Hamish wins FMG Young Farmer title

Winner Hamish Best, back row centre, with Daniel Tarbottom (2nd) to his right. Centre bottom row, Patrick Crawshaw (3rd).

Having competed before, Hamish used this experience to his advantage and displayed a diverse range of talent and skill.

Technical Field Officer Hamish Best felt honoured to win the East Coast Regional FMG Young Farmer of the Year, after a commanding performance to take the title in Waipukurau on Saturday.

The overwhelmed 26-year-old, raised on a sheep and beef farm, said he had put in a lot of hard work ahead of the regional final and it had paid off.

Having competed before, Hamish used this experience to his advantage and displayed a diverse range of talent and skill. Taking out four of the five Agri-Challenges on offer, the Tikokino young farmer proved himself real threat in both the technical and practical facets of the competition.

Also East Coast's Regional Chairman, Hamish will undoubtedly have plenty of support following him to the Manawatu for his chance at bringing the FMG Young Farmer of the Year title home.

For winning the East Coast final Hamish gained $12,500 in prizes including a Honda XR150 motorbike and a $1000 cash reward from FMG.

Second place went to 24-year-old Daniel Tarbottom from Tararua.

The Sheep and Beef Farmer in his second regional final took out the fiercely contested Agri-Sports Challenge.

Third place getter in his first year of entering the FMG Young Farmer of the Year, Patrick Crawshaw, rounded out a successful evening for the Tararua District.

The Grand Final of the FMG Young Farmer of the Year will take place from July 6th to 8th in the Manawatu with seven Grand Finalists from around New Zealand including Otago/Southland's Nigel Woodhead, Aorangi's Arjan Van't Klooster, Tasman's Andrew Wiffen, Northern's Lisa Kendall, Waikato/Bay of Plenty's Richard French and East Coast's Hamish Best.

The last of the regional finals in the Taranaki/Manawatu Region is to take place on April 22 in Hawera.

AgriKidsNZ place getters: the top three also qualified for the Grand Final in Manawatu went to:

Third Place - The South Shearers from Dannevirke South School, second place - The Ongaonga Milkyways from Ongaonga School and first place went to The Redbands from Tinui School.

The TeenAg place getters with only the top two places qualifying for the Grand Final: Third place - Dannevirke High School, second place - Napier Boys High School, with first place going to Tom Laurie and Angus Parks also of Napier Boys High School.