A FIRST time entry in the IGA Perth Royal Show for small Champion Lakes Wiltshire Horns stud, Marmik Estate, resulted in a Best of Breed supreme champion ribbon.
The Marmik Estate ram also claimed the champion ram ribbon over strong competition from Ruth and Ross Miller's long-established Eaglenook stud, Keysbrook.
Earlier, it won the ram under 1.5 years class against two Eaglenook rams to be eligible to contest the champion ram against Eaglenook's winner of the scan ram under 1.5 years class, with another Eaglenook ram second and a Marmik Estate ram third.
"I'm absolutely stoked," said stud principal and show handler Nathan Patterson.
"This is our first Royal show, we competed in country shows this year and did quite well with the ram, so it's nice to be at the Royal and to get a broad ribbon as well," Mr Patterson said.
"We're a small farm only running about 35 sheep - the cream of the crop, If they don't make the grade then they're out."
Mr Patterson has been breeding Wiltshire Horns for five years and showing at regional shows for three.
"My grandfather was a sheep farmer, so the interest in sheep skipped a generation in the family," Mr Patterson said.
He said the Best of Breed supreme champion and champion ram was a son of Arizonica Park Hogan and had links to the Royal show 2012-14 champion ram winners.
Judge Colin Holmes, Hyden, recognised the breeding.
"He's a magnificent ram, he's full of muscle right from his forequarters right through to his loins," Mr Holmes said.
"He's an upstanding ram - stands very well - and he's a credit to the breeders."
Champion ewe was also a contest between the Marmik Estate and Eaglenook studs, with the champion ewe initially winning the ewe under 1.5 years class for Eaglenook against two Marmik Estate ewes and an unplaced second Eaglenook ewe.
Two Eaglenook ewes topped the production class against a third-placed Marmik Estate ewe and Eaglenook claimed the uncontested ribbon for pair of ewes under 1.5 years class. Mr Holmes said his decision to award champion ewe to Eaglenook over the best-placed Marmik Estate ewe was a close one.
"She's a long ewe, probably (with) not as much muscling as the ewe in second place, but she had a better mouth on the day," he said of the champion ewe.
Marmik Estate als won the breeder's group (one ram and two ewes under 1.5 years class), while Eaglenook won the uncontested progeny group class.