Woolhandlers Take The Honours On First Day Of New Zealand Shears

Two woolhandlers from different ends of the competition spectrum claimed the first titles at the New Zealand Shears in Te Kuiti today(Thursday).

Cat Christey, who calls herself a general hand who does-all sorts on a farm near Waitomo, has barely competed since 2009, when she won the Junior final, but in her only event of the season, on the first day of the three-day Shears, she won the Senior final beating new Golden Shears champion Rahera Kerr, of Hauturu, and the season’s No 1-ranked Senior for the year, Vinniye Phillps, of Taumarunui, who were second and third respectively.

New Junior champion Tre Ratana Sciascia, 17, of Taihape, was born into a Kiwi shearing family in Hamilton, Vic, and has been rarely far away from the woolshed, remembering starting woolhandling even before starting school.

Having moved to New Zealand about the age of 10, Ratana-Sciascia, has worked for premier contractprs Peter and Elsie Lyon in Central Otago as well as around the Taihape area, and today claimed a second maor title for the year, having won rge Junior woolhandling title at the New Zealand Crossbred Lambshearing Championships in Winton, Southland, in January, with second placings at the Gisborne Shears in October, and the Wairarapa Pre-Shears championships near Masterton, just before the Golden Shears, at which the woolhandler missed a place in the final.

They Senior and Junior woolhandling championships were the only titles decided on the opening day, with 59 competing across the grades, including 22 in the Open grade, for which the final will be held on Saturday night.

The second day on Friday will be dominated by shearing events, including finals of the Novice and Junior grades, the Women’s event and the Open-grade North Island Shearer of the year.

More than 160 have entered across the shearing grades, with the Intermediate and Senior finals being shorn on Saturday, along with the Open grade from heats to the final, part of a Saturday-night programme also including the New Zealand Shears Circuit final.

Finals results from the first day of the New Zealand Shears being held in Te Kuiti on Thursday-Saturday March 30-April 1, 2023:

Woolhandling:

Senior:: Cat Chistey (King Country) 78.12pts, 1; Rahera Kerr (Haururu) 80.37pts, 2; Vinniye Phillips (Taumarunui) 95.994pts, 3; Summer Pritchard (Pongaroa) 96.87pts, 4; Tira Ngarangione (Gisborne) 103.22pts, 5.

Junior: Tre Ratana Sciascia (Taihape) 73.744pts, 1; Te Whetu Brown (Wairoa) 81.38pts, 2; Makayla Neil (Taumarunui) 90.144pts, 3; Chloe Henderson (Feilding) 112.5pts, 4; Kelly Barrett-Thom (Kawhia) 118.25pts. 5.

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