Ireland-Sheep shearing record.

NEW ZEALAND.

A young Irishman who left school at the age of 14 to help on the family farm in County Donegal because they needed him has made sheep shearing history by becoming the first overseas shearer to break a solo World tally record in New Zealand.

Ivan Scott, 27, from the township of Kilmacrenan, near Letterkenny, and based in New Zealand for much of the time since first arriving in 2000, shore 736 romney lambs today to break the World eight-hour strongwool lambshearing record at the Onuku Maori Trust Farm at Rerewhakaaitu, southeast of Rotorua .

But, after a strong opening with a record 7-9am run of 192, he left it till just three minutes till the end at 5pm before breaking the previous record of 731, set by Taihape shearer Justin Bell in December 2002.

Now a farmer at Weber in Southern Hawke’s Bay, the 35-year-old Bell was one of the lanky Scott’s right-hand men throughout the four two-hour runs regulated by the World Sheep Shearing Records Society, and was among the first to congratulate him at the end.

"Those two hour-runs are bloody tough," said Bell, who set his record at Opepe near Taupo and two years later at Onuku also achieved the ultimate tally goal when he broke the nine hour-hour record. "I’m proud of you, Mate."

While the first run put him five ahead of Bell’s tally at the same stage, it wasn’t breeze for Scott who actually shore 745 during the day, but had nine rejected by judges Peter Artridge (Australia), Doug Oliver (North Island) and John Hough (South Island), and was also constantly close to breaking the 12pt penalty barrier which could have seen him warned about his quality, and even disqualified.

Nevertheless, officially posted wityh 185 in the second run from 9.30-11.30am, and 182 from 12.30-2.30pm, he entered the last run with a comfortable target of 172, and was able to keep the bid under control. He started the last run with his fastest quarter-hour of the day, with 27 lambs, and ultimately shore 177 in the last two hours.

By comparison, Bell’s tallies per run were 187, 185, 179, and 180, King who held the record at 695 for three weeks previously did 174, 172, 173 nand 176, and Digger Balme, who was also present today, did runs of 154, 154, 157 and 156 when he set the record at 621 in January 1999.

Considering approximately an hour of the day was eaten-away by the four or five seconds catching time between lambs, the average time per lamb was about 32 seconds. They cut an average of just over 1kg of wool each, comfortably mover the minimum requirement of 0.9kg.

Taranaki-based Scottish shearer Gavin Mutch, who on Monday abandoned a similar bid after six hours as the going got too tough to achieve the goal, was present for much of today’s effort, and commented at one stage: "It looks easy when you look sitting from here."

Scott looked fresh and ready to do it again as he accepted congratulations from record bid organising shearing contractor Jeff Dorset, regular South Island boss Barry Pullen and others, and said he hadn’t thought about challenging the nine-hour record of 866, held by Napier shearer Dion King.

Although he last summer shore 878 in an unjudged nine-hour day at work, he said: "I haven’t thought that far ahead."

Back home there is an appealing but longstanding Irish record of 455 ewes, held by popular shearing identity George Graham, who was a commentator at the World Shearing championships in Norway in October, where Scott reached the semi-finals and Mutch was sixth in the final.

Most important, though, was getting home to Roleston, near Christchurch, and to girlfriend Lyndsay McGregor who is expecting their first child in four months’ time.