It was one and two for North Canterbury cattle breeders in the Meat and Wool Cup for supreme champion beef cattle entry at the Canterbury A&P Show.
And just one point separated the two top contenders, resulting in contrasting emotions for the owners and handlers in a class that was unusual for having only female stock up for contention. Oxford farmers Andrew and Udette Stokes, of the Sinai Angus Stud, were elated to win the cup for the first time in their 11 years at the show. But Doc and Jan Sidey, of the Jandoc Hereford Stud at Hawarden, were ''gutted''.
Mr Stokes said he was ''absolutely stoked'' to have won the coveted trophy with his 7-year-old Angus cow with 2-month-old bull calf at foot. It was the first time he had qualified for the cup, joining the line-up after winning the Angus cow and calf class, the champion senior female Angus class and the supreme champion Angus award. ''There were man hugs [with the handler of the calf, Kevin] and I was in tears and the kids were in tears,'' he said. ''It's my biggest win ever. It's massive.''
Mr Stokes founded his Sinai Angus Stud 14 years ago and has 50 stud cows on a 750ha farm, which has a mix of cattle, sheep, deer, cropping and dairy grazing. However, Mr Sidey was left to rue what might have been for his prize-winning 12-year-old Hereford Jandoc Leonora.
He could only lean on the gate and reflect on how close he had come to taking out the big one, after being runner-up in 2012 also. He said he was not ready to discuss retirement plans for the stud's prize-winning cow, which over the years had become an icon in the cattle pavilion, where she continued to impress with her presence and breed type despite being well past the age one would expect to see her in such a competition.
Last year she took out her fifth successive cow championship at the show. She won all-breeds cow in 2009 and 2011, as well as a long list of awards for her age group over the years at the Hawarden A&P Show.
BY ROBY BRISTOW