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A former national champion as a junior, Gill was third in round 1 and the aggregate at the Maleny Rodeo in Queensland and then won the bull ride at the Bowen River Rodeo at Collinsville on the Queen’s Birthday weekend with a score of 83.

The Bowen River Rodeo was the last in Queensland before the Northern Run starts at Taroom on July 19.

Gill will be one of the riders to beat on the Northern Run which ends at Darwin on August 23.

One of his toughest opponents will be Beaudesert cowboy Fraser Babbington who has won everything in the APRA, the pro tour last season and the 2013 bull ride title. He holds the record for the highest score in more than 60 years of competition.

Formerly from New Zealand, Babbington based himself at Tamworth before moving to South East Queensland.

He scored 80 on the Gill Brothers bull River Boy to win round 1 at Maleny and then 73 to win round 2.

Mt Isa hosts the richest rodeo each year in the APRA and Babbington has the chance on August 8-10 to match his performances last year.

He was equal first in round 1 in 2013 with a score of 83 on Bad Thing and then won the Mt Isa final with 88 on Grasshopper, one of the highest scores of the season.

His success last year at Mt Isa was a major factor in winning the pro tour for most money won in the season.

Majors Creek cowboy Tim Amey was equal first in round 1 at Mt Isa last year, fifth in the final and third in the aggregate.

Amey doesn’t travel to every rodeo in the APRA but is a force to be reckoned with when he competes in the bull ride.

Atherton (Qld) rider Kurt Shephard only had one place at Mt Isa last year, a fourth in the final, but improved dramatically in the next nine months to win the title at the National Finals Rodeo at Caboolture.

He was the only rider to stay on each of his four bulls at the finals for eight seconds, the next best in a field of 15 rode two bulls.

In other APRA news, former national bareback bronc ride finalist Larry Cann is in his second week as APRA rodeo administrator based in Warwick.

He competed in his first national finals in the junior steer ride before winning the second-division bull ride at Warwick as a 17-year-old.

Cann then accepted a rodeo scholarship to America where he spent a decade, branched out into country music and started a successful career as a rodeo announcer. He was in the top 10 in bull riding in 1995 on the Montana Pro Circuit in America.

Before moving to Warwick, he lived in Bundaberg where he worked for 12 years as breakfast announcer/programmer/marketing manager with the Kix Hot Country Radio Network.

Cann has succeeded Steve Hilton who retired from the role after 22 years at the helm of the APRA.

Rodeo Program: July 19 Taroom; July 26 Richmond; August 1-2 Cloncurry; August 8-10 Mt Isa; August 15 Daly Waters (NT), August 16 Katherine (NT); August 23 Darwin (NT).

More information from APRA on 07 4661 8183

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