Two farmers in their seventies saved the day by picking up a handpiece to help make up the numbers at the Northern Wairoa A&P Arapohue Show Shears.
Ralph Smith, 76, came third in the show’s annual open final, won by fellow local Neville Osborne.
Jim Comrie, 79, shore in the intermediate event, which was won by Ben Nilsson, with 65-year-old Rex Finlayson the runner-up.
Meanwhile, organiser Kevin Boyd, 72, said the grades were struggling to get numbers in the Northland shows.
He put it down to the growing of “too many” trees in the region affecting sheep numbers.
“We used to get 25-27 competitors at the shows up here,” he said.
This season, nearly 20 have competed in at least one show in Northland.
Some have turned up for the veteran’s events - but end up shearing in the grades as well to provide opposition for younger shearers and put on a show for the spectators.
Boyd said he’d love to see them all competing at one show together, but some were taking on bigger challenges at other competitions further afield, in the build-up to the Golden Shears in Masterton from February 29 to March 2.
Read more about shearing and woolhandling here.
Now the challenge is out for all shearers anywhere near Northland to get to Broadwood for Saturday’s North Hokianga A&P Show shearing championships.
Broadwood, about 140km northwest of Whangārei in the Far North District, will be the first of two shows on consecutive days in the upper North Island, being followed on Sunday by the Counties Shears, about four hours’ drive away in Pukekohe.
Elsewhere, the Southern Shears Shearing and Woolhandling Championships are being held in Gore on Friday and Saturday, and the Ohura A&P Shears - in Forgotten World Highway territory between Stratford and Taumarunui - will be held on Saturday.
The Ohura Shears will incorporate woolhandling competition for the first time.
Northern Wairoa A&P Arapohue Show Shears results
Saturday, February 10
Open final: Neville Osborne (Dargaville) 65.51pts, 1; Andy Deverall (Tauranga/England) 65.67pts, 2; Ralph Smith (Dargaville) 85.55pts, 3.
Senior: Tommy Stevenson (Dargaville) 48.45pts 1; Michael Boyd (Dargaville) 51.65pts, 2; Lee Cheyne (Te Kauwhata) 53.9pts, 3.
Intermediate: Ben Nilsson (-) 38.14pts, 1; Rex Finlayson (Kai Iwi Lakes) 39.27pts, 2; Jim Comrie (Dargaville) 49.16pts, 3.
Junior: Paul Finlayson (Kai Iwi Lakes) 33.65pts, 1.
Novice: Lydia Wood (Ruawai) 30.2pts, 1; Brianna McBride (-) 52.8pts, 2.
Veterans: Mike Henderson (Kaiwaka) 18.39pts, 1; Ralph Smith (Dargaville) 20.16pts, 2; Lee Cheyne (Te Kauwhata) 53.9pts, 3.