Especially when you’ve also served for 15 years as secretary of zone 8 (Riverina) of the Agricultural Societies Council of NSW.

So when Shirley Breasley says last Saturday’s 132nd Holbrook Show was a great one, despite a drop in the gate, you can take it as gospel.

“I can’t tell you why the gate was down because the horse entries were just about the same as last year,” Mrs Breasley said.

“And this has always been a big horse show, basically because we are the last show people can get points at for the Sydney Royal Easter Show.

“The people running the poultry were very happy, we had a great display of fleeces and the pavilion was also very good, with the horticulture and handicraft on display.”

The show was certainly no “dog”, according to show treasurer and pavilion co-chief steward Kate Locke.

“It was a big champion dog show, with 410 dogs entered,” Mrs Locke said.

“But none of us know why we had so many entries, especially as we seem to have had about 50 or more dogs entered than in the shows around us — and we usually have entries in the 300s.

“In the pavilion, we were up on flowers, had 70 wool fleeces, the photo entries were up, the schoolchildren entries were huge and the garden produce was also good.”

Mrs Locke said there were always opinions as to how to make shows more attractive to teenagers.

“But I can remember when I was a teenager the only attractions at the show were the rides,” she said.

“Unfortunately, because we are only small and the last show for the area, the ride operators seem to bypass us and head north.

“So we have tended to focus more on being a horse, dog and pavilion show, with poultry and animal nursery.”

Mrs Breasley said she was disappointed that there was no Miss Showgirl title awarded this year.

“It’s the first time that it has happened since I started it 40 years ago,” she said.

Mrs Breasley said Holbrook was no different to other shows in terms of the challenges they faced.

“These days you are competing with sport,” she said.

“And it is not just that times clash it is also that sport is expensive and families then don’t have enough money to go to the show.

“And there was plenty of competition on this weekend, and not just sport.”

But the show organisers did have some things go their way.

“There was a school reunion, for the people who attended Holbrook Central School in 1962, 1963 and 1965, and that helped numbers a bit,” Mrs Breasley said.

“Our show is still a great community event and brings people together.

“The gate might have been down, but our enthusiasm wasn’t.

“All things considered, the show was a success.”