Kiwi shearers fleece British opposition in test series

New Zealand team member Tony Coster, of Rakaia, takes his turn on the board on the first day of the 2013 Elders Primary Wool UK Tour. Coster and fellow shearer Rowland Smith, of Hastings, won the four-match series 3-1. Photo by Jo Te Huia.

Rowland Smith, of Hastings, and Tony Coster, of Rakaia, beat Ulster at the Rickamore Shears in Ireland on July 13,notching up the third win on their four-event 2013 Elders Primary Wool United Kingdom Tour.

The pair opened the UK series a fortnight earlier with a loss to Scotland at Lochearnhead Shears but quickly bounced back with two wins over England.

Smith is Golden Shears and New Zealand Open champion and Coster won the New Zealand Shears circuit final in Te Kuiti in April. Coster won six other finals in the South Island earlier in the season, including the Canterbury Circuit title.

The four-test Welsh tour began on Friday at the Cothi Shears in Wales and continues with events this week, culminating in the Corwen Shears on Friday and Saturday.