwell and Ellis into third and fourth places respectively.
The only lady to make the final –Robin Krause – came fifth and Paddy Dunne, whose grandfather Tom Dunne was five times All Ireland Champion –no pressure – was sixth. Chloe Lund missed out on a final shear.
In the final, Paddy Dunne, who shore for a season in New Zealand with 2017 World Champion Johnny Kirkpatrick blasted his four ovines out in 5 mins 40 sec. Having been only a point out from missing a shear in the NZ Golden Shears Junior final earlier this year he had top quality work on the boards. Steven Wilson finished some 42 seconds later but had by far the tidiest job out the back and took the Royal Highland Show Junior title, by over three full points.
Paddy Dunne was runner-up and Frazer Caldwell came third followed by Samuel, Krause and Ellis
Royal Highland Young Farmer Shearing
by Eilidh MacPherson
The fifteen Young Farmers who had qualified from East, West and North regions shore a pen of three hoggs in the straight to final heats. The Young Farmers Machine shearing event was introduced at the Royal Highland Show in 1959.
Four lassies – Eilidh Little, Callander, Kirsty Findlay, Glasgow, Kate Donald, Stirling and Jane Donald, Biggar YFC unfortunately failed to make the final, with 21 year-old Eilidh just missing out in seventh place.
Perthshire lad Jack Simpson, made quality count with the lowest board score and second lowest pen mark to gain top spot into the six-man final.
Cameron Armstrong, Biggar YFC, teamed the fastest time – 4 mins 28secs –with the cleanest pen to qualify second. Ben Wight of Midlock, Crawford, whose father Alan took out the title in 1988, made sure of his place in the final with the second best board score and third top pen marks.
Steven Anderson, form Jedburgh in the Scottish Borders, Murray McHarg from Crosshill, Ayrshire and Highlander Lewis MacKay came in fourth, fifth and sixth places respectively.
Four flighty North Country Cheviot hoggs faced the Young Farmer competitors in the six-man final, on what must be one of the hottest Highland Show days in years.
Cameron Armstrong, son of Lance Armstrong, Dunsyre, Lanarkshire, who has one of the biggest shearing runs in the country, blasted his four out in 5 mins 30 secs to avoid any time penalties.
Intermediate shearer, Steven Anderson, who tallied his first 400 on lambs in New Zealand, earlier this year, hit his red ‘stop’ button 7 seconds later. He maintained a polished job on the board and pushed pinked sheep down the porthole to lift the Young Farmer title and the Lister Silver hand-piece. His total score was 32 600 – 11 2 points clear of his nearest rival.
Blackface sheep breeder, Ben Wight, took his time, ensuring each blow was accurate, avoiding second cuts. His tactics paid off with low board and pen scores, landing him second place and the blue sash.
Lewis MacKay from Sutherland in the North of Scotland pumped his flock out quicker than the average time of 6 minutes 22 seconds but accrued marks from second cutting on the board. He took out third place.
Armstrong, McHarg and Simpson were fourth, fifth and sixth respectively.
Intermediate Shearing Royal Highland Show
by Eilidh MacPherson
Sixty-one hopeful Intermediate shearers with an International flavour vied for prime position and a place in the three heat semi finals recently at the Royal Highland Show.
Nine ladies graced the boards with Stirling University Law graduate, Katie Reid, of Crieff, first into the semis. Her attention to detail on the board (13) and out the back (17) teamed with a below average time gave her a total score of 26 850. Matthew Cowan, a member of Gleno Young Farmers in Northern Ireland was 1 15 points in her shadow.
Borderer Steven Anderson, who lifted the Young Farmer silver mounted Lister hand-piece earlier in the day whizzed his four out in 5 minutes and 8 seconds, to secure the lowest time score and third place into the semi finals. Welshman Jack Samuel, Irishman Luke Magee and another Welsh dragon – Dewi Jones were fourth, fifth and sixth in.
Another three lassies made it through to semi-final stage: Lizzie Thompson, Ayrshire, in 13th slot, Kiwi, Cushla Abraham in 16th place and Kate Donald, Stirling was last in – 18th position.
Lizzie Thompson set the pace in the first semi-final, first in for her second sheep, followed by Delo Williams. Lizzie had two blows left on the hind leg when Delo fired in for his third, followed by Lizzie, then Ian Wilson and Matthew Cowan in hot pursuit.
Delo was managing to maintain a quarter sheep lead on Lizzie until she had a wriggler on the last shoulder of her third. Ian Wilson by-passed in for his fourth with Cowan and Thompson slamming catching pen doors simultaneously, in his wake.
Delo completed his five and clocked off at 6mins 6secs, with Kiwi, Dalton Dillon Tangiwai, coming from nowhere to finish second. Lizzie was just turning onto the last side of her fourth, with one still in the pen
In the second semi New Zealand lass Cushla Abraham struggled with the big North Country hoggs from Northhouse, having to turn her hand-piece off at one point.
It was a two-man race with Border man Anderson and Ayrshire bred Clarke Hibbard, who farms in Aberdeenshire battle it out. Anderson timed out at 6 mins 12 seconds, with Hibbard 10 seconds later, while Cushla and Southlander Kiwi Jimmy Johnston went in for their last.
Kate Donald reigned supreme in the third semi. From a spectators viewpoint she had a great shear, leading the way with a speedy time of 6m 30s, well under the 7m 1s average.
Delo Williams from Bala, Wales topped the board into the final with Samuel, Jones, Hibberd, Anderson and Magee in tow.
The pace stepped up a notch for the final, with the average sheep shooting down the porthole in 1m 12s. It was 1m 44s in the heats and 1m 24s in the semis
Jack Samuel and Steven Anderson duelled for the time points, with Samuel taking a seven second lead – 7m 54s over his seven sheep. Dewi Jones from Buith Wells, Wales, was some 17 seconds slower, heavy on the second cuts on the board but his polished job earned him the red sash and the silverware.
Top qualifier into the final – Delo Williams, may have been fourth to finish but kept a tidy job and took the blue sash and cash home to Wales. Samuel and Anderson were third and fourth respectively Northern Irelander Luke Magee who had the fewest second cuts but time was not on his side, came fifth and Aberdeenshire farmer Clarke Hibbard was sixth.
Novice Wool Handling Royal Highland
by Eilidh MacPherson
A strong International field of 24 from as far as Chile to Norway took their brooms and sweeps to the stage to battle for a straight three place final.
Nineteen year Sonya Fagan, one of the famous Fagan shearing fraternity from Te Kuiti, New Zealand rolled, sorted and swept her wool and her way into top qualifying spot in the Royal Highland Show Novice Wool handling event.
Argyllshire lass Sarah Bateman, who first worked for Willie Skilling and is currently wool-handling for Scottish machine team member and current team World Champion, Calum Shaw, swept her boards in under a minute to secure second place.
Chilean team member Archie Sepulveda qualified in third place.
Time was of the essence once more in the final and Sarah Bateman, who was brought up in Campbeltown on the Kintyre Peninsula, famed for the Paul McCartney song “Mull of Kintyre” went all out for the time points, sweeping up in 1 minute 1 second.
The girls tied on 106 points a piece on the table and Sonya had the edge on the board, but securing the time by 40 seconds gave the Scottish lass a one point lead over her Kiwi rival.
The South American, who is undoubtedly new to Scottish wool rolling, had the best table mark and took third place.
