Taking out the overall champion spot in the NSW School Merino Wether Challenge at the Rabobank National Merino Show and Sale last week, was Gunnedah High School.
The School Merino Wether Challenge had 62 schools entered from across the state with over 500 students attending the event.
Each school was given six Merino wethers from Egelabra Merino Stud, Warren, in a random selection about four months ago. The schools then split the six in to two teams for judging.
Gunnedah High School's B team placed second in the Carcase Value and Restocker Value classes for the Wheat Belt area as well as second overall in the two classes.
In the combined value classes, Gunnedah was first in the Wheat Belt area and then first overall to be awarded the NSW School Wether Challenge overall winner with a total value of $1304.40.
Closely behind and in second place was Forbes High School on $1303.94, and in third was Deniliquin High School on $1298.21.
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Excited and completely shocked was the comment from Gunnedah High Schools teacher Brooke Cowan after the school won.
"We have done it for a few years...we came third in one section a few years ago and that was the only award we had won," she said.
The teams were prepared and managed by one year 10 agriculture class and their preparation for the competition had gone well.
"We have been pretty lucky up here, we had just enough rain to get us by and keep our pastures growing," Ms Cowan said.
The group of students were very hands on with the sheep by conducting weekly weigh-ins, monitoring progress, measuring wool length and growth, halter training, and then the showing.
Ms Cowan said her students loved the event and learnt so much out of the entire competition.
"They have learnt a lot about sheep and wool production, particularly being form an area where we don't have a lot of merinos," she said.
"They have learnt basically from beginning to end which has been brilliant for them.
"The sessions they did from the wool classing to the junior judging, to the shearing, it has all been really educational for them to see the different side of the production system," Ms Cowan said.
The lambs were fed using a lick feeder with oats and lamb finishing pellets. They also had open access to Lucerne hay and were roaming on a Cow Pea pasture.
"I know there are a lot of schools that have a pretty tight feeding regime," Ms Cowan said.
"The lambs just decided what they ate and when they ate it," she said.
Fully prepared to enter next years competition Ms Cowan said she would plan to prepare the Wethers the same way they had this year.
"This is probably the most involved we have been with the Wethers so I think we will stick with it moving forward," she said.
The school also had a fully functioning agriculture farm with cattle, chickens, and their own Poll Dorset stud with the next event being the Tamworth show this weekend.
