Woolhandler follows dad's transtasman footsteps

Hawke's Bay woolhandler Angela Stevens at the Hawke's Bay A and P Show's Great Raihania Shears. Next month she competes for New Zealand in a transtasman test in Australia. Photo / Paul Taylor

Hawke's Bay will have its first New Zealand woolhandling transtasman series team member in at least 15 years with the selection of Napier's Angela Stevens for a test match in Australia next month.

In the 24 years since the first home and away woolhandling tests were first held, the only woolhandlers from Hawke's Bay to make the team have been Jackie Harmer, in 2000-2001, and Hanatia Tipene, in 2007-2008.

But of the 34 machine-shearing tests since John Kirkpatrick made the team after his first Golden Shears Open win in 2002, only six have not had a shearer from Hawke's Bay, with seven shearers from the region having since worn the black singlet with the silver fern.

But Stevens doesn't have to go far for a bit advice, because Kirkpatrick - whose 14 transtasman tests are a record for any New Zealand in the shearing tests, which date back to 1974 - is her dad.

There's also husband Ricci Stevens who would have had her place in the team had he not decided against the opportunity because of the heavy workload as a shearer in New Zealand.

Selection of one of the two woolhandlers was based on the 2021 North Island Open woolhandling circuit final in Te Kuiti.

Ricci Stevens and Angela Stevens were second and third respectively to winner and Te Kuiti woolhandler and farmer Keryn Herbert, who was also not available for the trip.

The other woolhandler is new New Zealand Merino Shears Open woolhandling champion Cushla Abraham, while the rest are all South Islanders, with machine shearers Nathan Stratford and Leon Samuels, both from Southland, joined by Central Otago shearer Stacey Te Huia, and blade shearers Allan Oldfield and Tony Dobbs, both from South Canterbury.

Separate machine, bladeshearing tests were to have been held during the Australian national championships last week in Bendigo, Victoria. But the facilities were suddenly needed as a flood evacuation centre, the test and championships were postponed until November 24-26.

The postponement enabled Stevens and Abraham to compete at the Hawke's Bay A and P Show's Great Raihania Shears on Friday, when 30 lined up in the Open woolhandling, considerably more than any other of the eight classes of shearing and woolhandling.

Entries increased sharply, with 67 shearers and 52 woolhandlers, including 30 in the Open woolhandling, which was also the third round of a series to find two woolhandlers to represent New Zealand at next year's World championships.

The Open woolhandling final was won by Gisborne's Mary Anne Baty, a 2017 World teams champion whose first Open win was at Hastings in 2015.

Champion Hawke's Bay shearer Rowland Smith sounded a loud warning he'll be the man to catch in New Zealand's 2023 World Championships hopes when he won Open shearing final.

The Maraekakaho farmer and agricultural contractor, now in his 16th season at the top level and the winner of at least 167 Open finals including the 2014 World Championship in Ireland, hadn't competed since winning the New Zealand Shears Open final in Te Kuiti in April 2021.

Often a late starter each season because of his other commitments – although a winner of the Great Raihania title three times in a row in 2015-2017, he reckoned he'd hardly shorn a sheep this season other than a couple while showing students the way at the shears' schools competition the previous day in the same Tomoana Showgrounds.

But he soon showed he had at least the quality to beat all comers, after finishing second off the board and 42 seconds after Te Kuiti shearer who sheared the four-man final of 20 full-wooled sheep on a cold day in Hastings in 16min 24sec, an average of 49.2 seconds a sheep caught, shorn and penned.

It was the aftermath that counted most, Smith needing almost of his 2.45pts advantage from judging the sheep in the pens to win by 0.35pts from Fagan who thought he'd struck it lucky on the day, with the combing and settling of the sheep. "They were … succulent," he said.

Results from the Great Raihania Shears at the Hawke's Bay A and P Show on October 21, 2021:

Shearing

Open final (20 sheep):Rowland Smith (Maraekakaho) 17min 6sec, 58.25pts, 1; Jack Fagan (Te Kuiti) 16min 24sec, 58.6pts, 2; Gavin Mutch (Scotland/Dannevirke) 17min 13sec, 60.8pts, 3; Hemi Braddick (Eketahuna) 17min 15sec, 61.4pts, 4.

Senior final (5 sheep): Adam Gordon (Masterton) 6min 40sec, 28.4pts, 1; Paul Swann (Wairoa) 6min 56sec, 29pts, 2; Te Ua Wilcox (Gisborne) 6min 44sec, 33.6pts, 3; Joseph Gordon (Masterton) 7min 25sec, 35.45pts, 4.

Intermediate final (4 sheep): Richmond Ngarangione (Gisborne) 7min 9sec, 32.45pts, 1; Dylan Young (Tokomaru Bay) 6min 33sec, 33.15pts, 2; Hautapu Mihaere (Te Awamutu) 7min 12sec, 33.35pts, 3; Bruce Grace (Napier) 6min 50sec, 36.75pts, 4.

Junior final (3 sheep): Cheyden Winiana (Nuhaka) 6min 20sec, 39pts, 1; Ryka Swann (Wairoa) 6min 54sec, 40.367pts, 2; Jake Golfdsbury (-) 6min 49sec, 44.783pts, 3; Jack Procter (-) 5min 41sec, 51.383pts, 4.

Novice (1 sheep): Shania Mackey (Hastings) 4min 45sec, 49.25pts, 1; Te Ariki Te Hau (-) 3min 51sec, 50.55pts, 2; Ashlin Swann (Wairoa) 8min 48sec, 66.4pts, 3; Shiane Te Hau (-) 5min 15sec, 79.75pts, 4.

Woolhandling

Open final: Maryanne Baty (Gisborne) 330.2pts, 1; Monica Potae (Kennedy Bay) 367.6pts, 2; Jasmine Tipoki (Martinborough/Napier) 397pts, 3; Chelsea Collier (Hamilton) 552.8pts, 4.

Senior final: Nohokainga Maraki (Flaxmere) 226.2pts, 1; Tira Ngarangione (Gisborne) 270pts, 2; Vinniye Phillips (Taumarunui) 277pts, 3; Rochelle Ashford (-) 341pts, 4.

Junior final: Te Whetu Brown (Wairoa/Napier) 165pts, 1; Waiari Puna (Napier) 169.4pts, 2; Tatiana Keefe (-) 183pts, 3; Jodiesha Kirkpatrick (Gisborne) 193.8pts, 4.