Sydney Royal 2021: Tattykeel too strong in Poll Dorset judging

Judge Marshall Douglas of Abelene Park at Wooloomin was presented with 22 entries from Tattykeel, Nattai Valley of Narellan and also Bimbadeen Park and Coolcappa from Coonabarabran.

Ten of those entries were from the Gilmore family and went on to claim all four of the grand champion and reserve ribbons.

The winner of the first senior class, milk tooth and in wool, later became the senior and grand champion ram and was a son of the $27,000 Mastermind ram who was aptly named Masterclass.

He and his reserve grand champion counterpart from the milk tooth, shorn senior class had both been used in the stud as lambs.

Mr Douglas couldn't go past the muscle type of Masterclass who he labelled as exceptional.

The reserve grand champion ewe, from the milk tooth and in wool class, was from identical breeding but couldn't overcome the grand champion out of the milk tooth and shorn class.

She was also by Mastermind and out of a ewe tracing back to the ram, 80/1997.

The big framed female had exceptional growth and paraded out better than the reserve, according to Mr Douglas.

"She is a magnificent ewe and you get your hands on her and the carcase shape is fantastic," he said.

Speaking after the judging, stud principal Graham Gilmore said they were selecting for shape, body depth, spring of rib and big hindquarters in their sheep.

"(The grand ram) has what we think the modern Dorset needs, which is early maturity and a lot of carcase shape," he said.

"He is not too tall and I think the Dorset has got too leggy so we are looking for twist in the hind leg and a little lower set and it just shows you can have a big sheep that is lower set that has early maturity."

Mr Gilmore pointed out the team's growth for age and recalled the champion ram in 1977 weighed 75 kilograms at 12 months meaning the breed had almost doubled in size in more than 40 years.

This year Tattykeel couldn't be beaten in the ram classes, winning every class.

"In the classes that those rams won I have never exhibited a sheep here that would match any ram in any class," he said.

"My champion ram here in 2019 was 120 odd kilograms and the lightest ram here today is 130kg.

"He was a good sheep and went on to be ram of the year and champion at Dubbo but he was not in the league of these."

He labelled their team the best he had exhibited.

"Never at any show, ever, anywhere, have we had a team as good as that," he said.

"A couple of rams have just bred the house down; Mastermind and then there are another couple that have bred extremely well.

"This is a powerful team of sheep. They are just chocked full of meat, remembering some breeds here are the same age and half the size."