Shearing: Northland gun Toa Henderson on track to top Open rankings for season

Kaiwaka shearer Toa Henderson, after shearing 911 lambs in a day last Wednesday. The previous weekend he won a show title in Kumeu and shore in the New Zealand Rural Games Speedshear in Palmerston North, and on Saturday he won again, at Warkworth. Photo / Supplied

Northland shearer Toa Henderson again kept it close to home after a season of some of the longest trips in New Zealand shearing competition, when he won the Warkworth A and P Lifestyle Show’s Open final in an obligingly sunny north on Saturday.

It was the 32-year-old’s 10th win of 2022-2023, putting him right in the running to end the season as Shearing Sports New Zealand’s No 1-ranked Open shearer.

He’s had victories from Kaikohe in the North to Balclutha in the South (1750kms apart) and the long haul includes such two-day road trips as 700km each way to win the Central Hawke’s Bay Shears final in Waipukurau and 480km each way to win at Stratford, a fortnight apart in November.

Four of the wins have come in the last month, including a big weekend on February 24-26, when he won at the Taumarunui Shears and the Pahiatua Shears.

In doing so, he sandwiches the wins with a second placing at Apiti to Hawke’s Bay-based form Northland gun Rowland Smith, who has won seven finals this season, including an eighth Golden Shears Open title and the right to represent New Zealand at the World Championships in Scotland in June.

Henderson bounced back from still being unable to make the top-six for the Golden Shears Open final by getting even busier, as he prepares for the New Zealand Shears in Te Kuiti on March 30-April 1, when the second Wools of New Zealand team machine shearing position will be on the line.

On March 11, Henderson won the Kumeu show’s Open final and the next morning flew to Palmerston North to reach the last four of the New Zealand Rural Games Speedshear.

He then flew home for work and a sudden decision to go for tally shear in the woolshed, where on Wednesday he shore 911 lambs.

This smashed his previous best of 702.

On Saturday, just 40km from home and shearing the 11 sheep in 9min 27sec as well as carding the best quality points on the board and in the pens, he won the Warkworth title for a third time in a row, spanning the competitions since 2019, including two cancellations.

In a three-man final, he beat workmate Dane Phillips, who also had a win during the season, by almost five points, with third place going to Northland competitions regular Neville Osborne.

There was also a Kaiwaka win in the Senior final, with Tama Nahona beating Wellsford shearer Jayden Mainland by just under a point.

Brya Harrison, of Okaihau, returned to competition after a break of several years to win the Intermediate final by 0.2pts from Hamuera Henderson, also of Kaiwaka, and the Junior final was won by Gus Berger, of Ahuroa.

RESULTS of the Warkworth A and P Lifestyle Show Shears on Saturday, March 18, 2023:

Open final (11 sheep): Toa Henderson (Kaiwaka) 9min 27sec, 35.44pts, 1; Dane Phillips (Kaiwaka) 9min 47sec, 40.35pts, 2; Neville Osborne (Dargaville) 10min 30sec, 43.11pts, 3.

Senior final (5 sheep): Tama Nahona (Kaiwaka) 5min 18sec, 23.7pts, 1; Jayden Mainland (Wellsford) 5min 16sec, 24.6pts, 2; Alan Boler (Wellsford) 6min 50sec, 26.5pts, 3.

Intermediate final (4 sheep): Brya Harrison (Okaihau) 6min 43sec, 25.9pts, 1; Hamuera Henderson (Kaiwaka) 6min 2sec, 26.1pts, 2; Hazel Wood (Ruawai) 7min 1sec, 29.3pts, 3.

Junior final (3 sheep): Gus Berger (Ahuroa) 4min 29sec, 22.45pts, 1; Keanu Andrews (Okaihau) 4min 7sec, 30.85pts, 2; Paul Finlayson (Kai Iwi Lakes) 4min 48sec, 33.4pts, 3.

Veterans final (1 sheep): Alan Bramley (Kaeo) 1min 20sec, 10.5pts, 1; Ralph Smith (Dargaville) 2min 9sec, 15.45pts, 2; Peter McCabe (Katikati) 1min 59sec, 15.95pts, 3.