A FOCUS on using seasonal conditions to help prepare this year's show team has helped Bungarby stud Greenland to claim grand champion ewe in this year's Sydney Royal superfine competition.
The ewe, tag M29909, made her way through the March-shorn two tooth class before going on to claim reserve junior champion March-shorn ewe and the grand champion superfine ewe ahead of Bocoble, Dubbo, which claimed reserve grand champion ewe.
The Alcock family's grand champion ewe boasted a 17.6 micron fibre diametre, a 2.7 standard deviation, a 15.6 per cent coefficient variation and a 99.6 per cent comfort factor. Greenland Merino stud principal John Alcock said he thought the ewe's " purity, staple length bulk and quality of wool helped her stand out."
"She was also really good underneath, which is what I thought it boiled down to in the end," Mr Alcock said.
"It was really pleasing to see her do so well in the juniors, which pleasingly means there is still plenty of growing for her to do and she is also a half sister to the ram that won in the production class, which bodes well for her too."
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Mr Alcock said near-perfect seasonal conditions had helped his stud prepare this year's show team.
"We didn't too much different to prepare for this year's show, the season has been running with us and we've just tried to use it as best we can," he said.
"This ewe is already in lamb so once she gets home she will go straight out into the paddock."
Came through the March shorn two-tooth class was also reserve junior champion March shorn Merino ewe
Judge Geoff Rayner Pomanara, Mudgee, had 26 exhibits to adjudicate during the competition but in the case of the ram judging, both the grand champion and reserve champion ribbons went to Boorowa stud Merryville.
The grand champion ram went on to claim the supreme ram and supreme Merino exhibit at this year's show while the reserve grand champion ram, tag 29681, boasted an 18.2 MF, a 2.8 SD, a 15.4 CV and a 99.8pc CF.
Merryville stud principal Wal Merriman said the grand champion ram, which on to win supreme ram and supreme Merino exhibit, was aided by his structure, size and staple, which were all qualities that helped him stand out.
"He is by a ram called Giant Test, which also sired the grand champion fine wool ram and he was grand champion ram here in Sydney back in 2015," Mr Merriman said.
"Preparation wise, we didn't do anything too differently from what we've done in the past, we just tried to keep it as simple as we could, to be honest."
Mr Merriman said the victory vindicated his belief that the ram had good stud sire potential.
"We are really pleased with his results and from here he will go back home where we will collect some semen from him and he'll go back into the stud," he said.
The supreme exhibit victory was the icing on the cake of a successful show for Merryville, as it also won grand champion and reserve ram in the superfine and fine classes, as well as grand champion fine wool ewe, reserve champion fine-medium Poll Merino ewe and reserve grand champion fine Poll Merino ram.
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Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
