Fagan wears shear black singlet again

July 27, 2013

Long time between tests - Fagan wears shear black singlet again

Shearing icon David Fagan will wear the New Zealand singlet in a test match against Wales tonight, stretching his international career to more than 28 years.

The 51-year-old veteran and multiple World, Golden Shears and New Zealand Open champion takes the place of injured Mid-Canterbury shearer Tony Coster, who broke a wrist this week.

Fagan joins current Golden Shears and New Zealand Open champion Rowland Smith as the Shearing Sports New Zealand team tries to avoid a 4-0 whitewash against Wales at the Corwen Shears, and to salvage a 50-50 record at the end of the 8-test 2013 Elders Primary Wool UK Tour.

Fagan first represented New Zealand in a shearing test against a World team at the Golden Shears in Masterton in March 1985, the first test after industrial issues in Australian shearing forced a suspension of an annual home-and-away transtasman series.

The following year he won his first Golden Shears Open title, and in an Americas Cup yachting side-attraction in Perth was runner-up in his first World Championships, at which he paired with Wairarapa shearer Ricky Pivac to claim the teams title.

In 2010, having won a 16th Golden Shears Open final the previous year, Fagan won his 17th New Zealand Open title, and in Wales two months later reached a milestone of 600 Open-final wins around the World, and then with new Golden Shears champion Cam Ferguson at the Royal Welsh Show won a 6th World teams title, to go with 5 individual titles won from 1988 to 2003.

He last shore a test in his home town of Te Kuiti in 2011, as New Zealand completed an unbeaten series against Wales.

He has, however, not lost his winning touch, with 5 victories around New Zealand last summer.

He’s been in winning Speedshear form in the UK in recent weeks, and a fortnight ago at the Great Yorkshire Show reached another milestone, joined for the first time in a final by son and new Open-class shearer Jack.

Fagan has made no announcements about any imminent retirement, and is expected to start a 33rd New Zealand Open-class season in October, with perhaps some dream of a place in the New Zealand team at next year’s World Championships in Ireland.

ENDS

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