A North Yorkshire Young Farmers Club is celebrating after being declared winners of a national tug of war contest.

Members of the Great Smeaton club were victorious at the National Federation of Young Farmers’ Club Junior GENSB Tug of War Competition, held at Tenbury Countryside Show, Worcestershire, at the weekend.

It was third time lucky at the national competition for the team, who came fourth in their first year and then second place last year.

The team, who practice twice a week, were unable to exceed a weight limit of 580kg and had to qualify to take part in the competition. The first round was held at the Yorkshire Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs County Rally in May, followed by a second round at Northern Area, which was hosted by County Durham Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs in June.

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At the finals, Great Smeaton were unbeaten in their league and in the semi-final, where they faced last year’s winners and fellow Yorkshire club, Penistone YFC. The final was against Craswall YFC from Herefordshire, where they lost the first end, but were successful with the second.

With the contest now a draw, it went down to the final end, where Great Smeaton YFC were triumphant.

Coach, Rachel Nelson said: “They have worked incredibly hard over the last three years, and it has paid off with this fantastic result. I would like to thank everyone who has helped and supported the team during this amazing journey.”

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Th win tops off a successful year for the club, who won the Cledales District Rally for the third year running earlier in the year and then just missed out on winning the Yorkshire Federation of Young Farmers’ Clubs County Rally by one point, coming a very respectable second place in May.

Great Smeaton YFC was formed in 1947 and now has more than 60 members aged ten to 28 years-old. Meeting weekly, they have a programme of talks and visits, including to local manufacturers and companies, plus games, quizzes and fundraising events as well as traditional YFC activities such as public speaking, stock judging demonstrations and competitions.

Anyone who would like to find out more about Great Smeaton YFC, can e-mail greatsmeatonyfc2023@gmail.com or find them on Facebook.