The New Zealand shearing team will have to back both their skill and a bit of history in the happy hunting ground of shearing jamboree the Corwen Shears to avoid a series whitewash in the last match of the CP Wool UK tour after being beaten by Wales at the Royal Welsh Show.
The Kiwi team of Rowland Smith and John Kirkpatrick slipped to 3-0 down in the series after Wednesday's test on Wednesday, less than 48 hours after Smith's World Record shear of 644 ewes in eight hours in Cornwall, England, and end the tour at Corwen on Saturday.
Smith also missed out on a place in the Royal Welsh All-Nations Open final which he won last year, when he was the third New Zeakand winner of the event Iin three years, after David Fagan's win in 2014 and son Jack Fagan's win in 2015.
Smith, pictured during his World Record triumph, was first to finish the 20 lsmbs taking 11min 51sec, and beating Welsh shearer Gwion Lloyd Evans by five seconds, and it was the board and pen points of Corwen shearer Richard Jones the carried the day as he swept back into the national side after winning the Champion Shearer of Wales final and scored best pen and board judging points.
Jones also won the All Nations Open final, in a rare outcome after being last to finish. Taking 14min 4secc for the 20 lambs he again had the best board and pen poins.
Smith and Kirkpatrick won last year's test at Corwen, where Kirkpatrick also won the Open all-nations final.
