Running an event such as the All-Ireland Young Stockperson competition finals has been at the back of our minds for a number of years. With shows off for a second consecutive year, we thought we would never get a better chance to launch such an event and so, with the thanks of FBD and the Irish Shows Association, here we are.

While this is the first year of the event, the hope is that it will return annually. Once summer shows return, and they will return, we hope that qualifiers across the age groups will be held around the country to get our finalists. This means that if this isn’t your lucky year, most finalists will still be of an age to be eligible for next year’s competition.

With that in mind, I’ve highlighted two take-home messages for Saturday. The first is there is no magic formula to success, just hard work and desire. The second is winning doesn’t always mean coming first, it means doing better than before.

We have a profile of each of the highly talented finalists across the age groups. It was a delight to see so many of these young people’s profiles refer to showing being used for its social aspect.

As well as training and educating youth in the art of showing and stockmanship, one of the key aims of the competition is for it to be used as a gateway to bring as many young likeminded people together as possible.

The timetable of events on the day for finalists in each category along with some final tips to take on board ahead of entering the show ring is available here. For those who haven’t made the final this year and are looking to get into showing for 2022 we also speak to Noel Walsh, new owner of pedigreecattle.ie to go through some of the equipment and products used.

It’s going to be a busy day but we will do our utmost to make it as enjoyable a day for all as we can.

On that note, I’d like to take this opportunity to wish all finalists the best of luck!