Pagan Karauria completes historic South Island wool treble

Pagan Karauria pictured here in 2016. Photo / SSNZ

World champion Central Otago woolhandler Pagan Karauria has signed-off her preparation for her next international assignment when she completed an historic sequence of three major wins.

Sandwiched between her world teams title in France in July and a transtasman test match in Australia later this month, Karauria has won the national fine wool, Spring Shears longwool and Corriedale Championships, thought to be the first time anyone has completed the treble in one season.

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She won the fine wool title at the New Zealand Merino Championships in hometown Alexandra on October 5, the longwool title at Waimate a week later, and the Corriedales title at the New Zealand Agricultural Show in Christchurch last week.

No one has otherwise won all three titles in one season in Shearing Sports New Zealand records dating back to 1991.

The win in Christchurch rained on the parade of semi-retired multiple World, Golden Shears and New Zealand champion Joel Henare who was runner-up. He had won two of the three titles in each of the last four seasons.

Karauria has now won 24 open finals dating back to her first, also in the Corriedale Championship, in 2016, and was made a Master Woolhandler in 2018.

But despite the successes and representing New Zealand at a World Championships, Karauria will compete in a transtasman test for the first time in Dubbo, NSW, on November 29, teaming-up again with world title partner Sheree Alabaster, of Taihape.

Third place went to 2009 Golden Shears senior champion Ratapu Moore.

Moore was originally from the North Island but is now based in Marlborough with husband Angus running a shearing contracting business out of Seddon.

Result:

Open final: Pagan Karauria (Alexandra) 123.632pts, 1; Joel Henare (Motueka) 159.59pts, 2; Ratapu Moore (Sefton) 220.85pts, 3.