Over judges Vaughn Johnson, Pat Nicholson, Wes Brown and Jade Sieben. Photo: Kelsie Hore.
Photo by
Kelsie Hore
Holstein Australia has welcomed six new members to the National Holstein All Australian Judges Panel, following a national judging school held at Echuca in May.
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Twenty one participants from across Victoria including Gippsland, Western Victoria, Northern Victoria and the North West region participated at this year’s event and it was Emily Brown, Erin Ferguson, Hayden King, Kelly Bleijendaal, Renee Anderson and Ross Easterbrook who were successful.
Over judges for the 2026 school included Jade Sieben from Brindabella Holsteins, Pat Nicholson from Jugiong Jerseys, Vaughn Johnson from Ewen Pine Holsteins and Wes Brown from Julenwes Holsteins, who all shared their pivotal knowledge and experience across the three days.
The school started with participants meeting in Echuca before heading on farm to Gundry’s at Gunbower, where Sean Millar from Holstein Australia presented a cow breakdown session before participants judged cows in groups.
Evening sessions covered OFC judging, conformation breakdown percentages and terminology, different breed characteristics, photo competitions and All Australian class judging.
The next day included on-farm judging sessions at Gorgala Holsteins, Clydebank Holsteins and Jugiong Jerseys, giving participants the opportunity to judge a variety of cattle in group situations across both Holstein and Jersey herds.
Holstein Australia judging panel 2026.
Evening sessions focused on judging etiquette, ring craft, working with a steward, ethics, public speaking and microphone technique, before participants completed the exam component.
A big thank you to the Northwest Vic Sub Branch for hosting this year’s event, along with the generous host herds.
The school would not have been a success without the support and effort of local sub-branch members.
Every aspect of the event was meticulously planned and organised, including participants’ meals and accommodation, farm visits, educational resources, social media promotion and ongoing communication.
Special thanks goes to the North-Western Districts members including Jon Holland, Jade Sieben, Clare Modra and Pat Nicholson for such a huge effort.
Pat said the event ran really smoothly.
“They were all a really good bunch of students who came from a very high standard, and there was plenty of interactions with students and over judges,” Pat said.
The event is only run every few years and a number of the students had already completed quite a bit of judging beforehand.
Pat said he had been an over judge a few times now and he enjoyed working with people that have the ability to judge cows at major shows.
“The students have to give reasons to justify their placings, and even if we don’t agree with them, they have to make us see the reason behind their decision,” Pat said.
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