THE weather was cooler and the atmosphere was relaxed and extremely positive as Williams Gateway Expo Sheep Show got underway last weekend after so much uncertainty.
Following the disappointment of Wagin Woolorama being cancelled it was no wonder that the British and Australasian Breeds' section was bolstered with big numbers spanning across the seven different breeds represented.
The quality line-up across all breeds in the shed was testament to the commitment of the studs present, not only to their breed type, but to the industry as a whole in Western Australia.
This year saw a first in the judging combination at the Williams Gateway Expo, with a last minute change seeing the father-and-son team of Brenton Addis, Yonga Downs White Suffolk stud, Gnowangerup, and Nutrien Livestock Breeding's Roy Addis, splitting the judging of the breeds between them.
Roy Addis judged the Poll Dorset, Ile De France, Texel and Wiltipoll breeds, while Brenton had the task of presiding over the Suffolk, White Suffolk and South Suffolk breeds before they combined their expertise for the prestigious interbreed competition.
Roy said he had been impressed by the quality of the entries on the day, from all the breeds.
"The quality across the shed was excellent," Roy said.
"The top sheep within their breeds, all carried great meat characteristics, toplines, smooth shoulders, length of body and were structurally sound.
"But the most pleasing thing was to be able to get these breeders together for a show, especially after the cancellation of Wagin.
"It really gives us the opportunity to look at the genetics coming through prior to the spring.
"Overall the interbreed winners and the champions in their respective breeds were truly excellent quality sheep."
With such a resoundingly positive praise it is no wonder then that the ultimate prize of supreme champion exhibit went to a very deserving and eye catching White Suffolk ewe, from Josh Addis's, Kalagan White Suffolk stud, Denmark.
The ewe had previously taken out the grand champion White Suffolk title and the champion White Suffolk ewe ribbon as judged by Brenton Addis.
Those standing in the crowd commented on the young ewe's length and femininity, while carrying excellent muscling and meat throughout.
Earlier in the day, while judging the classes, Brenton said the ewe was a definite standout.
"The ewe has a great presence," Brenton said.
"She is all class, she is a great White Suffolk type, nice looking and stands proud."
Spokesperson for the interbreed competition Roy Addis said the supreme champion exhibit was not an easy decision as both were quality animals and they were both White Suffolks.
"What we came down to is type to split these two sheep up," Roy said.
"There is no wastage on them, they both have great loins, meat capacity, they are structurally sound, everything we are looking for.
"So when we get down to type, and that is where we have had to get down to with this competition, it goes to the ewe.
"She is a very long, very well fleshed ewe with no wastage on her, great topline, heaps of meat through her and if you do get a chance, just feel the width of loin and fleshing on this animal."
Stud principal Josh Addis said the ewe was sired by Yonga Downs 190384, which he purchased at the Williams WA Elite sale in 2020, for his Kalagan White Suffolk stud.
He said the ewe had always been a top ewe.
"She was always at the forefront, a very broad, long ewe," Mr Addis said.
"Her sire has excellent progeny, throwing a really good type like her.
"Nice feminine ewes with good strong carcase characteristics and true White Suffolk type, maintaining feminine qualities."
The champion interbreed ram went to the Iveston White Suffolk stud, Williams, with its young ram that had taken out the champion White Suffolk ram title earlier in the day.
When judging, Brenton said the ram was a prime example of the breed.
"He is a nice, big upstanding ram," he said.
"With extremely hard flesh in the hindquarter and perfect structure from behind."
The reserve champion interbreed ram title went to Kalinda Suffolk stud, Boyanup.
Brenton said the ram was a big proud and long animal.
"He has great depth of carcase and has not put a foot wrong all day," he said.
Kalinda stud's Matt Mitsopoulos, said the ram was out of sire Jusak Ambassador and dam Kalinda 380.
"I am really pleased, he has been a real standout to us from early on," Mr Mitsopoulos said.
"His sheer volume and size gives him a real presence."
The reserve champion interbreed ewe went to the Sasimwa Suffolk stud, York, ewe.
"The reserve champion ewe is a very stylish ewe, with a good soft line, heaps of meat capacity through her," Brenton said.
"Also had a great width of loin, all the attributes ideal for the prime lamb industry, stands well and very correct."
The final interbreed title was that of champion interbreed group of two rams and two ewes, which was won by the Sasimwa Suffolk stud, York.
Roy said the competition was exceptional among the breed groups on display.
"They are a terrific group, they represented the breed well - but more than that they were an excellent representation of the prime lamb industry," Mr Addis said.
"They have heaps of meat about them, they are structurally very correct, with great toplines and they were hard to fault.
"There wasn't a sheep among them that we felt let them down, they were just fantastic."
The reserve champion interbreed group title went to the White Suffolk group of two rams and two ewes exhibited by Max Whyte and Gail Cremasco's Brimfield White Suffolk stud, Kendenup.
"Great four sheep with carcases that we have been discussing all day in terms of volume," Roy said.
"Good top lines and structurally sound sheep."
The interbreed awards were sponsored by Farm Weekly, Genstock, Nutrien Livestock Breeding, Williams Rural Supplies, Williams Woolshed and BJS Insurance Brokers.
Suffolk
The Suffolk breed was extremely well represented, with five separate studs exhibiting a total of 50 entries across six classes.
This was an increase of one more stud from the previous year and the impressive penning saw classes of up to 14 entries lined up in the show ring.
With some of the largest classes of the day, Brenton certainly had his work cut out for him deciding who the ultimate winners would be.
"There was quality right through the competition from start to finish," Brenton said.
"They were exceptional sheep, it was great seeing the hindquarter and length of loin through the entire breed offering and there really was good sheep in every line up."
The grand champion Suffolk title went to the champion Suffolk ram, entered by the Kalinda Suffolk stud, Boyanup, that went on to be sashed the reserve champion interbreed rams.
The ram was first in its class of rams showing milk teeth only and born on or after July 1, where it competed against four other young rams.
Brenton said the ram was a big proud and long animal.
"He has great depth of carcase and has not put a foot wrong all day," he said.
Kalinda stud's Matt Mitsopoulos, said the ram was out of sire Jusak Ambassador and dam Kalinda 380.
"I am really pleased, he has been a real standout to us from early on," Mr Mitsopoulos said.
"His sheer volume and size gives him a real presence."
Reserve champion Suffolk ram was awarded to the Batt family's, Alibry Suffolk stud, Wagin.
"The reserve was a great animal, I really like his type," Brenton said.
"He just could have had a little more condition on him, which I am sure he will gain by the end of the year.
"He will be a great ram moving forward."
Alibry stud principal, Alison Batt, Wagin, said the ram was from a Bowen stud sire.
Sasimwa Suffolk stud, York, won the pair of rams showing milk teeth sash, over three other entries.
Brenton said the pair of rams from Sasimwa were clear winners, with plenty of carcase.
"They had exceptional carcase and muscle," he said.
"Their loin was packed full of muscle.
"They were paired really well and as soon as they turned side on they looked even better."
The champion Suffolk ewe was an entry from the big class of 13 entries, ewe showing milk teeth only.
Brenton said the Sasimwa ewe had a great presence.
"This coupled with the great structure, plenty of muscle and good depth of muscle through the loin, she was an overall great ewe," he said.
"She was smooth with a good topline, while packed full of meat, she will be a great mother."
Sasimwa also took out the title of reserve champion ewe with a ewe from its pair of ewes entry.
"The reserve ewe had an exceptional behind," Brenton said.
"She has great structure, is an excellent example of the Suffolk type, with plenty of muscle and good depth of muscle.
"She just didn't have the polish of the top ewe."
Sasimwa stud's entry in the pairs category won the title of a pair of ewes showing milk teeth only.
"The top pair were a great carcase pair," he said.
"They pair up extremely well, with good toplines and structure."
Sasimwa's group of two rams and two ewes won the group category before moving on to win the interbreed group.
Brenton said they were a very even group that were a great example of the breed.
"The hindquarter on all four sheep was great," he said.
"They matched really well and were excellent representations of the breed."
White Suffolk
With five studs entering a total of 45 sheep, the White Suffolk breed was a strong contender for dominance in the British and Australasian Breeds section of the Williams Gateway Expo.
Having the not so easy task of judging the White Suffolk breed, Brenton said the competition had been tough, due to the quality of the animals on display and the commitment of the breeders to producing animals of the highest level.
"The representation of the White Suffolk breed today was beyond impressive," he said.
"It is great to see the sheep looking so good."
He said with the number of young ewes and rams on display it was a good sign of how they would be performing later in the year when they had grown out even more and gained more condition.
"It is a really good sign for the prime lamb industry," Brenton said.
Winning the coveted best of breed or grand champion White Suffolk was the champion ewe from Josh Addis's, Kalagan White Suffolk stud, Denmark, which rose from the young ewe class, showing milk teeth only.
Originally competing against eight other entries, the ewe then went on to go all the way and take out the title of supreme interbreed exhibit later in the day.
"The ewe is all class and style," Brenton said.
"She was an excellent White Suffolk type, very nice looking and stands proud.
"She has a great topline and balance throughout, while being broad and long, but remaining very feminine.
"It was a tough choice between her and the ram, they were two great sheep.
"I had to look at the finer things and the ewe just had more class in the end and her carcase was exceptional.
"She was nice and big and you can't fault her topline, just had all the right attributes to take her all the way."
The champion ram from the Bingham family's Iveston stud, Williams, was also a great specimen going on to become the champion interbreed ram.
When commenting on the ram's attributes Brenton said it was a prime example of the breed.
"He is a nice big upstanding ram," he said.
"With extremely hard flesh in the hindquarter and perfect structure from behind."
The reserve champion White Suffolk ram went to Brimfield stud, Kendenup, with its big, young ram showing milk teeth only and born on or after June 15.
"The ram had an amazing amount of flesh in its hindquarter," Brenton said.
"He also had a bit more length over the other rams, with a great depth of body.
"He was also a powerful ram with a good topline."
Brimfield also won the pair of rams title with two rams showing milk teeth.
"The rams were very smooth through the shoulders," he said.
"They had good scale and were very even."
The reserve champion ewe went to Sasimwa White Suffolk stud, York, with its young ewe out of the same class as the champion.
"She is also a great animal," he said.
"She is also a great representative of the breed, but she just wasn't in the same class as the champion."
Sasimwa stud's titles continued with its pair of ewes showing milk teeth taking home the winning sash.
"They were an extremely even pair of feminine ewes," he said.
Finally it was the Brimfield stud that won the group of two rams and two ewes first place ribbon, before the same group went on to become the reserve interbreed group.
"This group represented the breed exceptionally well," he said.
"They all matched beautifully across the hindquarter especially."
South Suffolk
There may have only been one breeder and five entries, consisting of only rams, but the South Suffolk breed sported an exceptional quality competition.
The Bingham family's Iveston stud, Williams, did the South Suffolk breed proud with their entries and when judging, Brenton said they really were true to type.
"Overall it was hard to fault them," he said.
"Each ram that came out today had great attributes and characteristics."
He said the sheer volume of the ram that went on to become grand champion was hard to ignore.
"He had great fleshing," Brenton said.
He was a very good South Suffolk type, he stood well and was proud.
"The ram that was reserve was just a little smaller, but still had great fleshing and also stood well," he said.
"All the rams today were very even and true to type, a good sign of quality breeding."
Poll Dorset
An 11th hour call-up to judge due to a COVID-19 close contact disruptor to the original invitee, saw Nutrien Livestock Breeding sheep specialist Roy Addis in the meat sheep judging ring alongside his son Brenton.
Roy had "been asked to bring a suitable shirt the day before just in case" and by showday morning maybe had turned to definitely.
For the four exhibitors in the Poll Dorset section with their 46 sheep, it proved a valuable opportunity to tap into a wealth of knowledge gleaned on multiple breeds of meat sheep over many years and for Roy it was a chance to adjudicate on some outstanding quality animals, equal to the best anywhere.
From the outset, he made it very clear what he was looking for in his selections - carcase attributes on sound, functional bodies and with the right reproductive and survivability traits to ensure commercial success and producer profitability.
And it was a line he did not deviate from all day, choosing exhibits from the Squiers' families Shirlee Downs stud, Quairading, as best meeting these parameters on Saturday to claim both ram and ewe broad ribbons.
The Shirlee Downs ewe started her purple reign to breed grand champion in the milk tooth class of nine head and from first glance Roy knew he had found something special.
"This is a great line-up of ewes and the hardest class to judge so far, but that top ewe is just outstanding, with a better carcase even than the ram I just put the champion ribbon on," Roy said.
"She has a hard carcase right through the hindquarter and terrific width of loin which is exceptional for any animal let alone a young ewe, but she remains very smooth and fine through the shoulders and front end."
An early bloomer, the ewe, by an Ivadene bloodline home bred sire Shirlee Downs 408/19, had form having been shown as a ewe lamb at last year's Perth Royal Show where it was sashed reserve champion Poll Dorset.
Stud co-principal Chris Squiers said while 409/19 was stamping its worth as a sire at home, most pleasing was its performance in New South Wales-based progeny trials where it ranked second on eating quality and second overall.
Making it a daily double, Shirlee Downs also claimed the champion Poll Dorset ram title, with a youngster that won the first and biggest Poll Dorset class on the day ahead of 11 other exhibits.
The ram's sire, Shirlee Downs 135/19, had been earmarked to be shown and offered at last year's cancelled Perth Royal Show, but was offered at the stud's on-property sale instead selling for $19,200 to George Pearce and Felicity Hallett.
Max Whyte and Gail Cremasco's Brimfield stud, Kendenup, produced the ewe and ram reserve champions, both progeny of impact sire Brimfield 942/18.
Mr Whyte said the sire which was the interbreed champion ram at the 2019 Perth Royal Show was now really proving its value at the stud.
"Of 13 head in this year's show team, eight are by him," Mr Whyte said.
Brimfield also won the pair of ewes with 942/18 daughters and the group of two rams (by Pepperton sires) and two ewes.
The pair of rams award went to the youngest of the four studs on show, Sharon Hornsby and Lloyd Bolt's Rockalong stud, Wagin, with a fresh shorn pair described by Mr Addis as "industry relevant, tremendous carcase sheep."
Ile de France
Three studs flew the flag for the Ile de France breed with 26 head at Williams Gateway Expo and all finished among the ribbons.
The top awards for best ram and best ewe followed the same one, two pattern with Ray Batt's Goldenover, Narrogin, awarded the champion ribbons and his brother Colin Batt's Alcostro, Wagin, a hair's breath away in claiming the broad red reserve sashes.
When it came to breed grand champion Roy could not go past the Goldenover ewe which had won her class of seven head in the milk tooth category to progress.
"This is a great class of young ewes but the ewe on top is a clear winner for her smooth shoulders, neck extension, length of body and width of loin - she delivers the whole package I am looking for," he said.
"Keeping smooth, refined shoulders is so important in the lamb industry for lambing ease and survivability so while we are meat breeds and must have good carcases, these traits also affect profitability.
"Biggest is not always best.
"But pound for pound she delivers more meat in the right areas than the ram champion."
The champion ram came from a class of six milk teeth exhibits but shone out for its extra maturity and "industry relevance".
Ray Batt said the ram was part of the first drop of lambs by a sire purchased from Rod Chitty, Toodyay.
"We are seeing renewed interest in the breed, particularly from South Australia, where I have just sold rams at up to $3000 and ewes at $1200," Mr Batt said.
His Goldenover stud also won best pair of rams, while Alcostro won best group of two rams and two ewes, with its team boasting South African and also local bloodlines.
The pair of ewes award went to former WA College of Agriculture, Narrogin, student Brendan Lamont, Tambellup and his fledgling Monteray stud, which he registered in 2019.
Wiltipoll
Two studs battled it out with nine head in the Wiltipoll ring and it was the experienced campaigners Brian and Neroli Smith, Boyanup, whose Neribri stud came up trumps for champion ram and ewe ahead the shedding sheep block Stuart and Rose Young, Abasha stud, Coolup.
While ewes had seemed to dominate the grand champion space in several of the other breeds, in the meat breeds section, this time it was the ram who staked his claim in judge Roy Addis's eyes.
He said the 'very safe ram' had structural soundness, a true shedding coat type and meat capacity on his side to put him in top spot.
"But the ewe is also a great young sheep showing early maturity and carcase quality," Roy said.
"It is predominantly carcase quality and shedding capacity that got them over my reserve champions today."
Ms Smith said through about 20 generations of their own breeding, they were focussed on producing early maturing ewes that could be mated young and lamb down with ease.
"Last year we averaged 180pc lambing in our 1yo ewes," Ms Smith said
"We don't have a wool income so we have to get lambs on the ground as soon as possible."
Ms Smith also thanked and commended the organisers of the Williams Gateway Expo for going ahead with the sheep show despite the challenges presented by COVID.
Texel
Small in number did not mean small on quality in the Texel judging ring.
JimJan co-principal Jim Glover, Boyanup, brought six peas in a pod June and July drop milk tooth youngsters, three rams and three ewes to Williams Gateway Expo and their evenness of type reflected a well established breeding direction and the great carcase attributes for which the Texel breed is renowned.
Both Texel champions came from pair entries, while both reserves were single class entrants.
When judging, Roy said he was impressed with their skin types, smoothness, length of body and firm carcases, but it was the ewes that were to him the day's standouts and it's where his choice for grand champion lay.
"The champion ewe is a real meat powerhouse," Roy said.
"She has more meat through the twist than the ram, is very structurally correct, long bodied and very smooth.
Mr Glover said the team was all by homebred sires and none had been shown before given the cancellation of Wagin Woolorama, which was to be their planned first outing.
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