A NEW stud name was added to the prestigious supreme winners list at the Rabobank WA Sheep Expo & Ram Sale last week at Katanning, when an upstanding medium wool Poll Merino sire from the Manunda stud, Tammin, took home the top award.
It took just one ram in their first time showing at the event for the Button family's Manunda stud, Tammin, to claim the coveted supreme ribbon.
Despite having claimed numerous supreme ribbons at the Perth Royal Show and more recently at this year's Williams Gateway Expo (with this same ram), it was the first time the stud had secured the win at Katanning,
Once again despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic and wet seasonal conditions forcing stud breeders to shear whenever possible, WA Merino breeders still supported this year's event in force with 40 studs displaying close to 500 Merino and Poll Merinos in the shed.
Among the shed full of highly productive Merino and Poll Merino exhibits, was Manunda's upstanding Poll sire, Manunda 65, that caught the eye of the judges to claim the prestigious purple supreme ribbon.
The ram, which showed plenty of size and wool cutting ability caught the attention of the judges early before going on to be sashed the supreme exhibit ahead of 210 entries from 31 studs.
After Manunda 65 was announced the supreme exhibit judge Philip Gooding, East Mundalla stud, Tarin Rock, said when it came to selecting a supreme exhibit as a judge, they were always looking for something extra and this Manunda ram certainly had that little bit extra.
"This ram is an outstanding sheep and with the wool quality it has we all believe it will breed on into the future and produce some very good progeny," Mr Gooding said.
"It is the type of ram a lot of breeders could use not only in WA but right across Australia.
"He is the type of ram that could be used anywhere and have an impact."
Fellow judge Peter Jackson, Westerdale stud, McAlinden, said the Manunda ram was a standout in terms of its wool quality.
"You won't get a better wool than what is on this ram," Mr Jackson said.
"It is a really soft, crimpy stud wool.
"On top of his wool quality he also has good neck extension, plenty of stretch and a sound constitution."
Standing along with Manunda 65 in the final line-up for the supreme ribbon were an upstanding August shorn Merino ram and a young, well-balanced Poll Merino ram, both from the Wililoo stud, Woodanilling, as well as a stylish, August shorn Merino ewe from the Woodyarrup stud, Broomehill, a classy August shorn Poll Merino ewe from the Coromandel stud, Gairdner and two young, March shorn ewes (a Merino and a Poll Merino) from the St Quentin stud, Nyabing.
Before being sashed the supreme exhibit, Manunda 65, made it through the early judging to be sashed the grand champion August shorn Poll Merino ram.
At this point judge Shayne Mackin, Kamballie stud, Tammin, said the ram showed good balance and carried a top wool.
"He has a great show wool, which is white and bright and has great crimp definition," Mr Mackin said.
"He also has a good, big frame and is structurally sound.
"He is a top sheep with a bright future ahead."
Manunda 65's run to the top started when it was sashed the champion August shorn medium wool Poll Merino ram in its opening class in front of six other entries.
The four-tooth, 142 kilogram ram is ET-bred by Manunda 1310 (a son of Banavie 333), which the Manunda stud sold to the Woolkabin stud, Woodanilling, for $30,000 in 2018 and out of a Moorundie Geoffrey blood ewe, which was sashed a champion at the Perth Royal Show.
In the ring it displayed wool figures of 21.6 micron, 3.3 SD, 15.1 CV and 99.3 per cent comfort factor (CF).
The ram is no stranger to being sashed a champion as it was judged the supreme exhibit and grand champion Poll Merino ram at this year's Williams Gateway Expo, while at the Make Smoking History Wagin Woolorama this year it was awarded the reserve grand champion Poll Merino ram ribbon.
The judges' decision to sash Manunda 65 the supreme exhibit was ratified in the sale when it sold for $30,000, which was the sale's second top price, to the Coromandel and Canowie Fields studs, Gairdner ,with a semen share going to the Rothbury stud, Tenterden.
August shorn
As in the August shorn Poll Merino rams it was another quality woolled ram that rose to the top and claimed the highest award in the August shorn Merino ram classes - the grand champion August shorn Merino ram title.
This time it was an impressive fine/medium wool ram, which had already racked up an impressive resume of awards in the past 12 months, from the Wise family's Wililoo stud that caught the judges' eye and was sashed the grand champion.
When the upstanding ram was sashed the grand champion August shorn Merino ram, Mr Gooding said it was a top ram which stood up really well and had an impressive outlook.
"He has a beautiful stud head with a magnificent horn setting," Mr Gooding said.
"He is also carrying an excellent fleece which has tested really well."
Before being sashed the grand champion August shorn Merino ram, the ram was sashed the champion August shorn fine/medium wool Merino ram.
At this point fellow judge Peter Jackson said the ram had excellent scale and wool cutting ability.
"He has a great constitution and a top wool which tests very well," Mr Jackson said.
The four-tooth ram is by Wililoo Hector and out of a ewe carrying Orrie Cowie Trojan bloodlines and has wool figures of 20.1 micron, 3.0 SD, 15.0 CV and 99.3pc CF.
This grand champion ribbon added to a long list of awards already won by the ram, which include a the junior and grand champion March shorn ram titles at last year's WA Sheep Expo & Ram Sale at Katanning, the reserve grand champion Merino ram and champion two-tooth titles at this year's Wagin Woolorama and the reserve grand champion Merino ram title at this year's Williams Gateway Expo.
Standing in reserve to the Wililoo ram and collecting the ribbon for the reserve grand champion August shorn Merino ram was a medium wool sire from the Norrish family's Angenup stud, Kojonup.
Mr Gooding said the Angenup ram was the heaviest cutting sheep in the line-up but it had a little fault in the hindquarter which let it down a fraction unfortunately.
"This ram has a magnificent fleece on it and I doubt you would see one better which it carries right down to its underline," Mr Gooding said.
The Angenup ram, which was the supreme exhibit at this year's Wagin Woolorama, was in the grand champion line-up after winning its initial class and being sashed the champion August shorn medium wool Merino ram in front of six other rams.
At this point Mr Mackin said it was the ram's scale and bulk which got it over the line.
"He has a lot of really good wool on him all over and the quality doesn't vary from head to toe," Mr Mackin said.
The six-tooth, ET-bred ram is by Angenup 265 and out of an Angenup Chester ewe.
It carried wool tests of 22.2 micron, 3.2 SD, 14.6 CV and 98.1pc CF.
The reserve grand champion August shorn Poll Merino ram was exhibited by the Warralea stud, Gairdner, when its fine wool ram stood in the reserve position behind Manunda 65.
The Warralea ram also earned plenty of praise from the judges when it received its reserve ribbon.
Mr Jackson said it was very unlucky to come up against such a top quality sire in Manunda 65.
"This ram is a big, heavy sheep with a quality, soft, fine wool," he said.
"He is an upstanding, square ram with impressive wool and he was unlucky on the day."
Prior to being judged the reserve grand champion August shorn Poll Merino ram, the Warralea ram was sashed the champion August shorn fine wool Poll Merino ram in its opening class.
At this point judge Heather Meaton, Kojonup, said it was a lovely big ram with a great presence and outlook.
"He has a beautiful stance, a big barrel and a quality fine wool," Ms Meaton said.
The four-tooth ram, which was also sashed the reserve grand champion Poll Merino ram at the Williams Gateway Expo, is by Warralea Wally and has wool figures of 19.4 micron, 2.6 SD, 13.2 CV and 99.8pc CF.
In the August shorn ewe classes the two top awards were taken home by the Woodyarrup stud and the Coromandel stud.
The Dewar family's Woodyarrup stud collected the grand champion August shorn Merino ewe ribbon when a classy ewe from the stud attracted the judges' attention.
When the ewe was sashed the grand champion Ms Meaton said it was the standout exhibit in the line-up.
"She has a beautiful body and a very soft, long-stapled fleece," she said.
The four-tooth ewe, which is by Woodyarrup 120175 (Whoppa), earned the right to compete for the grand champion title after being sashed the champion August shorn medium wool Merino ewe in its opening class.
When it received this ribbon Mr Mackin said it was a good all round ewe.
"She stands up very correctly and has a bold medium wool," he said.
The ewe carried wool figures of 19.1 micron, 2.6 SD, 13.8 CV and 99.5pc CF.
The reserve grand champion August shorn Merino ewe ribbon was awarded to the champion August shorn fine/medium wool Merino ewe exhibited by the St Quentin stud.
Ms Meaton said the St Quentin ewe had a good white wool with good crimp definition but it just didn't have the finish of the Woodyarrup ewe.
The ewe had wool figures of 16.9 micron, 2.2 SD, 12.9 CV and 99.0pc CF.
The four-tooth ewe is ET-bred by White River 1749 and out of St Quentin 351, which was part of the stud's pair which won the national title at the Australian Sheep & Wool Show in 2017.
In the Poll Merino ewes it was the Coromandel stud which claimed the grand champion August shorn Poll Merino ewe award with its champion August shorn fine/medium wool Poll Merino ewe which showed both top carcase and wool traits.
Mr Gooding said the Coromandel ewe was a true stud ewe with great balance and purity.
"She stands up well and has a lot of quality wool on her," he said.
"She has a magnificent staple length and a pure quality wool.
"She should go on to breed good stud rams in the future."
The ET-bred ewe is by Yarrawonga 961 and out of Coromandel 119 (daughter of Coromandel Big Joe 78) and had wool figures of 18.6 micron, 2.6 SD, 13.7 CV and 100pc CF.
A ewe from the Mullan family's Eastville Park stud, Wickepin, was sashed the reserve grand champion August shorn Poll Merino ewe.
Mr Gooding said the Eastville Park ewe had plenty of stretch and size about it but it lacked the wool quality and finish of the Coromandel ewe.
"She is a big bodied, well-made ewe with a good long-stapled medium wool," he said.
Prior to standing in the grand champion line-up the ewe was sashed the champion August shorn medium wool Poll Merino ewe in its opening class which attracted five entries.
The four-tooth ewe, which has wool figures of 18.9 micron, 3.1 SD, 16.6 CV and 99.6pc CF, is by an East Mundalla sire the Mullans call Giggles.
The champion pair of August shorn rams was exhibited by the Wililoo stud when its two Merino sires got the nod in front of seven other pairs.
The pair went on to be sashed the grand champion pair of rams.
Judge Gavin Norrish, Angenup stud, Kojonup, said the Wililoo pair ticked all the boxes when it came to wool cut and wool quality.
"Along with their top wool traits they have good bodies as well," Mr Norrish said.
"They have a good mix of both wool and carcase traits."
March shorn
The grand and reserve grand champion ribbons for the March shorn rams went four different ways.
In the Poll Merino line-up, it was an upstanding, young sire from the Wililoo stud, which claimed the grand champion ribbon.
When the two-tooth ram was sashed the grand champion March shorn Poll Merino ram, Ms Meaton said the ram stood out among the top line-up of rams.
"He stands up and has a lovely, rich wool," Ms Meaton said.
Also full of praise for the youngster was Mr Mackin who said the decision to award the Wililoo ram the top award was unanimous by the judges as it was the standout exhibit.
"He stands up well, is very well-balanced and has a good, soft muzzle," Mr Mackin said.
"He also has a productive skin which is pumping out a quality medium wool which has good crimp definition and lustre."
The classy Wililoo ram was in the grand champion line-up after winning its initial class in front of 20 other rams and being sashed the champion March shorn medium wool Poll Merino ram.
Not only was the ram sashed the grand champion March shorn Poll Merino ram ,but it also took home the Nutrien Livestock-sponsored junior champion ram award, which made it two junior titles in a row for the Wililoo stud.
When it received the junior champion ribbon Mr Jackson said it was very close between it and the grand champion March shorn Merino ram exhibited by the Eastville Park stud.
"But in the end we went for the Wililoo ram as it is a very correct sire with a top wool," Mr Jackson said.
The AI-bred ram is by Willandra 447 and carried wool tests of 21.4 micron, 3.2 SD, 15.2 CV and 99pc CF.
Standing in reserve to the Wililoo sire and receiving the reserve grand champion March shorn Poll Merino ram ribbon was a sire from the Jackson family's Overton stud, Kojonup.
Ms Meaton said the Overton sire had a really good structure and was well-covered in a beautiful, sparkly wool.
Mr Mackin also praised the Overton ram saying it had good softness and excellent purity.
"It also stands up well and is good on its feet," Mr Mackin said.
The two-tooth ram was in the grand championship after finishing first in its initial class and being sashed the champion March shorn fine wool Poll Merino ram ahead of five other rams.
The AI-bred ram is by Banavie 190 and had wool figures of 18.5 micron, 2.6 SD, 13.9 CV and 99.7pc CF.
In the March shorn Merino rams category it was a young medium wool sire from the Eastville Park stud which claimed the top award and was sashed the grand champion March shorn Merino ram.
Mr Gooding said the Eastville Park ram had a great outlook and balance.
"He has a really good head, beautiful bone and a magnificent backend," he said.
"In terms of his wool quality you can't get much better either.
"I think he will have an outstanding future."
The Eastville Park sire earned the right to compete for the grand champion ribbon when it placed first in front of 12 other rams in its initial class and was sashed the champion March shorn medium wool Merino ram.
When it received this ribbon Mr Mackin said it was a ripper ram which was well-balanced with a good muzzle and a top medium wool.
The two-tooth, AI-bred ram is by Collinsville Gladiator, which the Mullan family was the losing bidder on when it sold for $72,500 at the 2019 Adelaide Ram Sale and out of a ewe carrying East Mundalla Jonty bloodlines.
The ram carried wool figures into the ring of 20.2 micron, 3.2 SD, 15.9 CV and 99.5pc CF.
Standing just behind the Eastville Park ram and being sashed the reserve grand champion March shorn Merino ram was an upstanding fine/medium wool ram from the Chadwick family's Darijon stud, Narrogin.
Mr Gooding said the Darijon ram had a magnificent structure and a great outlook.
"He also carries a very good fine/medium wool which displays whiteness and brightness," Mr Gooding said.
The ram earned the right to compete for the grand champion title after being sashed the champion March shorn fine/medium wool Merino ram when it won its opening class ahead of six other sires.
At this point Mr Jackson said it had good conformation and structure, good bone and a top quality wool.
The 138kg, two-tooth ram is from the stud's Banavie family and has wool figures of 19.5 micron, 2.6 SD, 13.3 CV and 99.8pc CF.
The ram was no stranger to broad ribbons as it was sashed the champion autumn shorn exhibit at this year's Williams Gateway Expo.
In the March shorn ewe classes it was exhibits from the St Quentin stud, which shone through to claim the two grand champion ribbons.
The grand champion March shorn Merino ewe from St Quentin was described by Ms Meaton as a well put together ewe with a good wool quality.
"She is a good square ewe with a nice, long-stapled, white wool," Ms Meaton said.
The two-tooth ET-bred ewe is by Woodyarrup Lionel and out of a Pooginook 547 blood ewe.
The ewe, which had wool test figures of 17.6 micron, 2.6 SD, 14.6 CV and 100pc CF, was also sashed the champion March shorn medium/strong wool Merino ewe.
When it came to the grand champion March shorn Poll Merino ewe which was also exhibited by the St Quentin stud, Mr Gooding said it was an outstanding sheep and a ewe everyone should look at.
"She is a good long, stretchy ewe with a good strong wool," he said.
"She has a lot of potential and is the modern day type Merino with both quality wool and carcase traits."
Prior to being sashed the grand champion the St Quentin ewe was sashed the champion March shorn medium/strong wool Poll Merino ewe ahead of four other ewes.
The two-tooth, ET-bred ewe is by Boonoke Bobcat, which was purchased by the Manunda and Kamballie studs for $70,000 privately at the Australian Sheep & Wool Show at Bendigo, Victoria, in 2019.
It had wool figures of 20.9 micron, 3.4 SD, 16.4 CV and 98.6pc CF.
Taking home the reserve grand champion March shorn Poll Merino ewe ribbon was an exhibit from the Coromandel stud.
Mr Gooding said the Coromandel ewe was a magnificent woolled sheep.
"She carries an outstanding wool, the type which is required for stud breeding today," he said.
The upstanding two-tooth ET-bred ewe is by Nerstane Derek and has wool figures of 17.9 micron, 2.8 SD, 15.8 CV and 99.8pc CF.
The Coromandel ewe also stood reserve behind the St Quentin ewe in their initial class and was sashed the reserve champion March shorn medium/strong Poll Merino ewe.
The champion pair of March shorn rams was exhibited by the Wililoo stud when its two Poll sires caught the judges' attention.
Judge Daniel Gooding, East Mundalla stud, Tarin Rock, said the Wililoo pair contained two very complete rams which were both very good sires in their individual rights.
"There is not much wrong with either of them, they are both pretty much fault free," Daniel said.
"You don't often see two rams as good as these together as a pair.
"They have already come a long way and I think they will continue on growing and be outstanding rams in the future."
Both rams were AI-bred by Willandra 447.
The champion ram and ewe pair were two March shorn Poll Merinos exhibited by the Coromandel stud.
The full-ET brother and sister, which were sired by Nerstane Derek, beat four other pairs to the champion ribbon.
When the pair received the ribbon.
Daniel Gooding said they were two terrific young sheep with very productive skins.
"They have great nourishment in their wools and really good staple length," he said.
"They also have two complete bodies and are a very even pair."
- For more pictures and results from the show - see the special 16-page special in this week's Farm Weekly..
