Making them straight, tight and secure

Owen Petersen (pictured) and Shane Bouskill are both former two-time winners of the Wiremark Golden Pliers contest.

The 2015 Wiremark Golden Pliers at Mystery Creek is likely to bring the most thrills in recent years, with organisers promising competitions, celebrities and much, much more.

Today and tomorrow New Zealand's top fencers will try to win the coveted Wiremark Golden Pliers singles championship and the Fieldays Silver Spades Doubles competition at the National Fieldays in Hamilton. Added to that is the Fieldays Silver Staples training institutes on Saturday.

Organisers expect a star-studded line-up to take part with two-time Wiremark Golden Pliers winner Shane Bouskill, 14-time Wiremark Golden Pliers winner Paul van Beers and two-time Wiremark Golden Pliers winner Nick Liefting taking part.

Also coming along are up-and-coming fencers who include Bouskill's son, Tony Bouskill, who came in fourth last year despite it being only the second time he had reached the finals. All of them need to get through the qualifying heats to line up at the finals.

Iconic fencer and former Wiremark Golden Pliers winner Trevor Woolston is also expected to take part in the singles heats competition this year., Trevor last competed in 1994.

Two-time champion Shane Bouskill is hoping for a trifecta but says it could be challenging given the calibre of both young and old competitors.

"There are a couple of young competitors who are showing a bit of speed and quality. The combination is a threat as time penalty points don't make the gruelling task any easier."

Organisers say a veritable who's who of fencing have accepted a "fencing icons" invitation to come and watch the competitions and catch up with Liefting's 40th year of competing.

Five-time Wiremark Golden Pliers winner Bill Schuler, considered by many to be one of the fathers of modern fencing competitions and industry best practice, will attend as will three-time Wiremark Golden Pliers winner Ernie Shicker and Stan Woolston, the inventor of a wire tension gauge that judges still use.

Bill Dawson, Leonard Walling, Felix Davy, Dennis Gray and Joe Colette are all past competitors or fencers who have contributed greatly to the industry and will also attend the event.

More current fencing greats attending include 14-times Wiremark Golden Pliers winner Paul van Beers, two-time Wiremark Golden Pliers winners Wayne Newdick, Shane Bouskill, Owen Petersen, Colin Browne and Ken Channings.

Organisers say there will be an astounding level of talent commentating on the event marshalled by seasoned fencing commentator Craig Graham, rodeo announcer Craig Wiggins, past fencing competitor and former commentator Bill Dawson and Joe Colette.

New Zealand Fencing Competitions (NZFC) co-ordinator Debbie White, says event sponsors Wiremark, FCANZ, Cyclone, Steel & Tube/Hurricane, Stihl, Stockade, Goldpine and Strainrite have gone out of their way to ensure a strong level of support for these national championship tournaments and are offering prizes to members of the public who can answer fencing-related questions.

"We want people to understand about the materials and tools being used in the competitions and, with the sponsors sharing their product knowledge and a bit of interaction with our great line-up of commentators, it should provide fun and involvement for the spectators."