Big weekend cheque for speedy Fagan

Son-of-a-gun shearer Jack Fagan earned $4000 for barely a couple of minutes’ shearing as he picked-off two of New Zealand’s biggest Speedshear prizes at the weekend.

Fagan won the $2000 first prize in the North Island Speedshear at the Waitete Rugby Club in home-town Te Kuiti on Friday night, with a best time of 18.54sec, and repeated the effort 24 hours later with an even quicker best single-lamb time of 16.49sec in the Te Puna Speedshear at Te Puna’s Top Shot Bar, near Tauranga.

On each occasion the runner-up was arch speedshears rival Paerata Abraham, of Masterton, beaten by 0.24sec at Te Kuiti and 1.13sec at Te Puna, on the eve of the Tauranga A and P Show Shears.

The Senior final at Te Kuiti was won by Jared Mackintosh, of Pio Pio, by 2.26 seconds over Llyr Jones, from Ty Newydd in Wales and one of several shearers from overseas at the event, including French and Spanish.

The Senior final at Te Puna was won by Mike Vanveen, of Tauranga, in a particularly close tussle with 0.49seconds covering the first three places, with Masterton shears Chris Dickson and David Gordon second and third respectively.

The Te Kuiti event featured a now-rare competition outing for Fagan’s father who shore in a King Country Legends Relay, involving four of the historymakers from the area’s golden era of World Record shearing.

Sir David Fagan, who retired from competition shearing in 2015 shore with still-competing veteran Digger Balme in the Te Kuiti team which beat the Pio Pio team of Alan MacDonald and Roger Neil.

While there was $6500 going out in prizes, there was still plenty coming in, with the local volunteer fire brigade benefitting by more than $1100 from takings at the door, plus proceeds of an auction, as well as being a big night for the rugby club, home club of late All Blacks rugby legend Sir Colin Meads.

Results of the North Island Speedshear Championship at Waitete Rugby Club, Te Kuiti, on Friday, January 11, 2019:

Open final: Jack Fagan (Te Kuiti) 18.54sec, 1; Paerata Abraham (Masterton) 18.78sec, 2; Jimmy Samuels (Marton) 19.98sec, 3.

Senior final: Jared Mackintosh (Pio Pio) 26.88sec, 1; Llyr Jones (Ty Newydd, Wales) 29.14sec, 2; Josef Winders (-) 29.96sec, 3.

King Country Legends Relay: Te Kuiti (Sir David Fagan, Digger Balme) 49.13sec, 1; Pio Pio (Alan MacDonald, Roger Neil) 1min 4.74sec, 2.

Results of the Te Puna Speedshear at Top Shot Bar, Te Puna, Tauranga, on Saturday, January 12, 2019:

Open final: Jack Fagan (Te Kuiti) 16.49sec, 1; Paerata Abraham (Masterton) 17.62sec, Digger Balme (Te Kuiti) 17.79sec, 3.

Senior final: Mike Vanveen (Tauranga) 21.36sec, 1; Chris Dickson (Masterton) 21.78sec, 2; David Gordon (Masterton) 21.85sec, 3.

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