MCNAMEE WILL BE FAVOURITE FOR MILLMERRAN

Photo of John McNamee by Dave Ethell – www.dephotos.com.au

MILLMERRAN rider John McNamee will be the favourite for his hometown rodeo on March 4 after recording two wins on the Christmas Run in the Australian Professional Rodeo Association.

McNamee showed he is in form after wins in Saddle Bronc at Tumbarumba in New South Wales and Beechworth in Victoria and a second at Finley in New South Wales.

He is the current APRA titleholder and will be desperate to place at the Millmerran Show Rodeo this year as he hasn’t a placing in his hometown rodeo in the past three years.

Current APRA standings leader Michael Maher will only need to drive a little more than one hour from Warwick to Millmerran so will be the biggest threat to McNamee.

Maher, fellow Warwick rider Mark Collins and Wandoan rider Cameron Webster each have two placings in the past three years at the Millmerran Rodeo.

Warwick rider Lane Grayson split third in saddle bronc at both Tumbarumba and Myrtleford (Vic) on the Christmas Run and will be one to watch at Millmerran after he finished second in the same rodeo last year.

While McNamee won the title after The Warwick Rodeo National Finals in October, Springsure cowboy Allan Powell won the Saddle Bronc average at the finals with an aggregate score of 299 in four rides, including two round wins. If he heads to Millmerran, he will challenge the favourites and showed he is in form with a win at Mt Isa on New Year’s Eve.

The Queensland riders with double success in rough stock events on the Christmas Run was Cameron’s Corner bareback rider Fred Osman who won at Myrtleford and Finley.

Only four of the 37 APRA rodeos in the first four months this year are in Queensland so it is likely many Queensland riders will head south on March 10-12 for three rodeos on the Victorian long weekend.

There are rodeos in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria at Easter. There is a Good Friday bull ride at Roma, Easter Saturday Rodeo at Roma and the Emerald Easter Sunflower Festival Rodeo on Easter Sunday.

Mt Isa winners: Saddle bronc Allan Powell 79 points, bull ride Cody Tully70, bareback Deon Lane 80, rope and tie Jace Land 11.5 seconds, steer wrestling Mark Thompson 6.3, team roping Jace Land and Liam Davison 5.9, barrel race Nicola Lillyman 18.221, breakaway roping Robyn McKellar 3 seconds, junior steer ride Courtney Gray 74, junior barrel race Bridget Rutherfurd 18.896.