‘It sends a shiver up your spine’: Shearers flock back as iconic event returns
The Golden Shears is back and as enthralling as ever, write and Conor Knell.
They make it look so easy, this dance. It begins from the moment the sheep appears through a hole in the wall, and then it’s on the boards, the shearer manoeuvring it between his legs, sweat pouring from his brow.
There are the careful blows from the razor-sharp handpiece, single sweeping cuts that first take off the belly wool, then move up the back legs and onto the body. The fleece comes off in a single snowy piece and the bare sheep is hauled away.
All this happens in under 40 seconds and then it’s on to the next one.
The scenes playing out inside Masterton’s War Memorial Stadium look easy because they’re performed by elite athletes competing for titles in all things sheep.
It’s a triumphant return for the Golden Shears competition after the pandemic forced a two-year break in its 60-year run, and yesterday, the whole place was thrumming.
Over the previous few days more than 370 shearers, wool handlers and wool pressers vied for titles and broke records in front of spectators watching online and in person.
Everyone’s thrilled the competition is finally back.
Especially chuffed is Eleri Bradley, still fizzing after taking the title in Thursday’s novice woolhandling event.
After also winning at last weekend’s Apiti Show, the 28-year-old registered nurse says her Golden Shears entry was a last-minute decision.
‘‘Last time I entered because competing makes it cheaper to attend – this time I thought I’d better put some work into it.’’
Bradley learnt the tricks of the trade on her family’s Papatawa farm, then worked in woolsheds to pay her way through uni. Her three siblings and mother have also taken titles in the past and her dad was part of a young farmers team who won in 1995.
The event often dubbed ‘shearing’s Wimbledon’ began after a group of young farmers organised a competition at Wairarapa’s annual A&P Show in 1958. It was so successful that a bigger venue was secured and the name Golden Shears was agreed upon.
These days the event attracts competitors from around the world.
One of the spectators yesterday was shearing legend Sir David Fagan, a 16-time Golden Shears champion and 10-time world record setter.
Fagan, who retired from competitive shearing in 2015, says the event’s return marks the end of two lean years for shearing events around the country.
‘‘There’s something about walking into this stadium that sends a shiver up your spine . . . it’s brilliant to be back.’’
While Fagan is enjoying watching the newcomers compete, he’s quick to answer when asked if he’d like to be back on stage among them.
‘‘Of course not, I got out while I was still in reasonable nick. It’s best to go at the top – I didn’t want to have people say ‘he used to be good’.’’
Floyde Neil, 30, and Simon Goss, 26, were both recognised with World Shearing Record certificates for prior achievements through the year. Originally from the King Country, Neil now works on a shearing run in Western Australia.
It’s a long way to travel but he said that to be recognised this way for his trade is worth it.
Goss, from Manawatu, said the recognition was great work.
‘‘Obviously this is my way of putting food on the table for my family and there’s no getting around that it’s tough work, but if you succeed here in any award, you’re not just a shearer, you’re one of the top shearers in the world.’’
Another achiever was Abby Curnow, 21, from Victoria, Australia. From a shearing family herself, she won the junior wool handling final by a staggering 50 seconds ahead of her next competitor.
She said to come to Masterton was a journey she never expected.
‘‘It honestly wasn’t in my sights. I got selected to come over here after winning the nationals in Australia.
‘‘It’s been so much fun here. It’s definitely different but I’ve learnt so much.’’