More than 230 ploughmen and women competed at Austrey, near Atherstone, Warwickshire, as the British National Ploughing Championships celebrated its 75th anniversary.
Nigel Vickers from Sarn, Malpas, Cheshire, was crowned supreme champion at the British National Ploughing Championships. This capped a successful weekend of competition that brought together ploughmen and women from across Great Britain to show their skill, precision and expertise across 15 classes, covering modern tractor ploughing, classic, vintage and horse ploughing.
Nigel won the Conventional Plough-off final using a Ford 5030 and Kverneland plough, achieving 282 points – 10 points ahead of Simon Witty, an ex-world champion from Scarborough, North Yorkshire, as well as Nigel’s son, Stuart, who took third place with 269 points.
The Reversible Plough-Off final produced a particularly close contest, with Euron Griffith of Pwllheli, Gwynedd, and Peter Alderslade of East Boldon, Tyne and Wear, both achieving 312 points. The countback system determined Euron, using a New Holland TS90 tractor and Kverneland plough, as the winner, and Peter, with his Valtra A95 tractor and Kverneland plough, took second place. Michael Chappell of Doncaster, South Yorkshire, finished third with 294 points.
A good vintage
Vintage ploughing also provided plenty of competition. Richard Ingram from Atherstone, Warwickshire, ploughing with a Massey Ferguson 35 and Ransome TS54, claimed victory in the Vintage Hydraulic Plough-Off final, after a tie on 256 points with Robert Turner of Wigton, Cumbria, was resolved using countback. Charlie Nicklin from Congleton, Cheshire, placed third with 247 points.
The reigning European Trailing Ploughing champion, John Crowder of Sturton by Stow, Lincolnshire, won the Vintage Trailing final with his Fordson N and Ransome RSLD with 284 points, followed by David Wood from Coldstream, Berwickshire, with 257 points and Andrew Maxfield from Doncaster, South Yorkshire, in third place
with 252 points.
In the Classic Plough-Off final, it had been a long time coming for Carl Fretwell of Penistone, South Yorkshire, who first took part in the championships as a young farmer 36 years ago. Using a David Brown 880 tractor and
Ransome TS86 plough, he took first place with 251 points, ahead of Jon Cole from Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire, with 239 points and Antony Boldan from Goole, East Yorkshire, in third place with 234 points.
Following his strong performance, Carl also earned the title of Overall British Vintage champion.
Using a Massey Ferguson 35 and Ransome TS81 plough, Timothy Hurley from Pensford, North Somerset, won the
Classic Reversible Plough-Off final with 287 points, 20 points ahead of last year’s champion, Graham Sutton from
Nuneaton, Warwickshire. One of the youngest competitors, 15-year-old Oliver Gilbert from Chellaston, Derby, came in third place with 254 points.
The best of the rest
Other champions included Martin Kerswell of Fordingbridge, Hampshire, who won both horse ploughing classes with his Percherons, Pierre and Gringo, and was named British Horse Ploughing champion.
Shaun Garrod of Attleborough, Norfolk, took the Overall High Cut title using a Fordson Dexta and Ransome RSLM, and James Chapman from Driffield, East Yorkshire, was named Young Farmers champion, underlining the importance of encouraging young people to develop and maintain the skills involved in this traditional farm craft.
The results determine England’s representatives at international competitions in 2027. Peter Alderslade and Nigel Vickers will compete in the World Ploughing Contest in Kenya, while Michael Chappell and Will Tupper will go to the European Reversible Championships. John Crowder, Richard Ingram, Carl Fretwell and Timothy Hurley have qualified for the European Vintage Championships in Germany.
The championships will move to Northumberland next year, held at Mindrum Mill, on the borders, on 9-10 October 2027