On behalf of Shearing Sports New Zealand

April 1, 2011. 6pm

Favourites safe as Shears reach climax

John Kirkpatrick and Joanne Kumeroa go into the last day of the New Zealand Shearing Championships in Te Kuiti tomorrow even hotter favourites to win than when the championships started.

The two, who won the Golden Shears shearing and woolhandling titles repectively in Masterton four weeks ago, and maintained their form in today's preliminary rounds as they took the next step to completing double triumphs at the two big events.

Napier shearer Kirkpatrick, subject of strong betting interest at the TAB, cruised through the Open shearing championship heats, qualifying in third place for the quarterfinals tomorrow afternoon. Second favourite and Hawke's Bay based Far North shearer Rowland Smith headed the 24 who made the cut from an original field of 66, and Jerome McCrea, of Whanganui, qualified in third place.

World champion Cam Ferguson also made the cut, in 12th place, and will be looking to avoid a repeat of his Masterton effort, when his defence of the Golden Shears title he won in 2010 ended with elimination the second round. Also among the qualifiers is Welsh shearer Gareth Daniel, and the surprise omissions were Golden Shears finalist Adam Brausch, of Dannevirke, and Darin Forde, of Winton.

Kumeroa, from Whanganui but having spent much of the season in Australia, was in commanding form in the Open woolhandling championship, headed in the qualifiers for both the quarterfinal and then the semi-final. Reigning champion Joel Henare, of Gisborne, and 2009 champion Sheree Alabaster, of Taihape, were also still in strong contention, but Alabaster's World champion teammate, Keryn Herbert, of Te Awamutu, was eliminated in the quarterfinals.

ENDS