TENNYSON’S Leigh Foster will be a hot chance to take out the inaugural Sydney Sheepdog Club three sheep and yard trial, which started at Hawkesbury Showground on Thursday.
After originally taking up threesheep trialling over a decade ago because her daughter, Alison, was involved with it, Foster has gone a long way.
Last year she was second overall in NSW and the previous year finished sixth in Australia.
It is a stellar effort for a person who, unlike many of her fellow competitors, did not grow up on a farm nor around sheep.
‘‘I suppose that makes it a bit harder,’’ she said. ‘‘You have to learn what the sheep do.
‘‘It takes a lot of practice to get it right. You have to work with the dog regularly.’’
While she is now completely sold on the sport, Foster said she was not always so passionate .
She and her daughter were originally passionate about horses, and would spend most of their days working them.
That all changed after Alison had a nasty fall from a pony and badly injured her arm.
Foster said her daughter’s heart moved away from horses after her accident and moved to sheepdog trialling.
‘‘There was a big hole in our life, but this ended up taking over after she had the accident,’’ he said.
‘‘The first few years I was just more interested in what she was doing — we used to travel around everywhere together.
‘‘We used to sleep under the stars and recite poetry and tell stories to each other.’’
Foster said that when her daughter had to concentrate more on studying for the HSC, she decided to become more involved in the trialling.
She now travels across Australia to compete, including Port Fairy in Victoria, and Strathalbyn in South Australia.
Foster said she looked forward to competing with some of them over the next four days.
Spectator admission is free and food and drink is available.
The three sheep trials started on Thursday afternoon and end on Sunday afternoon, while the yard dog trials start on Saturday morning and end on Sunday afternoon.
Sydney Sheepdog Club secretary Vickie Priestley said the club was formed late last year, with the purpose of having trials in Sydney.
‘‘Years ago the Hawkesbury sheepdog club used to run trials at the showground but one hasn’t been run for 10 years now,’’ she said.
Mrs Priestley said people loved going to the trials and she, along with president Alison Burrell and vice-president Maurice Metherell, formed the club to fill the void.
