The Taranaki Shears open final line-up on Saturday. Winner Jack Fagan (left), runner-up David Gordon (with son Harley doing the photo bombing), third-placed Llyr Jones, and Clay Harris, who was fourth. Photo / Kerri Anne Dickson
The Taranaki Shears open final line-up on Saturday. Winner Jack Fagan (left), runner-up David Gordon (with son Harley doing the photo bombing), third-placed Llyr Jones, and Clay Harris, who was fourth. Photo / Kerri Anne Dickson
There was a hint of experience triumphing over youthfulness at the Stratford A&P Show on Saturday, when Te Kuiti shearer Jack Fagan made it three in a row in show competitions, winning the Taranaki Shears open final.
Fagan reckoned, at the age of 33, it was the first time he’dbeen the oldest in an open final.
He first reached an open final at the Great Yorkshire Show in England in 2013, shearing against his father, Sir David Fagan, and on Saturday claimed his 30th win.
It came at a show that attracted 99 shearers across five grades – the most machine shearers of any of the 15 competitions in the Shearing Sports New Zealand season to date.
Competition convenor Shane Rawlinson said it was a fantastic way to mark the opening of new facilities, with a record number of entries since the Shears, previously held in the town’s War Memorial Hall, moved to the showgrounds to merge with the A&P competition in 2018.
His team prepared 620 sheep for the day – about 100 more than usual – but he said it was still “barely enough”.
With an unusually high 28 senior entries, they coped by cutting the number of sheep to three per shearer in the heats.
In the richest open-grade form of his life, it was Fagan’s third win of the season, and came less than 20 hours after claiming speed shear win number 85 at the Matiere Cosmopolitan Club in remote southern King Country on Friday night.
Last of the four qualifying for the final on Saturday, Fagan won by just over a point from Masterton shearer David Gordon, who had the best quality points.
He also edged out three-time winner Gavin Mutch, the Scottish international and former Taranaki farmer now based in Hawke’s Bay.
New Wales world championships selection Llyr Jones was third, after being the top qualifier from both the 21 in the heats, and the semi-finals.
He was also awarded the Birdsall Buchanan Trophy for the best quality points in the heats in any grade.
Clay Harris, of Piopio, in just his third season in the grade, was fourth overall, but was first to finish, shearing the 15 sheep in 12m 37.31s, pipping Fagan by 5.5s.
Fagan won the 2012 senior final and was runner-up in the open final in 2022, when Harris was the senior champion.
Prizegiving for the senior final at Stratford. Stratford A&P Society president Paul Vanner (left), winner Dylan Young, runner-up Blake Mitchell, third-placed Callum Bosley, and fourth-placed Daniel Rogers. The senior grade attracted 28 shearers. Photo / Kerri Anne Dickson
Poverty Bay shearer Dylan Young crossed the island to win the senior final by almost three points from runner-up Blake Mitchell, of Patea, and Tye Mitchell, of Ōamaru, won the intermediate final, following a junior final win at Stratford in his first trip north a year ago.
Ashlin Swann also crossed the island, from Wairoa, to win the junior final, and the novice grade was won by Rikihana Salmond, of Te Kuiti, son of top woolhandler Keryn Herbert.
As well as the 21 in the open and 28 in the senior grade, the entries comprised 21 intermediate shearers, 23 juniors and six in the novice grade.
A feature was the large international entry, with 20 shearers from overseas, from the UK, the US and Australia, with five from the UK reaching finals, all in New Zealand for the busy main shear in the woolsheds.
The last competitions before Christmas are at the Whangārei and Rotorua A&P shows on Saturday, and the season resumes at the Peninsula Duvauchelle Shears on January 10.
Jack Fagan, on his way to winning the speed shear at the remote Matiere Cosmopolitan Club on Friday, November 28. Photo / Jemma Brears
Meanwhile, Fagan’s win in Friday’s speed shear at Matiere was his fourth in the short form in a fortnight, after winning at Rakaia and Waiau in Canterbury and last week’s Wagga Wagga win in Australia.
He won the final comfortably with a time of 15.48s, with Forde Alexander, of Taumarunui, second in 17.38s, and Lionel Taumata, of Gore, third in 19.16s.
It was the first round of the JR King Country Circuit.
Taelor Tarrant, of Taumarunui, won the senior final in 19.62s, with Callum Bosley, from England, second in 22.86s.
