Thanks to the intervention of the COVID pandemic, brother and sister Will and Pip Hacker will be in the unique situation of competing together at the national junior judging titles in Sydney this week.
To make the circumstances even more unusual, they will each be representing Queensland in both the national Merino sheep and fleece sections.
The children of Muckadilla's Roselea Merino Stud principals Peter and Linda Hacker won't be up against each other, but they will be looking at the same sheep on the floor, and the same fleeces, at the same time.
The situation has come about because Will, who won the Queensland junior judging titles at the 2019 state sheep show at Roma, was unable to compete nationally in either 2020 or 2021 when both events, slated first for New Zealand and then Brisbane, were called off thanks to the pandemic.
His sister Pip, aged 25, won the right to compete nationally at the state sheep show at Longreach last year.
While Will, 22, says he's kept his eye in, comparing sheep as part of his contracting work, Pip has had her hands full with her first year in the workforce as a teacher, and the challenging start to the year that schools had.
She said the 26 children in her Year 5/6 class at St George discovered she was going to Sydney during the school holidays and were very excited for her.
"I've done a bit of revision of the scoring system, and I'm getting a few pointers from Will too," she said.
Will in turn said he was looking forward to having his sister there with him.
He's been contracting since his 2019 win, working as far afield as Cunnamulla, Longreach and Millmerran, mustering and shearing, and has just joined Leading Sheep, saying it was important for the younger generation to be involved.
As far as turning his attention to Sydney, he said he would just give his opinion on what he saw before him.
"At the end of the day, it's about justifying your opinion and showing the judges what you thought," he said.
Peter Hacker, who is the current Queensland Merino Stud Sheepbreeders Association president, said kids can surprise you sometimes.
"Will had three years at Haddon Rig stud, which helped his development, but Pip's win was right out of the blue," he said.
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The Merino sheep and fleece judging competitions are sponsored by Australian Wool Innovation; the competitions are run by Agricultural Shows Australia and hosted by the Royal Agricultural Society of NSW and Queensland Agricultural Shows.
ASA chairman Rob Wilson said they were designed to recognise the best new talent in livestock judging nationwide.
"It's an extremely prestigious event and positions at the nationals are keenly contested," Dr Wilson said.
""These young people are the future of agricultural show competitions, which are crucial to the continual improvement of Australia's food and fibre.
"The national competition is a coveted opportunity to grow personally and professionally by practising skills against the cream of the crop."
AWI's chief operating officer John Roberts said Australian wool had a bright future and needed the best and the brightest to stay interested and involved in the industry.
"That's why we are so pleased to back the annual Merino fleece and sheep young judges competitions. And may the best judge win," Mr Roberts said.
The national sheep young judges championship takes place at 2pm on Wednesday, while the national fleece junior judging is at 2pm on Thursday.
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