Down plough men to represent Northern Ireland at 2027 World Championships
Two Co. Down plough men will represent Northern Ireland at the 2027 World Championships, due to take place in Kenya next December.
Andrew Gill from Crossgar will compete in the conventional championship while James Coulter, from Hillsborough, will compete in the reversible competition.
Both earned their places on the team for Kenya following their performance at last weekend's (September 25 and 26) Northern Ireland 2026 Ploughing Championships.
The event was held on lands close to Hillsborough in Co. Down.
Conditions were excellent over the two days with extremely high scores accumulated by most of the competing plough men
Day One saw the competitors ploughing out of stubble; on Day Two, the focus turned to grassland.
Andrew Gill amassed a total score of 459: 238 on Day One and 221 on Day Two.
Meanwhile, in the reversible competition, James Coulter registered a total score of 223 points on Day One and 246 points on Day Two.
But overall honours at the Hillsborough event went to plough men from south of the border.
Frank Cullen from Co. Wexford won the overall conventional championship, registering a total score over the two days of 478 points (236 points on Day One and 242 points on Day Two).
The reversible championship at Hillsborough was won by Liam O’Driscoll, from west Co. Cork.
He was awarded a total of 485 points over the two days of competition (249 pints on Day One: 236 points on Day Two).
Large crowds attended both days of the championship with plough men from across the island of Ireland taking part.
Rodney Crawford from Comber in Co. Down was one of three judges, assessing the conventional plots on Day One of the championships.
He assessed the conditions as being fair for all competitors, which he attributed in the main to the heavy rain that had fallen in the Hillsborough area prior to the championships getting underway.
Crawford added: “This had helped to soften ground conditions.
“Competitive ploughing at the highest levels is a very expensive sport. A basic plough can cost around £10,000.
“But the additional features that plough men will add to it prior to the start of a competition can add significantly to this figure.
“But when all is said and done, ploughing is all about skill and judgement: keeping a straight line at all times will always be the end objective.”
Northern Ireland will be represented at the 2027 European Reversible Ploughing Championships by Adrian Jamison, from Co. Antrim and Jack Wright, from Co. Derry.
