Six of the best - Gordon whanau reunion in one Golden Shears heat
A unique moment in the 62 years of the Golden Shears happened today when six members of one family filled the six-stand board in a heat of glamour event the Open championship.
Wools of New Zealand New Zealand 2023 UK tour team member Paerata Abraham, who with wife Cushla (nee Gordon, a New Zealand transtasman series woolhandling team member) by coincidence was on the No 1 stand, historically known as the “ringer’s” stand. The couple run Masterton firm Abraham Shearing, which they established about eight years ago.
On stands No 2-4 were Abraham’s brothers-in-law Joseph Gordon (who had his first Open-class win in November), Adam Gordon (the No 1-ranker Senior shearer nationwide last season), and David Gordon Abraham’s UK tour teammate), and on stands 5-6 the Gordons’ father, Nuki (who has shorn at Golden Shears annually for more than 30 years), and Kyle Mita (partner of Samantha Gordon, another sibling and also an Open-class woolhandling winner).
It was David, who was Golden Shears Novice champion as a 13-year-old in 2010, that was first to finish the heat of six second shear sheep each.
It was David Gordon who won the race, taking 6m 43.012, and sitting in sixth place with10 heats and 60 shearers having shorn, but Paerata Abraham had the better combination of time an d quality points and was provisionally ranked No 4.
The possibility of the six being in the same heat started when they paid the money to enter – the first entries receive being in the latest heats, the last in the first.
The family-gang shearers were all entered at the same time, and Nuki Gordon said that when the possibility of all being in the same heat emerged they were worried one or two might drop off into the heat beforehand or that immediately afterwards.
“I don’t do much shearing (any more),” said the 60-year-old family senior. “But I always wanted to shear with them. It was great.”
At the end of the 14 heats, Paerata Abraham (fourth), David Gordon (11th) and Adam Gordon (15th) had all made it through to the Friday-night Top 30 quarterfinal shootout, headed by Favourite Toa Henderson, of Kaiwaka, in Northland
Of the 79 in the heats Nuki Gordon was placed No 79, but he was prepared for it.
“I won’t be shearing tonight,” he said minutes after completing his six sheep, in 7m 41.90sec.
The Gordon’s
Abraham Shearing's Gordon family gathering filling all six stand in one heat of the Golden Shears Open shearing championship in Masterton. Photo / Pete Nikolaison