TWO young British shearers Johnny Roberts and Martin Howlett were unable to break the eight hour world shearing record at Bigley Farm, Salisbury last month.

The day before the attempt, in order to meet world record rules, a random selection of sheep were shorn and had their fleece removed which then needed to be weighed at 30 kilogrammes.

Unfortunately the wool weight was just short of the target, set by the World Sheep Shearing Records Society.

Jonny and Martin have decided to reattempt the record.

The minimum time allowable by the records committee to re-attempt the record is 30 days from the first attempt, so the guys will reattempt the challenge on Tuesday, September 24, starting at 7am, again at Bigley Farm.

This world record is the first attempt of its kind in the Northern Hemisphere by two UK shearers, who together must shear in excess of 1068 ewes to break the existing record.

They will be under the scrutiny of judges from the World Sheep Shearing Records Society and four judges will be present during the record, two from the UK and two from Australasia.

Both Jonny and Martin are under the expert guidance of world-renowned professional shearer and world record holder Matt Smith.

Matt himself broke the world record in 2016.

To stage a world record requires an enormous amount of time, planning, dedication and cost, which is estimated to be in the region of £20,000. Therefore a huge effort is being made in order to raise the necessary funds to ensure that the record can be attempted on the day.

Jonny and Martin have also chosen to support the Stars Appeal, and they will donate any surplus monies raised through sponsorship to the charity at the end of the record attempt.

There will be volunteers from the Stars Appeal available during the record and they will be helping to raise funds and awareness of the work which they do.