Three-year-old stud takes out first supreme win at national Hereford event

It was an emotional win for a stud who took out its first-ever national championship at the Herefords Australia National Show and Sale at Wodonga.

Established just three years ago, Oak Hill Hereford stud, Cootamundra, NSW, has taken home its first supreme champion sash at the 60th anniversary of the event.

Oak Hill Herefords stud co-principal Paul Manwaring said the win took some time to sink in.

"This is only our second time exhibiting here," Mr Manwaring said.

Competing for the first time last year, the stud has graduated from a third-place class win to a supreme champion title.

The supreme champion bull, Oak Hill Universal U009, was awarded the junior champion bull title earlier in the day and went on to outperform his older competitors.

The 19-month-old bull was the competitor Mr Manwaring brought to Wodonga in his "one-man show" team.

"We really believed in this bull," Mr Manwaring said.

"There's no extremes about him.

"He's just such a well put-together bull and very complete."

The bull weighed 914 kilograms, had rib and P8 fat scans of 14 millimetres and 23mm, respectively, while also recording an eye muscle area of 131 square centimetres.

Mr Manwaring said the supreme bull's sire, Mawarra Infuential Q162, had been influential in the Oak Hill program, and had also sired another bull exhibited at last year's show and sale, Oak Hill Titan, who sold for $16,000.

International judge PJ Budler, Texas, US, said the bull showcased everything he was looking for in a young Hereford sire.

"He is the bull that suited the philosophies I spoke about all day," Mr Budler said.

"He is masculine and has mass and muscle.

"He's got really good feet and legs, he is athletic, has good testicle size and shape, and he's full-bodied."

While Mr Budler had a small critique of one of the bull's figures, he said the phenotype more than made up for it.

"He's a bull with really good testicle size and suspension, his scrotal circumference estimated breeding value (EBV) doesn't read as well as that, but he's got one of the better circumferences and shapes," he said.

"This bull has really balanced EBVs all the way through.

"He's got calving ease, he's balanced on growth, and he has some muscle and fat to him.

"That's a tool that can be used in a purebred operation in a stud very easily."

Mr Manwaring extended his gratitude to Mawarra Genetics, Longford, who was also in the running for supreme champion with its 21-month-old intermediate winner, Mawarra Magnificent U250.

"We really want to thank Mawarra because they helped us out a lot getting started," he said.

The Mawarra intermediate champion bull was praised for being a similar type to the supreme champion, exhibiting masculinity, mass and muscle.

With several other class wins across the day, Mawarra Genetics was awarded the title of most successful exhibitor.