The National Clay Shoot, organised by the National Association of Regional Game Councils (NARGC), will return this year for the first time since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The event, billed as Ireland’s largest clay-shooting competition, will be taking place at the National shooting grounds in Esker, just outside of Banagher in Co. Offaly, over the coming weekend (Saturday, July 9 and Sunday, July 10).
The shoot is the culmination of the regional competitions held at county level throughout Ireland.
The event will see approximately 750 participants take part, along with volunteers from all counties to referee and marshall the event.
The competitions over the two days include:
- Saturday, July 9:
- County team;
- Under-21s;
- Ladies event;
- Trainee licence holder.
- Sunday, July 10:
- National club competition;
- Veteran;
- Super veteran;
- Side-by-side shotgun.
To mark the return of the event, all entrants will receive a commemorative pin badge.
10 of these badges will also be given away through a competition that the NARGC is running through its Facebook page, with the winners of that competition set to be named on Friday (July 8).
Speaking ahead of the shoot, NARGC national chairperson John Butler said: “This is a very important weekend for NARGC members. It’s a gathering that sees young and old from our regions come together.
“People have missed the annual shoot, so were keen to get it back up and running as soon as it was safe to do so,” Butler added.
NARGC
The NARGC has some 25,000 members in 965 clubs around the country.
The group is also involved in conservation of bird species, with regional projects on the native grey partridge and grouse.
Clubs affiliated with the NARGC work with farmers around the provision of wild bird cover mixes and game crop.
The association says it advocates for sustainable hunting of game species, and argues that “conservation and hunting go hand-in-hand”.