Bullseye Volume 3 The Royal Sydney Show 2019

http://bigwigstudfarm.com Bullseye Volume 3

The Sydney Show - A Day for Rosehill.

It was a Rosy day for Rosehill Speckle Park.

On a day where the Australian females were dominant, Rosehill was the uncontested champion of the show ring. This stud, that has avoided the toxic media environment, have put their heads down and let the cattle do the talking - with extraordinary success.

Rosehill flexed muscle from the very start where they took out positions, one and two in the females 9 to 12 months. Rosehill'sAll about Me an ET calf by All Out, was in first place and Rosehill's Reba P1 in second place , were in my view, well ahead of the rest of the class.

In the class females over 16 and not over 20, Aurora, by Mount Eccles Meteorite and out of another favorite Armalea Lacey, came a very credible third and in the females, 24 not over 30 months, Rosehill Sophia was placed first, she was by an old-style champion , King George 82U and again Amarlea Lacey.

Finally in the female section over 30 months, Rosehill's Secret Rendezvous M 28 by Jonah Stock Farm's Trade Secret and out of Six Star 3M Rendezvous took out the top honours.

Justifiably and with the approval of the 200 judges outside the show ring (as opposed to the one judge in the show ring) the consensus for the Grand Champion female was unanimously cheered on when Rosehill's Secret Rendezvous was awarded the crown, ahead of another great cow bred by Wellarou Speckle Park.

What a magnificent showing by a stud that showed it was no longer content to be a mere participant or a red ribbon winner. The dedication and hard work eventually shone through. Their embryologist Udo Mahne tweeted " It’s about time" in recognition of a long and difficult path to the top.

This was not just a comprehensive win, it was a stud bursting into and dominating the very important female classes, ensuring that their breeding program has a widespread of genetics. They have produced the quality on which an impressive future stud can be progressed, including some of the old and some of the new such as King George 82 U, Reba, Almarlea Lacey, Trade Secret, Stands Alone and their bull in Canada All Out. Congratulations to Rosehill on a gold medal performance.

Another competitor at the show that did exceptionally well and deserves mention was Hanging Rock. John Ellis arrived with a good string of magnificent cattle. In a female class, 12 not over 16 months, Hanging Rock took out the honours with Heather P01 out of Thunderstruck bred by Udo Mahne. Hanging Rock took out all three places in that category. Hanging Rock also took out second place in the 16 not over 20 months and also reserve Junior Champion female, Hanging Rock Hilary. The quality of the Speckle Parks remains impressive and the competition is tight. Black Diamond ( second in Bulls 9-12 and bulls over 20 and under 24 months) Deeargee ( first in Bulls Over 12 and not over 16 months and 20 not over 24 months ) Glengarry,( second in Females over 30 months) are all making sure that the standard remains competitive by bringing good strings of animals and demanding places in the show-ring. There are new comers willing to compete such as Hillview, Meerom, Hidden Valley and Epic. It was good to see Dennis Power and Minamurra in the show ring and Dennis Roberts from AAA, who had a bad encounter between two bulls , we wish him a healthy recovery. From the Mid North Coast I would mention that Carol Major from Dingo Creek , who bred Knockout, that sold for a record $21k at Scone a few years ago, would be proud to see that his progeny were making it into the show-ring.

In the Bull section Wattlegrove still sets the standard. This judge favoured large framed animals. His Got the Look Is a muscled well-structured animal that beat his Wattlegrove counter-part Shot of Goodness. ( Courtesy of the Land )

Rosehill showed that it was not only a female champion stud but was also taking out some places in the bulls. In bulls under 12 months , He Is Only Everything a calf by Wattlegroves' Mr Busines won first place and in Bulls over 24 not over 30 months Montagu by Notta Romeo and Waratah Spanish Angel won first place.

Some Favourites and Some Facts.

100% of the first places awarded at the show where animals produced by ET. 85% of those ET progeny had Canadian sires with Stands Alone, Trade Secret and Putnam topping the list. It may well be that only in 2020, will we be seeing the first results of the Australian sires being competitive on the progeny lists such as Wattlegrove Smoke and Mirrors and Six Stars Premier.

This is possibly one of the areas of controversial debate. Wattlegrove has permitted the genetics of Smoke and Mirrors , Putnam and Trade Secret to be spread amongst the breeding community and the result is that they are now returning calves for everyone to see, in the bigger studs and in the smaller studs. The genetics are capable of being evaluated and in that way, if breeders are responsible and are providing EBV's, the true value of the animal is more readily assessed .

On another view, animals such as Royal Flesh and Hawkeye, are being quarantined for commercial gain by the owners. The purpose presumably to stay at the cutting-edge of breeding ahead of the pack. The result is you do not see their progeny, they are not measured in significant numbers and whilst on one view they provide conclusive profits to a small community of owners, their real commercial promise is not fulfilled to the breeding community.

Rosehills Canadian Sire - All Out - bred to Bigwigs - Electra

Just because they didn't win doesn't mean that there were not other great animals.

Hidden Valley Battalion Stockade was on show. He did not advance to the top of the Senior Bull division however it is clear that he is a magnificent bull. He is a well balanced, thick bull with his fore and hindquarter is in sync and he has sire appeal . This Bull keeps his head high above his topline and his meat yield is exceptional.

Disappointingly in the heifers over 16 months Pemberton 110B a heifer by Spots and Sprouts Bart a well-conditioned animal that tracked perfectly was not placed . You did not need a "structural expert" to see the value in this calf.

Merom stud had an exhibit Six Star Hugelhoff by Kidmans Cove, that came second in the in the Bulls over 12 months not over 16 months and would certainly be a bull I would be watching out for. The same is true of Deeargee New Frontier.

My Conclusion.

As was confirmed by the judge on the day, there was not an animal in the show ring that did not deserve to be there. The bottom line has come up. Even the newest additions to the show ring are providing animals that are well conditioned, expertly haltered and led, all with the chance of succeeding.

The Australian female Speckle Parks have for too long been in the shadow of the bulls. That changed this year with Rosehill filling the entries with credible females that shone brightly on the day. It was heartening to see that all the females on show were not "overcooked" as might have been the trend in the past. In the senior female class I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the calves attached to their mothers and the magnificent udders of the cows with calves at foot.

It would be good to see a wider spread of genetics. This is likely to happen with more grassroots breeders participating and being given access to the genetic material that is available both here and overseas .

Despite some statisticle pundits maintaining that Australia has reached its own level in breeding and that we have different structured animals, I am of the view that for the next decade our continued association with the blue-chip breeding in Canada will remain critical to our advancement of the breed. I also have the view that being an armchair critic studying numbers is perhaps a naĂŻve way of assessing the breed. Favour the piggy bank, buy a ticket and go and have a look at the origin and the development of this breed in Canada, it will assist you to understand better, where they come from and guide you in relation to where you think they can go to in the future.

It was not by any means a big show but it was a quality show. Without being too competitive, I kept my eye on the Angus's, Charolais's and Fleckvie's that were sharing the facility with Speckle Park. By contrast the Speckle Park crowd were participating vocally with much enthusiasm, they certainly have something to be proud about.

It would be untoward not to mention that two giant figures have taken this breed from six exhibits being watched by 10 people eight years ago, to hundreds of spectators watching over 70 quality exhibits in 2019. To Greg Ebbeck and Dale Humphreys your task has been gargantuan, and it is difficult to imagine Speckle Park in Australia without your energy, dignity and complacency which has forged international links and permitted Australia to take its place as a major player on the world stage.

And remember - it's only one man's opinion!

Bullseye SPECKLE PARK blog is ONE MAN'S OPINION: I apologize for not pulling punches, I also celebrate a frank debate. I do and will welcome civil and constructive feedback.