GILL CROWNED CHAMPIONS OF CHAMPIONS IN ATHY
David Gill from Hillsborough won the World Challenge Conventional Class at the 80th National Ploughing Championships in Athy, Co Kildare last week. David was crowned Champion of Champions and returned home with the winning cheque for 3,000 Euro.
The event is possibly Europe’s largest outdoor exhibition and agricultural trade show. Almost 200,000 people, many of whom travelled down from Northern Ireland, attended the 3 Day Championships in Athy including Irish President Mary McAleese and Taoiseach Enda Kenny.
On Day 1 of the contest, David Gill competed in the World Challenge Conventional Class. The class was made up of ploughmen who had either been crowned World Champion or had won a medal at the World Championships. Along with David who was World Champion 2007, Martin Kehoe from Wexford, 3 times former World Champion, John Tracey from Carlow, 5 times runner up at the World’s, and Jens Iversen from Denmark, World Champion in 1996 competed for the Champion of Champions title. On the stubble land ploughing, it was Martin Kehoe who had the edge in a closely fought competition, beating David by only 3 points with Iversen and Tracey close behind. By the time the competitors had completed their crown on the Grassland ploughing on Thursday, Tracey & Iversen had made up on lost ground meaning it all went down to the final furrow. In a class where the standard of ploughing was extremely high and spectators were enjoying a great battle, it was David who kept his nerve win the Champion of Champions title ahead of Kehoe & Tracey.
In the Reversible Class, Tom Cochrane from Coleraine was edged into 2nd place by John Whelan from the Republic of Ireland on Day 1 and the result was the same on the grassland ploughing resulting in the title going to the Wexford man.
Andrew Gill from Listooder had qualified for the first time to plough in the Senior Conventional class against the likes of John & Eamon Tracey, and Martin Kehoe’s son Willie John. Andrew was left disappointed not to qualify for the grassland ploughing but can be proud of the job he made finishing just outside the qualifiers. Pat O’Donnell from the Moy was also ploughing at the championships and again finished outside the qualifiers. Ronald Coulter from Hillsborough also ploughed well in the Senior Reversible class ploughing with his Dowdeswell plough, and was unfortunate not to qualify for the second days competition.
The event is possibly Europe’s largest outdoor exhibition and agricultural trade show. Almost 200,000 people, many of whom travelled down from Northern Ireland, attended the 3 Day Championships in Athy including Irish President Mary McAleese and Taoiseach Enda Kenny.
On Day 1 of the contest, David Gill competed in the World Challenge Conventional Class. The class was made up of ploughmen who had either been crowned World Champion or had won a medal at the World Championships. Along with David who was World Champion 2007, Martin Kehoe from Wexford, 3 times former World Champion, John Tracey from Carlow, 5 times runner up at the World’s, and Jens Iversen from Denmark, World Champion in 1996 competed for the Champion of Champions title. On the stubble land ploughing, it was Martin Kehoe who had the edge in a closely fought competition, beating David by only 3 points with Iversen and Tracey close behind. By the time the competitors had completed their crown on the Grassland ploughing on Thursday, Tracey & Iversen had made up on lost ground meaning it all went down to the final furrow. In a class where the standard of ploughing was extremely high and spectators were enjoying a great battle, it was David who kept his nerve win the Champion of Champions title ahead of Kehoe & Tracey.
In the Reversible Class, Tom Cochrane from Coleraine was edged into 2nd place by John Whelan from the Republic of Ireland on Day 1 and the result was the same on the grassland ploughing resulting in the title going to the Wexford man.
Andrew Gill from Listooder had qualified for the first time to plough in the Senior Conventional class against the likes of John & Eamon Tracey, and Martin Kehoe’s son Willie John. Andrew was left disappointed not to qualify for the grassland ploughing but can be proud of the job he made finishing just outside the qualifiers. Pat O’Donnell from the Moy was also ploughing at the championships and again finished outside the qualifiers. Ronald Coulter from Hillsborough also ploughed well in the Senior Reversible class ploughing with his Dowdeswell plough, and was unfortunate not to qualify for the second days competition.