Kolindale and Mianelup win the Elders Expo Fours competition at Katanning
An outstanding line-up of young rams and some very even teams again made for some difficult decisions for the judges in this year's Elders Expo Fours competition at the Rabobank WA Sheep Expo & Ram Sale at Katanning.
When the judges finally came up with their winners, it was a past multiple winner that took out the top awards.
This year studs put forward 19 quality entries across the two classes - rams shorn before April 20 and rams shorn after April 20 - for judges Kurt Spurgeon, Kondinin and Kaiden Johnston, Merna stud, Quairading, to cast their eyes over.
The aim of the competition, which is into its 31st consecutive year of Elders sponsorship, is to crown the most outstanding two teams from the previous year's drop of rams in terms of evenness and type.
The biggest class by far was the prior to April 20 shearing, with 16 groups contesting this class, while the other class attracted three entries.
The Winners:
Rams shorn before April 20:
- 1st: Kolindale stud, Dudinin
- 2nd: Wililoo stud, Woodanilling
Rams shorn after April 20:
- 1st: Mianelup stud, Gnowangerup
- 2nd: Auburn Valley stud, Williams
And in the bigger class, it was the Ledwith family's Kolindale stud, Dudinin, which won the rosette for the best four rams shorn before April 20.
The quality team of upstanding Poll Merino rams from Kolindale which took top honours, made a big impression on the judging pair for not only their evenness, but also their production ability and structures.
Mr Johnston said it was a tough job to split the teams in the class.
"The Kolindale team caught the eye straight away with all four rams showing great overall size and power," Mr Johnston said.
"Their size, power and evenness was hard to go past.
"They were a very even team of four, the most even of the lot.
"A lot of the teams had three rams which were all very even and one that didn't match in as well, but the Kolindale team all matched nicely in terms of wool type and body shape.
"All four rams in the team are productive wool cutters and the modern day Merino type with both wool and carcase traits.
"They are four very good sheep and a credit to the Kolindale stud."
The March shorn Kolindale team was made up of two Kolindale 40 sons and two rams by Collinsville Emperor 395, which was purchased by the Kolindale stud in 2022 at the Australian Sheep & Wool Show at Bendigo, Victoria, for $115,000.
The four rams had wool figures of 22.1, 22.0, 23.4 and 22.8 microns, 3.7, 4.0, 3.8 and 3.5 SDs and 98.2, 96.4, 96.9 and 97.9 per cent comfort factors.
Finishing second in the class for rams, shorn before April 20 was the Wise family's Wililoo stud, Woodanilling, Broomehill, with a team of four Poll Merino rams.
Mr Johnston said the Wililoo team was not far behind the Kolindale team.
"All four rams in the Wililoo team were very even in terms of their body size, make and shape and structure, but were just not as closely matching in the wools as the Kolindale team," Mr Johnston said.
"They are four very good rams with very good structures and impressive white medium wools.
"Overall they were an excellent team of rams with quality wools and good carcase traits."
The team was made up of four rams which all carried Seymour Park bloodlines in their breeding.
They had wool figures of 18.7 micron, 2.6 SD, 99.7pc CF; 18.3 micron, 2.5 SD, 99.6pc CF; 20.4 micron, 2.7 SD, 99.6pc CF and 18.2 micron, 3.0 SD and 99.7pc CF.
In the class for rams, shorn after April 20, it was the Richardson family's Mianelup stud, Gnowangerup and the Rintoul family, Auburn Valley stud, Williams, that battled it out for the top two spots again this year.
When the judges announced their decision, it was the same as last year's results with the Mianelup stud prevailing to win the blue rosette in front of the Auburn Valley stud that had to settle for the red rosette for a second year running.
Mianelup's team of April/May-drop Poll Merinos clearly impressed the judges with Mr Spurgeon giving plenty of praise to the team when it was announced the winner.
Mr Spurgeon said it was very close between the top two teams in the class, but in the end the Mianelup team was just that fraction more even when it came to both wool type and body size.
"The Mianelup team matched up really well and presented as a very even team," Mr Spurgeon said.
"All four rams have great constitutions and the same bodies while on the wool front all four carry bright, white, lustrous wools.
"They all have good outlooks, stand up very proud and have plenty of production ability.
"They are four upstanding young Poll rams with a bright future ahead of them."
Two of the rams in the Mianelup team were ET-bred sons of Glenlea Park 741, one was an AI-bred son of the same ram and the final ram was an ET-bred son of Wallaloo Park 422.
The three Glenlea Park 741 sired rams have micron figures of 19.8, 20.5 and 21.5, while the Wallaloo Park 422 son has a micron figure of 20 micron.
Finishing in second place in the class for the Auburn Valley stud was a team of May/June-drop, machine shorn Poll Merino rams.
All four rams in the Auburn Valley team carried Westerdale bloodlines in the pedigrees, three were grandsons on a Westerdale sire Auburn Valley purchased out the Westerdale on-property sale a number of years ago, while the fourth was an AI-bred son of Westerdale 395.
The four rams had late April wool test figures of 14.6 micron, 2.3 SD, 100pc CF; 14.5 micron, 2.9 SD, 99.9pc CF; 16.2 micron, 3.9 SD, 99.8pc CF and 13.4 micron, 2.9 SD, 100pc CF.
When weighed last week, the four rams were 85kg, 89kg, 89.5kg and 85.5kg.
Mr Spurgeon said the Auburn Valley team was very close to being evenly matched, but in the end they went for the Mianelup team as it was marginally better matched.
"They were four peas in a pod and as always they were a very good team of young rams from Auburn Valley," he said.
"All four rams had very good outlooks and were all structurally sound.
"In terms of their wool, they all carried very good, well-nourished, white, wools with style and their surfaces were all very similar.
"They were very true to type for a pen of four and are four very good young rams."
Overall, Mr Spurgeon said all the teams in the judging were a credit to the breeders.
"It was very close in both classes for us to pick the winner and in the end it got down to the finer points and the evenness of the team," he said.
"Most teams had three rams which matched up really well, just not the fourth.
"I think if it had been a competition for a group of three we would still be judging as it would have been very hard to split the teams, as they would have been so close.
"That is what makes the competition so unique and hard to win, as it is easy to get three rams but to get a fourth isn't easy."
