William Gill crowned European Vintage Ploughing Champion

The ploughmen competing were William Gill from Co. Down ploughing in the Mounted Lift Class, Seamus Crossan from Co. Armagh ploughing in the Trailer Class and William McCracken from Co. Armagh ploughing in the Classic Conventional Class.

The Judges were Ronnie Coulter BEM and Mercer Ward. The Head Steward from Northern Ireland was Robert Acheson.

Ploughing in 31° blazing sunshine the three men endeavoured to plough their plots to the highest standard.

On the first day they were ploughing barley stubble and on second day they were ploughing on ground that tulips had been grown on previously and harvested from.

The soil was sandy and conditions proved challenging for all the competitors especially with no respite from the hot sun. Much water was consumed by all the ploughmen and others.

The Northern Ireland Vintage Ploughing Association would like to congratulate William Gill on being crowned the 2023 European Vintage Champion overall, Seamus Crossan on achieving fourth in the Trailer Class and William McCracken also achieving fourth in the Classic Conventional Class.

"This has been a brilliant achievement for the ploughmen and Northern Ireland and we would also like to thank the supporters and Stewart Transport for transporting the equipment,” said an Association spokesperson.

Next year the European Vintage Championships will be held in the Republic of Ireland concurrent with their National Ploughing Match.

The Northern Ireland Vintage Ploughing Association members representing Northern Ireland in 2024 are William Gill, David Grattan and Robert Acheson.