Welsh-Kiwi Combo Falls In Shot Oin World Sheep Shearing Record Bid

December 11, 2024

A veritable royalty of New Zealand shearing packed a remote Wairarapa woolshed today for what was the first trans-global attack on a World shearing record.

But the ultimate prize proved beyond all the effort and all the willing as Kiwi hopeful Paerata Abraham and Welsh speedster Llyr Jones, who a year ago were opponents in international test-match shearing, fell 15 short of the goal in challenging a World two-stand, eight-hours strongwool lambs record of 1410.

With holders Simon Goss and Jamie Skiffington among the throng at Whitespurs, near Gladstone, east of Masterton, Abraham, with brother-in-law and fellow New Zealand representative David Gordon watching the clock, and Jones, with Welsh national teammate Gethin Lewis at his side, knew they were off the pace for much of the day but battled on to end with an official tally of 1396.

They opened well enough with 351 in the opening run from 7am to the morning break at 9am – three more than Goss and Skiffington achieved in the first two hours of their record northeast of Whanganui in January 2023.

With 695 by lunch, the 354 best run of the day after the break was not enough to get onto the average of 353 a run needed to break the record, and they went into the last two hours from 3pm to 5pm needing 362, six more than the best run in the existing record.

In the end Jones claimed the individual bragging rights with 708 for the day, and Abraham was credited with 688, which compared with the 715 and 695 of Goss and Skiffington respectively.

The green light for the record to go ahead was given on Monday when a sample shear of 20 lambs produced an average of 0.937kg of wool each, safely over the minimum requirement of 0.9kg.

Among those present were at least four who have held individual World shearing records, and three individual World champions, as well as Jones’ parents who had travelled from Wales.

The helpers in the pens included English shearer Stu Connor, who in England in 2021 set shearing’s pinnacle World nine-hours solo strongwool lambs record of 872, which Skiffington, from Rotorua, will be challenging in one of two other record bids in New Zealand in the next few weeks.

An attempt will be made on the three-stand strongwool lambs record for eight hours near Hunteville on December 18, and Skiffington’s nine-hours attempt will take place near Dannevirke on January 20.

In Australia on December 21 an attempt will be made on the women’s eight hours merino lambs record of 395 which was established on November 17.

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