Shearing: Angus Moore makes a mark at Nelson

Angus Moore, who won the 125th anniversary Nelson A and P Show's Open shearing final on Saturday, pictured in the 2012 New Zealand Shears Circuit final in Te Kuiti. Photo/Doug Laing SSNZ

Marlborough shearer and now contractor Angus Moore proved a class act as he won his first Nelson A and P Show title this weekend.

The 32-year-old father-of-four, who has moved home to Marlborough from South Otago with wife Ratapu, shore the 20-sheep Open final in just under 21 minutes yesterday and finished about two sheep ahead of next-man-off Paul Hodges.

Moore, who won the Golden Shears and New Zealand Championships Senior finals in 2007 and Open-class jewel the PGG Wrightson National Circuit final five years later, also had the best shearing points in the 125th anniversary show's four-man final at Richmond Showgrounds.

The combination of time and board points carried him to a wide Open-class margin of more than eight points from eventual runner-up and North Canterbury shearer Delwyn Henriksen, who closed the gap slightly with the best points from judging in the pens.

Defending champion and three-times-winner Chris Jones, of Blenheim, was third and Hodges, from Geraldine but now based in Reefton, did not have the quality on the day and finished fourth in a continued string of finals appearances in just his second season in the Open class.

A good field of 12 entered the Open, Jones the only previous winner of the title among them and Hodges the Senior winner two years ago. Among the others was three-times Nelson Senior winner Jotham Rentoul, of Wakefield, and new Open competitor and Takaka-based 2017 World Championships Mongolian representative Enkhnasan Chuulunbaatar.

Whether the win will drive Moore back into chasing the shows – as he did in such seasons as 2007 when he shore in 19 Senior finals from Waimate in the south to Kaikohe in the north – remains to be seen.

He and his wife live in Seddon where they have picked-up the shearing run of local contractor Joe Douglas and are working to develop the business.

Moore had just two finals last season, winning the Marlborough final in Blenheim but being runner-up to Hodges at his home Flaxbourne show in March, and earlier this month was second to Pleasant Point shearer in this year's Marlborough final.

Local shearer Carlton Field sprung a surprise by winning the Senior final today by putting almost a sheep around well-performed Amberley visitor Mitchell Murray in the 10-sheep final, and ultimately claiming victory by just over three points. Third was last year's Intermediate winner, Sarah Higgins, from Havelock but who is also developing run in Blenheim.

Jesse Barclay, from Mataura, won the Intermediate final by more than six points from Higgins' brother, Duncan, and the Junior final provided a first win for Motueka teenager Kimberley MacLean, beating runner-up Henry Mayo, from England, by more than two-and-a-half points.

The show attracted improved entries, with 27 across the grades compared with 19 shearers last year. It was the last show shearing competition on the Shearing Sports New Zealand calendar in the South Island until the Peninsula Duvauchelle show on January 13.

RESULTS of the Nelson A and P Show Shearing Championships at Richmond Showgrounds, Nelson, on Saturday, November 25, 2017:
Open final (20 sheep): Angus Moore (Seddon) 20min 56.03sec, 74.45pts, 1; Delwyn Henriksen (Amberley) 23min 43.78sec, 82.64pts, 2; Chris Jones (Blenheim) 24min 18.12sec, 84.51pts, 3; Paul Hodges (Reefton) 23min 5.06sec, 85.25pts, 4.
Open Plate (10 sheep): Mark Herlihy (Rangiora) 11min 37.35sec, 47.07pts, 1; Alex Drake (Wakefield) 11min 41.25sec, 47.96sec, 2; Nik Nalder (Takaka) 10min 15.84sec, 53.19pts, 3; Travers Baigent (Wakefield) 9min 30.47sec, 54.42pts, 4.
Senior final (10 sheep): Carlton Field (Tapawera) 14min 26.62sec, 54.83pts, 1; Mitchell Murray (Amberley) 15min 34.72sec, 57.94pts, 2; Sarah Higgins (Blenheim) 16min 40.69sec, 58.83pts, 3; Mark Rogers (Brightwater) 17min 7.62sec, 63.28pts, 4.
Intermediate final (4 sheep): Jesse Barclay (Mataura) 7min 35.66sec, 33.03pts, 1; Duncan Higgins (Blenheim) 7min 32.84sec, 39.39pts, 2; Phelan Hopley (Golden Bay) 9min 12.13sec, 62.15pts, 3.
Junior final (3 sheep): Kimberley MacLean (Motueka) 10min 3.69sec, 44.18pts, 1; Henry Mayo (Dorset, England) 11min 35.19sec, 46.76pts, 2; Johnny Wylie (Golden Bay) 7min 44.4sec, 63.55pts, 3; Lucas Taia (Tapawera) 8min 14.96sec, 69.08pts, 4.