The Limousin fraternity is celebrating Oakwood Cutright being named Supreme Champion Bull in the Nutrien Ag Solutions Stud Cattle Championship at Beef 2024, in what is the first Interbreed win for the breed since the triennial exhibition began in 1988.
Owned by Lindesay View Limousins, Ulster Limousins and Red Oak Limousins, the 28-month-old was the star of the show for Judges Ian Galloway, Scott Dunlop and Wayne York.
“You can’t help but admire this bull,” Mr Dunlop said.
“He’s the biggest-capacity bull in the class. You look at him through that girth, that fullness and spring of rib, that length of body and the squareness of the hip.
“The muscling is tremendous, but what’s so great is that muscle is covered in a layer of fat; so soft and so deep in the flank.”
The win was particularly sweet for breeder Paul Forman of Oakwood Limousins and new owner David of Jess Eagleson of Ulster Limousins, who after years of competing against each other in the judging ring, teamed up to exhibit Oakwood Cutright in the Southern Hemisphere’s premier showcase.
A “surreal” feeling, Mrs Eagleson said the suspense while the judges deliberated was nerve-wracking.
“It was a beautiful line-up of cattle and any of them could’ve been the winner, and we’re just so pleased we’re the ones who get to take him home,” she said.
“Particularly for David and Paul, who have both been breeding Limousins for a long time, it’s really special to have them celebrate this day together.”
Weighing 1040 kilograms with an eye muscle area of 143 square centimetres, the Beef2024 Centre Ring was the biggest stage Supreme Bull Oakwood Cutright had ever seen, having only had a “pretty cruisy” preparation with a few local shows.
Murgona Queen Bee Q53 breaks the drought for Santa Gertrudis
The Santa Gertrudis breed is also celebrating the breaking of a drought, with Murgona Queen Bee Q53 being named Supreme Female in what is the breed’s first win since 1988.
Exhibited by Daniel, Kasey, Taylor and Brian Phillips of Murgona Santa Gertrudis, Taroom, it was an announcement worthy of a few tears.
Overcome with emotion, Mrs Phillips said the Supreme title was a dream come true for the family.
Sired by Murgona Legend and out of Murgona Nutmeg, Mrs Phillips said Queen Bee is exactly the type of animal they’re trying to breed at Murgona Cattle Co.
In commenting on the five females put forward for final consideration for the title, Judge Scott Dunlop said it was a tremendous line-up of cattle.
“These females are well deserving of their time, normally we say time in the sun, but today it’s the rain,” he said.
“You can’t help but admire the capacity in this cow, the depth of body, the flank and udders on her.
“We’ve got a young calf here, which is great to see, and she’s doing a tremendous job on it.
“She’s just a tremendous cow.”
Angus group rounds out 2024 Supreme winners
Pine Creek Angus was the first to take home Supreme honours on Thursday afternoon, awarded Supreme Exhibitors Group in a strong field that was “very hard to split”.
In commenting on how they selected the Supreme Exhibitors Group from the seven groups that were put forward for final contention, Judge Wayne York said you’ve got to think about it a bit like a football team.
“If you look at the Brisbane Broncos, you need to have a bit of grunt up front, so we need a few Payne Haases and Shane Webcke-type animals,” Mr York said.
“We need to have that bit of grunt in every single animal to show that performance, through that thickness, through that strength of body, that weight for age; we get paid on weight, so we’ve got to make sure we’ve got it.
“And then we need to have agility, we need those fellas with speed and that’s where our structure comes into it; we’ve got to have depth of heel, we’ve got to have the right angulation through the front legs, they’ve got to carry them, and they’ve got to walk along.
“Obviously, we need the smarts as well, so we need our halves and hookers, and that comes back to our reproductive standards and how we set ourselves up for the next generation.
“We’ve got to combine that and create that into a team that’s going to come forward at the end of the day.”
Mr York said the Angus exhibit was a terrific example of animals that had similarities all the way through the group.
“It’s a very young team, but they’re very good cattle,” he said.
“These breeders, the type of cattle they’ve got – I’m sure they’ll go on and do a tremendous job in the industry.”