Fagan triumphs again at Golden Shears

 Shearing icon David Fagan produced a stunning return to the top to win his 16th Golden Shears open title in Masterton - 23 years after his first triumph reports Stuff. Fagan, 47, of Te Kuiti, had won the title 12 times in a row from 1990 to 2001, and again in 2004 and 2005. He featured in a remarkable final on Saturday night, with 52 seconds separating the six finalists after 20 sheep. Fagan was first off the board in 15min 56.96s, beating 2006 winner Dion King of Napier by less than 1.5s, and just after the tailender, Taranaki-based Scotsman Gavin Mutch, went in for his last. It was a tense wait before Fagan could be confirmed the winner, by half-a-point from world champion Paul Avery of Stratford, whose craftsmanship went close to helping him snatch the Golden Shears title for the third time.Fagan finished with 58.088 points, Avery 58.607, and third was former New Zealand open champion Dean Ball, another Te Kuiti veteran, with 58.832. Avery also had to settle for second in the PGG Wrightson National Series final as Rakaia shearer Tony Coster took the title to the South Island for the first time since 2004. Fagan won the national title last year, for the eighth time, but did not contest the series this year. New Zealand beat Australia in the closest trans-Tasman shearing test in New Zealand, with Australian world champion team members Jason Wingfield and Shannon Warnest finishing first and second on individual points.