Going completely conkers!

The massive , mature, horse chestnut trees lining the road into Freshford village, Co. Kilkenny were a fitting announcement to the 2nd Irish Conker Championships held there last weekend. Katharine Blake reports.

Freshford is famous for chestnuts and was the perfect venue for the Irish Conker Championships which it hosted last weekend. Massive mature horse chestnuts line the approach road to the village, leading to an even more impressive village green that boasts 52 giant horse chestnuts.

There was great excitement in the village last Sunday as the fog gradually lifted and thousands of shiny competition conkers glistened in the sun. Before the competition, organisers gathered the chestnuts from under the trees and placed them on long tables ready for threading.

At noon the competition gong sounded and they were off. In the centre of the green, 10 podiums made of pallets were encircled by a large fence. On each podium two people quickly engaged in battle -- concentrating, lining up their shots and then whacking their opponents' conkers with all their might.

This year's competition saw 192 entrants with each one hoping that he/she would be heading off to next year's World Conker Championships in Ashton.

The highlight of the World Championships for the Irish team had to be Eamon Dooley's name entering the Guinness Book of Records for smashing 306 conkers in an hour.

Back in Freshford last weekend, Eamon was unfortunately knocked out in the first round but kept himself busy barbecuing sausages and rashers for breakfast rolls to feed the hungry competitors and visitors.

Some participants were dressed up for the occasion. One pair dressed as the Blues Brothers. One man was in a hunting outfit sporting children's sunglasses and a handlebar moustache.

People of all ages were competing, some taking it very seriously. One man's wife was shouting instructions and encouragement from the sidelines while their son caught the action on video.

A woman in a horse chestnut hat revealed a long skirt of brown leaves when she stood up. A number of women were wearing conker necklaces and one little dog even had a conker collar.

As the play continued, all around the green there was plenty to do, with pony rides, face painting, snooker and a bouncy castle, which caused merriment throughout the crowd when it suddenly deflated and its owner had to be called.

There were stalls with books, plants, crafts, paintings, a white elephant stall and a mystic in a tent who could probably tell you whether or not you were going to be a conker champion.

Back in the centre of the action, the compere called on the next batch of contestants to come to the "holding pen" and had to assure two startled women that they would not be having their ears tagged.

Each pair of players was watched by a referee, and every so often a cry of 'Oh no, we have damage!' would ring out and the tension would start to mount.

Finally, it was down to the last two. After a tense match, the man in the hunting outfit, Freshford farmer Jim Gibbons, won the day. Jim had played seven games in the run-up and had even lost his first game.

"It's like the GAA," said Jim smiling. "You can get in the back door."

Jim put his win down to skill, luck and psychology. But he admitted there was extra pressure on him because he was competing against a woman, Irene Doyle from Kilkenny, this year's runner-up.