Ag science teacher, Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine, Kenmare
“I brought students to the Ploughing for years and years. An epic journey is the way I would describe it. With our location down here in Kenmare, we have lots of students who live in Sneem and way out on the Beara Peninsula. For some of them it would involve staying overnight in Kenmare with their buddies, because the bus would leave at 5.30am.
“I used to sell it to them in school as the three Fs; farming, fashion and food. If you had any interest in the three Fs, you had to go. But there was no selling of it really, because they all wanted to be there with bells on for numerous reasons; they were farmers; it was a day off school; and it was a highly social day. We had a very quiet bus until we would get to Cashel maybe. They would refuel in McDonald’s in Cashel and we would have good, lively banter from then on.
“We would have very limited access to breeds of cattle and sheep here due to our geography basically, but they used love to see the Border Leicester sheep with the two ears like a hare. They were fascinated with the Galloway cattle with their long shaggy coats. The lads would board the bus in the evening and all you heard the whole way home was ‘Massey this’ and ‘John Deere that’. We wouldn’t get back to Kenmare until 10pm or later.”
– Anne O’Donoghue
Action from the National Ploughing Championships at Ballintrane, Fenagh, Co Carlow. \ Donal O'Leary
Farmer and ploughman, Roscommon
“We’ll miss the three days, meeting all the people that you don’t see from one year to the next. For a lot of people it’s the annual pilgrimage, the holiday. It will be an awful hit to business; people buy knick knacks, machinery and the like at the Ploughing.
“The ramifications of this virus will be felt globally. But if you look at the age group of Ploughing punters, some would be in the vulnerable category. They had no choice but to cancel it. All we can do is look forward to 2021.
Tommy Morgan and John Hanley. Grasscutting and silage baling in Creggs, Co Galway. \ David Ruffles
“In terms of the ploughing competition itself, there’s no confirmation yet that it won’t go ahead. Our county competitions haven’t been held yet, we had an awful wet spring in the west. The last ploughing competition I was at was Glenamaddy in October.
“Ireland are down to host the world ploughing championships in 2021, the 2020 championships in Russia have been cancelled. So it’s all up in the air.”
– Odile Evans
Head of content and presenter at KCLR Live radio station
“The cancellation is a massive blow to Carlow. Even though as a journalist there was a sense that it wasn’t going ahead, some businesses still hoped it would. While very conscious of the public health aspect, they were looking forward to getting back to some kind of normality.
“It was a great boost last year, and worth €45-50m to the local economy. But it’s a massive social event as well, especially for the farmers who have been working so hard throughout the pandemic. I think everybody will be disappointed not to get a second run at it, but I’d hope the NPA would come back to Carlow, if not in 2021, then in the medium term.
Eimear Ní Bhraonáin, head of content and presenter of KCLR Live.
“As a journalist at the Ploughing, I always found politicians were a bit more relaxed and that you were more likely to get a good ‘line’. But one of my childhood memories of the Ploughing is of my mother running a B&B. She was full for the night, but two farmers came to the door desperate for a bed; so I was kicked out of my Bart Simpson-themed room!”
– Maria Moynihan
General manager, Certified Irish Angus
“Very, very disappointing” is the sentiment from Charles Smith at the announcement of the Ploughing cancellation. Just recently the details of the five schools who will rear five Irish Angus calves for 18 months, as part of their annual schools competition were announced. The calves are usually presented to the schools at the Ploughing each year.
“Normally the competition was the big reveal of the Kepak/ABP stand and a real highlight for the schools. The schools’ would be very much centre stage.
Charles Smith of Certified Irish Angus.
“My favourite memory of the Ploughing is when Our Lady’s School, Terenure in Dublin were selected for the competition. They sent three bus loads to the Ploughing. It was the first time Terenure had ever gone to the Ploughing. The location of their school, within such an urban setting, brought an added air of excitement and enthusiasm. Another time a school brought their choir and they sang on the stage.
“Of course, they will still get their animals, the competition will go ahead and we will try to compensate for this with something else, but nothing can really replace the ploughing.”
– Amii McKeever
The 2019 Ploughing Championships in Fenagh, Co Carlow. \ Donal O'Leary
General manager of the Bridge House Hotel, Tullamore
“We would have stands and a couple of bars at the Ploughing, and we’re at the heart of the farming community in Tullamore.
“When the Ploughing was in Screggan, Offaly, (2016-2018), we would estimate that around €100,000 worth of business would come from the ploughing in different shapes and forms and there’s the knock-on effect on the build-up to the week.
“During Ploughing week itself, we have 230 staff on the books and every one of them would be working that week. There’s usually such a great atmosphere and buzz around with loyal customers coming every years, it’s like a big family reunion party. We’ve lost up to 90% of our business this year due to COVID-19.”
– Marcella Connolly
Read more
Ploughing 2020 cancelled due to coronavirus
Ag science teacher, Pobalscoil Inbhear Scéine, Kenmare
“I brought students to the Ploughing for years and years. An epic journey is the way I would describe it. With our location down here in Kenmare, we have lots of students who live in Sneem and way out on the Beara Peninsula. For some of them it would involve staying overnight in Kenmare with their buddies, because the bus would leave at 5.30am.
“I used to sell it to them in school as the three Fs; farming, fashion and food. If you had any interest in the three Fs, you had to go. But there was no selling of it really, because they all wanted to be there with bells on for numerous reasons; they were farmers; it was a day off school; and it was a highly social day. We had a very quiet bus until we would get to Cashel maybe. They would refuel in McDonald’s in Cashel and we would have good, lively banter from then on.
“We would have very limited access to breeds of cattle and sheep here due to our geography basically, but they used love to see the Border Leicester sheep with the two ears like a hare. They were fascinated with the Galloway cattle with their long shaggy coats. The lads would board the bus in the evening and all you heard the whole way home was ‘Massey this’ and ‘John Deere that’. We wouldn’t get back to Kenmare until 10pm or later.”
– Anne O’Donoghue
Action from the National Ploughing Championships at Ballintrane, Fenagh, Co Carlow. \ Donal O'Leary
Farmer and ploughman, Roscommon
“We’ll miss the three days, meeting all the people that you don’t see from one year to the next. For a lot of people it’s the annual pilgrimage, the holiday. It will be an awful hit to business; people buy knick knacks, machinery and the like at the Ploughing.
“The ramifications of this virus will be felt globally. But if you look at the age group of Ploughing punters, some would be in the vulnerable category. They had no choice but to cancel it. All we can do is look forward to 2021.
Tommy Morgan and John Hanley. Grasscutting and silage baling in Creggs, Co Galway. \ David Ruffles
“In terms of the ploughing competition itself, there’s no confirmation yet that it won’t go ahead. Our county competitions haven’t been held yet, we had an awful wet spring in the west. The last ploughing competition I was at was Glenamaddy in October.
“Ireland are down to host the world ploughing championships in 2021, the 2020 championships in Russia have been cancelled. So it’s all up in the air.”
– Odile Evans
Head of content and presenter at KCLR Live radio station
“The cancellation is a massive blow to Carlow. Even though as a journalist there was a sense that it wasn’t going ahead, some businesses still hoped it would. While very conscious of the public health aspect, they were looking forward to getting back to some kind of normality.
“It was a great boost last year, and worth €45-50m to the local economy. But it’s a massive social event as well, especially for the farmers who have been working so hard throughout the pandemic. I think everybody will be disappointed not to get a second run at it, but I’d hope the NPA would come back to Carlow, if not in 2021, then in the medium term.
Eimear Ní Bhraonáin, head of content and presenter of KCLR Live.
“As a journalist at the Ploughing, I always found politicians were a bit more relaxed and that you were more likely to get a good ‘line’. But one of my childhood memories of the Ploughing is of my mother running a B&B. She was full for the night, but two farmers came to the door desperate for a bed; so I was kicked out of my Bart Simpson-themed room!”
– Maria Moynihan
General manager, Certified Irish Angus
“Very, very disappointing” is the sentiment from Charles Smith at the announcement of the Ploughing cancellation. Just recently the details of the five schools who will rear five Irish Angus calves for 18 months, as part of their annual schools competition were announced. The calves are usually presented to the schools at the Ploughing each year.
“Normally the competition was the big reveal of the Kepak/ABP stand and a real highlight for the schools. The schools’ would be very much centre stage.
Charles Smith of Certified Irish Angus.
“My favourite memory of the Ploughing is when Our Lady’s School, Terenure in Dublin were selected for the competition. They sent three bus loads to the Ploughing. It was the first time Terenure had ever gone to the Ploughing. The location of their school, within such an urban setting, brought an added air of excitement and enthusiasm. Another time a school brought their choir and they sang on the stage.
“Of course, they will still get their animals, the competition will go ahead and we will try to compensate for this with something else, but nothing can really replace the ploughing.”
– Amii McKeever
The 2019 Ploughing Championships in Fenagh, Co Carlow. \ Donal O'Leary
General manager of the Bridge House Hotel, Tullamore
“We would have stands and a couple of bars at the Ploughing, and we’re at the heart of the farming community in Tullamore.
“When the Ploughing was in Screggan, Offaly, (2016-2018), we would estimate that around €100,000 worth of business would come from the ploughing in different shapes and forms and there’s the knock-on effect on the build-up to the week.
“During Ploughing week itself, we have 230 staff on the books and every one of them would be working that week. There’s usually such a great atmosphere and buzz around with loyal customers coming every years, it’s like a big family reunion party. We’ve lost up to 90% of our business this year due to COVID-19.”
– Marcella Connolly
Read more
Ploughing 2020 cancelled due to coronavirus
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