Junior shearer learned from the Master

Napier shearer Kaivah Cooper's decision to drop out of school four years ago at age 16 might have seemed not the best of life-choices, but he wasn't going anywhere, other than to the top.

After four years of tertiary education in the woolshed, mentored by 2017 World champion and four-times Golden Shears Open champion John Kirkpatrick, he claimed the ultimate reward – a Golden Shears Junior shearing title.

Cooper had been in near unbeatable form and won at Taumarunui, Apiti and Pahiatua on successive days in the last weekend before the shears.

A former Napier Boys' High School pupil, Cooper sheared his five sheep in 7m 37.755s to be first off the board and won the title by 1.663pts from runner-up and Hunterville shearer Orlando Ratima. The first five were North Island shearers, all beating top South Island contender Jet Schimanski, of Gore.

The Junior woolhandling title was won by Lucy Elers, from Mataura and who had already won three major titles in the South Island this year, at Lumsden (longwool), Winton (lambs) and Gore (second-shear).

Earlier in the championships Ashlin Swann, of Wairoa, won the Novice shearing final, and Keisha Reiri, from Masterton but based in Piopio, won the Novice woolhandling title.

Laura Bradley, of Papatawa, near Woodville, was a surprise elimination from the Senior shearing, in the heats, but bounced back to win the Women's shearing event, becoming the first to hold the New Zealand Shears and Golden Shears women's titles simultaneously.