SOUTHDOWN
Supreme Champion: Romale, Bunding, Vic.
Champion ram: Romale.
Reserve Champion ram: Fernhill, Ballan, Vic
Champion ewe: Fernhill
Reserve Champion ewe: Fernhill
A Southdown ram, which took out Supreme Champion at the Geelong Show, last year, has now taken out the top award at the Royal Melbourne Show.
Tasmanian judge Chris Badcock chose the over one and a half years, closely and evenly shorn ram, from the Ireland family’s Romale stud, Bunding, Victoria, as Supreme Champion.
When speaking about sashing the June 2015 drop Romale ram as champion, Mr Badcock said he had done something he normally wouldn’t do.
“I have given it the older ram,” Mr Badcock said.
“I just feel he’s held himself really well, structurally. He’s a beautifully fleshed animal, a beautifully balanced animal.
“When you look at him, there’s not a lot wrong.
“When you look at the others, there is perhaps some slight little faults, which I didn’t like
“I just kept coming back to the older ram, because he was the safest, the soundest and had good color – really, there was not a lot you could fault, with the ram.”
The ram recorded figures of a weight of 144.5kilograms, a nine millimetre fat depth, 56mm muscle depth, 106mm width and 45.7 square centimetre eye muscle area.
Mr Badcock said the champion ewe, from Graeme Dehnert’s Fernhill stud, Ballan, Victoria, had a superior carcase attributes.
he's got a superior carcase, and good muscling, particularly in the hind quarter, all while maintaining femininity and a smooth shoulder,” Mr Badcock said.
“There were some very good ewes today, but this one just had supreme carcase attributes.”
Romale’s Roslyn Ireland said the ram would be kept in the stud, for now.
“He won his class last year at Melbourne, and took out Supreme Champion at the Geelong Show last year,” Ms Ireland said.
“He's tall and well-balanced and has good characteristics of the Southdown breed.”
Fernhill won the Southdown Breeders' Plate.
