Tattykeel's impressive 11-year interbreed streak

Organisers said there were 613 exhibits catalogued for the two-day show, with numbers up on last year's event.

Tattykeel won the Sandra Wilson-Tink memorial trophy with its Poll Dorset ram, Tattykeel 230014, by Tattykeel 200060 and out of Tattykeel 160882.

James Gilmore, Tattykeel, said winning the supreme exhibit still gave the stud a buzz.

"You do everything you can to have the stock right, and the genetics, to get them out into the competition, but it's never getting easier," he said.

"The longer you stay winning something the harder it is... people are waiting for you to be one tiny step off the pace.

"We don't do anything in halves, and we never have.

"We do all we can to do the best we can, then we can go and have a beer and say, 'well, we can't have done anymore'."

Tattykeel's ram also went on to win the inter-species exhibit, judged by Richard Cole, Lachlandale, Forbes.

The ram went head to head with a Simmental cow and calf, a Tamworth boar, and an Old English Game, which had all won supreme exhibit in their respective category.

Mr Cole said the ram was very, very hard to fault and was a cut above the rest.

"He's totally structurally correct," he said.

"If we look at his width, look at the hindquarter on him, he's really faultless through the spine.

"I'm a firm believer that animals have got to have a good, strong spine.

"He stands wide, he's got that width and that volume right through him."

There were 14 breeds represented on the mat for the sheep interbreed classes, which were judged by Scott Thrift, AWN, Dubbo; James Hoban, Glenafric, Waipara, NZ; Barend Cronje, Tullinga Dorpers, Condobolin; Craig Henry, Kanoona Park, Curban; Lochie Ramm, Bo-Bar Poll Dorsets, Braidwood; Curtis Barber, Glenoak, Narromine; Ashley Corkhill, Normanhurst, Boorowa; Shane Baker, Booloola White Suffolk, Banringhup, Vic; Ben Campbell, Avoca Stud Stock, Gulgong; and Hannah Haupt, Redland, Qld.

The ram was pulled forward as the top in the short wool, while the long wool went to the Merino, exhibited by Weealla stud, Balladoran, and the shedding breed went to the Australian White, also exhibited by Tattykeel.

The ram then went up against the stud's Poll Dorset ewe, Tattykeel 230031, who had triumphed over the ram in the breed classes the day before.

The ewe was pulled forward in the final lineup for the short wool, along with the Corriedale, exhibited by Roseville Corriedales, Kingsvale, for the long wool category and Tattykeel's Australian White in the shedding breed.

Tony Manchester, Roseville Corriedales, said he had been coming to the show since 1997 and had never made it to the final three in the interbreeds.

He said the show's long-time chief steward, Sandra Wilson-Tink, had been a great mentor to him.

"She was looking down today," he said.

Tattykeel's Poll Dorsets also won the Denis Todd perpetual trophy for the interbreed group. Its Australian Whites were selected for the shedding breed and the Border Leicesters exhibited by Bauer, Ariah Park, selected for the long wool.

Mr Gilmore said having their Australian Whites making the final three in each category was also a boost.

"That to us is pretty special, to get those shedding sheep up in amongst your traditional type meat sheep," he said.

"It's at times like that you potentially think if you didn't have your Dorsets there, would you get a White over the line?

"There hasn't been one yet but they're certainly getting closer."

He praised the organising committee for its efforts and said the show's atmosphere, size and the people made it worthwhile to keep coming back.

"We really value the show," he said.

"It's the biggest sheep show in NSW... it does have a lot of prowess."

This year's event had brought some particularly good competition, he said.

"You've got to be very 'on' to keep doing this," he said.

"There's a lot of competition in this shed and a lot of terrific breeders and sheep in this shed.

"That to us is the biggest achievement, to come up trumps in front of a lot of good people and breeders."

Tattykeel does not use Australian sheep breeding values to benchmark its flock, instead selecting on phenotype.

Mr Gilmore said showing recognised balanced animals with relevant commercial traits, and the event was important for breeders to show their genetic gains to producers who came through to watch.

"Competition makes you better and it gives people something to benchmark against," he said.

"I was lucky enough to go through the years as a young kid in the industry where the competition was very, very, very tough.

"Minor breed characteristics could get you put down.

"We know what it takes to be absolutely at that level because of those years prior."

The Michael and Delma Brian perpetual trophy for the most successful exhibitor of one breed went to Bauer Border Leicesters. Farrer Memorial Agricultural High School, Tamworth, won the John and Jan Bennett perpetual trophy for the most successful school.