Hawke's Bay farming cadet unit does it again at Golden Shears

The growing reputation of Southern Hawke’s Bay farm cadet training scheme Pukemiro got another boost with a win in the MKM Originals Student Shearing challenge on the opening day of the 62nd Golden Shears in Masterton today.

The event attracted six two-member teams, and with each shearing a single sheep, relay-fashion, 18-year-old Pukemiro shearers Ryan Craw, from Coromandel, and Grady Collis, from Tauhoa, in Northland scored by more than five points from defending champion Central Hawke’s Bay institution Smedley, represented by Bugs Butler and Rebecca Dickson.

It was the first of about 25 titles to be decided in the three-day Golden Shears.

The event was first held in 2018 and won by Waipaoa, from north of Gisborne, but Pukemiro has three of the other four – in 2019, 2020 and now this year, and there was no Golden Shears in 2021 or 2022.

Both Craw and Collis have shorn in other Novice competitions amid a new wave of youthful enthusiasm which attracted 190 competitors in Novice and Junior shearing and woolhandling events – about 40 per cent of all the competitors at the championships.

The Paewai Mullins Novice Woolhandling final was won 19-year-old Keisha Reiri, orgibnally from Masterton but now working for Piopio contractor Mark Barrowcliffe, with mum Azuredee Paku, who won the New Zealand Shears Senior woolhandling title in Te Kuiti in 2021.

In a small number of competitions in the last two seasons, Reiri won the North Island championships Novice final at the Rangitikei Shearing Sports in Marton last year.

Judges awarded her the best fleece points, as telling advantage in a 7pts win over runner-up Gemma Buick, of Pongaroa, who had best points on the board and oddments, and equal-best time points.

The Novice Shearing was still to be decided late afternoon, and the Open and Senior Speedshear events were taking place in the evening.