Crowds flock to see ploughing contest

Blue autumn skies were the backdrop for a traditional Shropshire ploughing match event which attracted thousands of visitors at the weekend.

Cruckton and District Ploughing and Hedging Society held its 77th annual match on farmland in the county as some 80 ploughmen locked horns to see who could plough the straightest furrows.

Competing

The all-day event was buzzing with visitors from far and wide who also came to see vintage tractors and horses competing hard in the various ploughing contest categories.

Organisers of the event, held at Alberbury on Saturday, hailed the event as a major success.

Helen Davies, secretary of the society, said: "It's absolutely fantastic and we've had a really good gate.

"The ground was a little bit hard for some of the ploughmen but at least the skies were clear and the sun came out so the atmosphere has been really good."

The overall winner of the event was Clive Nixon, from Llandrindod Wells, who had only just returned from winning the All Wales Ploughing Championship.

Mrs Davies said: "Clive did really well to come straight from the All Wales competition and then come here and win again, it is really turning into a great year for him.

"Second place went to Mike Holloway from Montgomery who also did very well."

Proud

Mrs Davies added that more than 1,000 visitors flocked to the event to watch traditional skills being demonstrated, making it one of the most successful contests held by the society.

"The gate was well up on last year and this is really fantastic news for everybody connected with the match," she said.

"Everybody enjoyed themselves and we are very proud of the way things went."

For Ford resident John Bryan Smith, known as Sonny, memories of the 1940s were being rekindled as he judged competitors on the same field where he won his first ever match at the tender age of 13 back in 1947.

Mrs Davies added: "Sonny has really enjoyed the judging.

"I think he's been in his element and especially with the static vintage tractor section."

Nine classes were held in total, taking in a range of disciplines including horse ploughing, vintage tractors, modern-day tractors and even human ploughing.

The event was hosted on two large fields in the village to the west of Shrewsbury by Ron Wilde and sons and Mark Pugh.