Pettison Park wins ASSBA Interbreed Competition with impressive South Suffolk ram

It was a family affair in the Australian Stud Sheep Breeders Association Interbreed Competition at this year’s Perth Royal Show, with the Simpson family of Quairading taking out the contest for the third time with a South Suffolk ram. It was impossible to wipe the smile off the family members’ faces after a ram from their Quairading-based Pettison Park South Suffolk stud was awarded the Supreme title against a South Suffolk ewe from the same stud. Pettison Park, run by family patriarch Rod Simpson and his son Shaun Simpson, returned to the show ring for the first time in 25 years in 2019 and quickly made their mark. They have since scooped the ASSBA Supreme title three times, including this year, last year and in 2021, and have taken out multiple Grand Champion titles in the contest. The Pettison Park Grand Champion ewe, tag 39, was sired by Pettison Park 0042 and rose through the ranks after winning the Ewe Under 1.5 Years class and was later included in the winning Breeders Group of Three Ewes. Both the winning ram and ewe were hand-picked by a team of three judges from across Australia who travelled to judge the sheep presented in the Jim Horwood Pavilion. During the South Suffolk contest, the May 2024-drop Pettison Park ram took out the Single Ram Under 1.5 years class before being named Grand Champion — with an Iveston ram winning reserve — and proceeding to the ASSBA Interbreed Competition. The final minutes of the ASSBA contest saw the Pettison Park ram and ewe standing side-by-side with judges spending time circling and feeling the sheep from all angles. Pettison Park principal Rod Simpson —whose father Arnold Simpson registered the South Suffolk Stud in 1961— said the Supreme ram with tag 05 was powerful and well-muscled. He was home-grown from sire Pettison Park 0042, and was included in a number of other winning classes — including Breeders Group Under 1.5 years, Group of Three Rams Under 1.5 Years and Progeny Group of Three. “He was a clear standout in the paddock, and he would be anybody’s choice,” Rod said. “He is a no frills ram… just a great type and a good example of the breed.” Rod said the Pettison Park wins were a “huge reward for effort” and would propel his family to continue exhibiting at the Show to promote their breeds and stud sheep. It was a significant show for the Simpsons, with Brendon exhibiting Hampshire Down sheep from his new stud The Valley for the first time. Brendon, who launched WA’s first and only Hampshire Down stud The Valley with his wife Jami’lee Simpson in early 2023, said the British breed was prized for its top-end meat and fast-growing and maturing prime lambs. “The ewe was just very well balanced, very true to type... and very consistent,” he said. “It was really nice to have Hampshire Downs exhibiting at the show... it has been about 20 years since there have been Hampshires at the Perth Royal Show. It was a lot of work and effort, but to win Grand Champion was just incredible. “It shows that there is recognition for this breed... there is room for the breed to grow and become more prevalent in WA.” Headlining his Hampshire Down lineup was his notable was his Champion Ewe, tag 42, who later went on to be named Supreme in the breed competition, and was included in the Supreme Group of Three ewes in the ASSBA Interbreed Competition. Also impressive was Brendon’s Hampshire Down ram, tag 16, that won Champion Ram in the breed before headlining the Group of three Rams and the Breeders Group in the ASSBA Interbreed. Adding to his success, a Hampshire Down ram, tag 37, sold for $3100 at the Perth Royal Show Ram sale – with repeat buyers Mark and Roxanne King. Brendon said his stud’s genetics for the 2024-drop Hampshire Downs came out of well-known Hampshire Down breeder Matt Hill’s Victorian studs Aurora Park and Burrandool. This year’s judges were Australian White Suffolk Association president Peter Angus, who owns Maroola stud in South Australia, Jason O’Loghlin, of Loghlin Wiltshire Horns in Deniliquin, and Anna Darke, of Boyup Brook-based Lincoln Downs Suffolk Stud. Mr O’Loghlin, who last judged at the Show in 2023, had plenty of praise for the ram. “He is a really good sheep, with dense carcase and really good structure,” he said. “He stood beautifully, carries a tremendous amount of weight and stands so well… a sheep this good is too good to ignore.” Ms Darke heaped praise on the ewe, saying she was “beautiful and feminine” with plenty of muscle. “She was well-structured and stood extremely well… she was well-muscled for a ewe but was beautiful and feminine,” she said. Later in the week, Pettison Park ram tag 21 netted a pretty price of $4600 at the All Breeds Stud Ram and Ewe Sale at the Perth Royal Show after being sold to first time buyer Denam Carter of Ridgetop stud in Narrikup. Ten breeds are eligible for the ASSBA competition at the Perth Royal Show: Border Leicester, Charollais, Hampshire Downs, Ile De France, Lincoln, Shropshire, South Suffolk, Suffolk, Wiltipoll and Wiltshire Horns. All three of the judges noted the high standard of the sheep on show in this year’s ASSBA competition, with Mr O’Loghlin saying the quality on show was “impressive”. ASSBA INTERBREED COMPETITION Supreme Champion: South Suffolk Ram (Pettison Park) Reserve Supreme: South Suffolk ewe (Pettison Park) Grand Champion Ram: South Suffolk (Pettison’Park) Reserve Grand Champion Ram: Hampshire Down (The Valley) Grand Champion Ewe: South Suffolk (Pettison Park) Reserve Grand Champion Ewe: Ile De France (Monterey) Supreme Champion Breeders Group: South Suffolk (Pettison Park) Group of Three Ewes: Hampshire Down (The Valley) Exhibitor Gaining Most Points in Any One Breed of British Breed: Eaglenook Estate