Stratford wins prestigious British title
Lisa Stratford was lighting the log burner at 6.30am when husband Nathan telephoned with news of his success in the final of the Great Yorkshire Open in England yesterday (NZ time).
Nathan Stratford, of Kennington, and David Buick, of Pongaroa, are touring Britain representing New Zealand in shearing competitions. The Great Yorkshire Open was part of a test between New Zealand and England in the early hours of yesterday.
Despite losing the test, Stratford’s win was a morale boost for the Kiwis. ‘‘I was rapt for him,’’ Lisa said. She was fast asleep when his text message arrived at 4.52am.
Asked if she had thoughts of looking for live internet coverage of the test, Lisa replied: ‘‘There was no way I was staying up for it.’’
Stratford said he finished the final thinking third or fourth would be his best result.
‘‘I was shocked to find out I had won because I was a sheep behind [near the end].
‘‘I’m really rapt, it’s really good to win.’’
Stratford said the Swaledale sheep, used in the test, were awkward to shear.
‘‘They were a bit tricky for a start but were a better quality for the final.’’
Swaledales have horns and are in the mountainous areas Britain.
After competing in the test, in Harrowgate, Stratford and teammate David Buick drove five hours to Swindon, which will be their base for the next three weeks.
A four test series in Wales begins at Cothi on July 20.
It was Stratford’s second win in Britain after winning the Corwen Shears Open, for the Kiwis, in 2012.
Shearing Sports NZ chairman David Fagan was delighted to learn of Stratford’s success in the Great Yorkshire Open.
‘‘He’s going good . . . it’s always tough over there, the locals are extremely hard to beat,’’ Fagan said.
Fagan is travelling to Britain soon and will be in the crowd for some of the tests in Wales.