"BITCHES. It was a great pleasure and a privilege to judge our Club Championship Show. Thank you all for your entry, I thoroughly enjoyed all the dogs. Fellow judge, Gordon Cutts and I agreed our final winners with Best in Show going to Evanpark Bruce Almighty JW. What this dog lacked in stature he made up for in breed type, balance, bone, movement and the most gorgeous head and expression, undoubtedly all male. Reserve Best in Show went to the bitch Sandbears Truly Scrumtious, as feminine as he was masculine with all the same virtues.

In general I felt type is quite varied as you might expect with the many new bloodlines being used since the introduction of the Pets Passport Scheme. Overall the influence of these new bloodlines has been beneficial. However, although breed type is good, many were lacking in size, bone and substance. I did not penalise lack of height providing the proportions were correct, one or two had height but were narrow through the body; this is not correct for a Newfoundland. The Veteran bitch class was a clear reminder of how in a very few years the breed has changed, they were, with a few exceptions, the most substantial bitches on the day. That said, I was very happy with my winners, there are some very good youngsters coming along, temperament was excellent and I think the future is looking good."