Some 87,000 people went through the gates on day two of the National Ploughing Championships, down on the 111,000 that attended on the same day last year.

Following light rain early on, the skies opened from with morning, with the fronts of a number of stands becoming flooded.

Tractors ferrying slurry tankers to pump water out of flooded areas became a common sight during the afternoon.

Some buses which became stuck in the muddy car parks had to be towed out by tractors.

The Peugeot stand is reported to have given away 10,000 ponchos in the space of two hours.

While those attending the Ploughing could have foregone the wellies on day one of the event, they were definitely needed on day two.

Minister for Agriculture, Michael Creed, attended day two and placed a strong emphasis on farm safety.

The Minister said that farm safety is an area where Ireland faces really big challenges.

“As I’ve said many times, this is not an issue that the State or my Department are alone in solving.

“I would urge farmers to look at their neighbours’ farmyards, look at their children and become ambassadors for safety in their own farmyards.

“Issues that need to be addressed should be done so in a timely fashion. We’ve had far too many unfortunate and fatal accidents.”

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Watch: the ploughman’s wrap of Day One of Ploughing 2017

My ploughing week: Jer Coakley, Clonakilty, Co Cork