The Gizzy Crew Catches The Shearing Bug

There were signs of “the bug” when almost 70 shearers and woolhandlers competed on Saturday as the Wairarapa A and P Show cranked back into action after two years of cancellations.

There were 38 across five classes of shearing from Open to Novice and 29 across four classes of woolhandling, also from Open to Novice.

Those catching the competition bug included a small crew of younger competitors making a 450km-plus trip from Gisborne to Carterton to branch-out after good performances at their home show, which a fortnight ago opened the shearing sports season in the North Island, and at the Hawke’s Bay show’s Great Raihania Shears.

They went home with three wins, with Te Ua Wilcox claiming his first Senior shearing title after placings at both earlier shows, Richmond Ngarangione adding the Intermediate title to that he won in Hastings, and Tira Ngarangione winning the Senior woolhandling final, after being runner-up at both Gisborne and Hastings. Tee Te Maipi was fourth in the Senior shearing final.

It was a particularly important trip for Tira Ngarangione, who’d previously confined her competition to Gisborne and Hawke’s Bay, but who said she wanted to get points in the North Island Woolhandling Circuit, the win giving her the maximum 12 points for the day, effectively confirming the crew will hit the road again for her next round at the Central Hawke’s Bay A and P Show in Waipukurau on November 12.

It was a near all-Wairarapa day in the Open shearing and woolhandling finals, the only outsider being Southern Hawke’s Bay farmer and Scotland international Gavin Mutch.

He reckoned it’s been 23 years since he last shore at the Wairarapa Show, but he made it a good one with victory over Masterton shearers David Gordon, Matene Mason and Hemi Braddick.

It was Mutch’s second win of the season, having won the Waimate Spring Shears Open title on October 8 and having competed at five of the eight shows on the calendar so far.

Now 40, 2012 World and 2015 Golden Shears champion Mutch has quickly overcome any disappointment from missing-out on a place in the Scotland team for the what would have been his seventh World championships, in Scotland next June, and will compete at the Canterbury Shears on November 11, chasing a second New Zealand Corriedales title and more points his race for all-breeds honours in the PGG Wrightson Vetmed National Shearing Circuit.

He estimates he’s now won over 90 Open titles, but isn’t counting.

Cushla Abraham, of Masterton, beat Eketahuna sisters Ngaio Hanson and Marika Braddick in the Open woolhandling final, having already won the New Zealand Shears Merino title and one of two New Zealand team berths for a transtasman woolhandling test in Bendigo, Vic, on November 24.

On a busy day, helping with results and family operation Shedtalk livestreaming the competitions, Abraham also went within a pip of returning to the shearing board’s winning circle, when beaten by just 0.05pts in the Intermediate shearing final.

Nuhaka shearer Cheyden Winiana was another who made the best of a long trip by scoring his second Junior shearing win in a row, and Napier-based Te Whetu Brown, from Wairoa, completed a similar double by winning the Junior woolhandling title.

The Novice shearing was won by Rosie Rooderkirk, of Masterton, and the Novice woolhandling was won Emma Buick, daughter of New Zealand representative Pongaroa shearer David Buck, who has had to retire from shearing after being seriously-injured in a farm accident.

Results from the Wairarapa A and P Show Shears at Clareville, Carterton, on Saturday, October 29, 2022:

Shearing:

Open final (15 sheep): Gavin Mutch (Scotland/Dannevirke) 12min 59sec, 50.4833pts, 1; David Gordon (Masterton) 13min 41sec, 52.65pts, 2; Matene Mason (Masterton) 14min 35sec, 55.2833pts, 3; Hemi Braddick (Eketahuna) 13min 19sec, 56.15pts, 4.

Senior final (8 sheep): Te Ua Wilcox (Gisborne) 10min 13sec, 38.15pts, 1; Danial Biggs (Mangamahu) 10min 6sec, 42.175pts, 2; Joseph Gordon (Masterton) 9min 54sec, 43.835pts, 3; Tee Te Maipi (Gisborne) 10min 32sec, 45.225pts, 4.

Intermediate final (2 sheep): Richmond Ngarangione (Gisborne) 8min 46sec, 66.3pts, 1; Cushla Abraham (Masterton) 9min 7sec, 66.35pts, 2; Michael Buick (Pongaroa) 8min 51sec, 68.05pts, 3; Bruce Grace (Napier) 6min 38sec, 76.9pts, 4.

Junior final (2 sheep): Cheyden Winiana (Nuhaka) 8min 54sec, 55.7pts, 1; Emma Kendrick (Feilding) 10min 44sec, 65.2pts, 2; Wiomio Paewhenua (Masterton) 8min 34sec, 68.7pts, 3; Jake Goldsbury (-) 7min 28sec, 75.4pts, 4.

Novice (1 sheep): Rosie Rooderkirk (Masterton) 5min 8sec, 32.4pts, 1; Kaitlyn Dawson (-) 5min 1sec, 45.05pts, 2; Lochie Cameron (-) 5min 44sec, 49.2pts, 3.

Woolhandling:

Open final: Cushla Abraham (Masterton) 222.88pts, 1; Ngaio Hanson (Eketahuna) 226.54pts, 2; Marika Braddick (Eketahuna) 329.66pts, 3.

Senior final: Tira Ngarangione (Gisborne) 118.53pts, 1; Samantha Baxter (Pongaroa) 125.82pts, 2; Rochelle Axford (Marton) 141.59pts, 3.

Junior final: Te Whetu Brown (Wairoa) 115.75pts, 1; Elma Brown 120.07pts, 2; Waiari Puna (Napier) 141.31pts, 3.

Novice: Emma Buick (Pongaroa) 127.97pts, 1; Manahi Fox (Masterton) 143.22pts, 2; Andrew Hemi (-) 162.72pts, 3.

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