Harvey agriculture students wow judges with sheep skills to win top spot at Perth Royal Show

A team of students from a Harvey school have managed to bring home gold after a standout performance at the Perth Royal Show.

An all-girls group of four WA College of Agriculture Year 11 students — Andi Osborne, Chelsea Bario, Greer Mahony and Lydia Cargill — took first place in the AWI Future Breeders Challenge with their sheep keeping skills.

The students came first in the presentation section of the competition and third when evaluating the quality of the sheep products and claimed top spot in the overall competition.

Having won the same competition last year with a differed cohort, the college’s sheep technical officer and teacher Steve Adams said the school had set a standard it would continue to aim to meet.

“It’s all about presentation, how the students handle the sheep and how they all look together,” he said.

“This should give our students a bit of a boost. They should feel really good about themselves.

“This is a reflection back on the college also, what we are doing outside the college is what we’re doing back here in the college.”

The students agreed the skills they learnt over the past year, paired with the passion they have for caring for sheep, saw them claim the top spot.

Greer said despite not coming from an agricultural background, she had been welcomed into the school and fully embraced the new lifestyle.

“I’m just really proud of us,” she said.

“All of the girls that were at the Royal Show worked really hard to get to that point.”

Andi said getting to show off her skills was something she was proud to share.

“I grew up around sheep, and they just stand out compared to any other livestock,” she said.

“There’s just so much to do with sheep, you fall in love with them.”

A separate cohort of Year 12 students placed second in the AWI Young Sheep Produces Challenge at the Perth Royal Show.