Fermanagh man Stanley Allingham is the new Irish record holder for most amount of lambs shorn in nine hours.

On Sunday, he broke Mark McGeown's record of 669, which was set in Co Louth in August 2017.

Stanley added a further 39 lambs in the nine-hour slot to bring his total tally to 708 lambs shorn. The record, set in the small rural village of Milltown, Co Cavan, attracted huge crowds all day Sunday to support Stanley and the team.

Allingham’s team, which included world champion shearer Ivan Scott and host Robert Kells, started preparations at 3.30am on Sunday in advance of his 5am start.

The gruelling day involved five runs, with the first being two hours long and then the remaining runs lasting an hour and 45 minutes.

With 162 lambs shorn in the first run, it was clear Allingham meant business. After three runs he was up 26 lambs on the previous record.

His final time was 45.7 seconds per lamb over the nine hours of shearing.

Speaking after the event, he thanked the huge team of friends, family and shearing family who helped him make the attempt and carry it out successfully.

An emotional Allingham said: “It took a huge effort, but I couldn’t have done it without all these people around me.”

All proceeds from the event go to the Northern Ireland Air Ambulance and the neonatal unit in Altnagelvin Hospital. You can make a donation here.

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