Northland giant Rowland Smith took a big step forward in the countdown to the Golden Shears when he won the Taumarunui Shearing Jamboree open final last night.
The Golden Shears runner-up last year, the 25-year-old Hawke’s Bay-based shearer was recording his sixth Open final win in four weeks.
He won at Taihape and Rotorua on successive days at the end of last month, and followed with the North Island Championship at Marton, the Otago Championship in Balclutha, and last Sunday’s Counties Shears at Pukekohe.
The runner-up last night was King Country veteran David Fagan, and third was Napier shearer and reigning Golden Shears champion John Kirkpatrick.
Whanganui’s Joanne Kumeroa won yesterday’s Open woolhandling, showing she is in the right form to chase a third consecutive Golden Shears title. The runner-up was her 2008 World teams champions partner Sheree Alabaster, of Taihape.
Yesterday’s event was the start of a weekend triple header, which continues with the Apiti Sports Shears in northern Manawatu today, with Smith defending a title he won last year.
There are more competitons tomorrow, the Pahiatua Shears for the shearers and the Pre-Shears Championship for the woolhandlers at Mikimiki, north of Masterton, before one of the biggest gatherings of shearers and woolhandlers ever for the Golden Shears starting on Wednesday, including the 15th World Championship.
Both Kirkpatrick and Kumeroa are representing New Zealand in the World Championships, while Smith is a reserve.
