Teams from Cumbria, Yorkshire, East Riding, Northumberland, County Durham and Lancashire came together at the Valley Leadership Academy and the Royal Court Theatre, Bacup, on 15th and 16th March to compete against each other at the Northern Area Weekend, hosted by Lancashire YFC.
Members took part in speaking, pantomime and ballroom dancing competitions, played badminton, rounders, netball and five-a-side football and showcased the very best young farmer skills and talents in a weekend of friendly rivalry.
The Cumbria teams once again showed the other counties why they are the very best in the Northern Area and came away with a whole host of trophies and awards, continuing their winning streak of previous years.
The Saturday competitions got off to a fantastic start with the Raughton Head YFC team of Oliver, Olivia and Emily placed first for Cumbria B in the Junior Public Speaking (16 and under) competition. Cumbria C’s Andrew from Sedbergh YFC and Iestyn and Maisie from Crook YFC were third. Cumbria A’s Caldbeck YFC team of Isabella, Georgia and Sophie were fourth.
Isabella was delighted to be placed first as Best Chair with Oliver second. Maisie was first for Best Speaker and Sophie was third for Best Proposer of Vote of Thanks in the overall competition results.
Molly, Amelia and Phoebe, from Furness YFC, for Cumbria A were delighted to be placed first in the Junior Reading (14 and under) competition. Raughton Head YFC members Mia, Emily and Sophie and Skelton YFC’s Grace, Rebecca and Milly were joint fifth for the Cumbria C and B teams respectively. Molly was awarded Best Chair and Phoebe and Molly were awarded Best Readers.
Crook YFC’s Maisie, Callum, Will Black and Jack Strickland took second place for Cumbria A in the Brainstrust (21 and under) competition, with Crook YFC’s Lola Armitstead, Anna, Poppy Livesey and Matt Wright for Cumbria B placed fourth.
Eve Bland, Ben Handley, George Geldard and Harry Cornthwaite, from Kent Estuary YFC, were sixth for Cumbria C.
The After Dinner Speaking (28 and under) teams were up against some tough competition in Bacup, but the Cumbria B team, consisting of Kate Rowland, Robbie Tuer and Josie Mitchinson, from Raughton Head YFC, and Ben Handley and Rosie Parsons, from Kent Estuary YFC, took first place and proved once again that the Cumbria teams were the ones to beat.
Cumbria’s C team of Lauren Bates, Ella Batey, Philippa Hall and Alice Reid, from Wigton YFC, and Rachel Armstrong, from Greysouthen, took sixth place, and Lowick YFC members Leah Clough, Ben Cooper, Alice Woodburn, Luke Hodgson and William Longmire placed seventh for Cumbria A.
Ella Batey took second place for Best Chair, while Robbie Tuer took first place and Alice Reid was second for the Best Speaker.
Rosie Parsons was placed second for Best Proposer. Alice Woodburn was first and Ben Handley second for the Best Respondent on Behalf of Visitors, while Luke Hodgson was second for Best Respondent to the Speaker.
The young farmers taking part in the Situations Vacant (16 -21) competition did Cumbria YFC proud, with Jess Walker, of Greysouthen, taking first place for Cumbria B, Alice Fawcett, from Pennine, taking second for Cumbria A, and Kent Estuary YFC’s Ben Handley placed fourth for Cumbria C.
In the Situations Vacant (22-28) competition, Chloe Dawson, of Kent Estuary YFC, took second place for Cumbria A, Leah Clough, from Lowick, took third for Cumbria B and Ella Batey, from Wigton YFC, was eighth for Cumbria C.
The Member of the Year competitions are always hotly contested and Kent Estuary YFC’s Rosie Parsons was delighted to secure third place for Cumbria A. Ella Batey, from Wigton, was placed fifth for Cumbria C and Raughton Head YFC’s Kate Rowland was 10th for Cumbria B.
Cumbria C triumphed in the Junior Member of the Year, with Furness YFC’s Molly taking a very well-deserved first place. Maisie for Cumbria A and Callum for Cumbria B, both from Crook YFC, were sixth and ninth respectively.
Cumbria continued to shine throughout the weekend and were first in the Ladies’ Netball (16-28) for the Cumbria B combined team from Crook and Greysouthen YFCs. Skelton YFC were third for Cumbria A and Kent Estuary YFC were seventh for Cumbria C. The Skelton YFC five-a-side Football (16-28) team were thrilled to take first place for Cumbria A and Broughton YFC for Cumbria B, while Brampton YFC for Cumbria C were also pleased to be placed a respectable third and fourth.
Although not in the top placings, the Raughton Head YFC Badminton (10-11) Cumbria A team of Liam and Jack played well on the day and took third place. Caldbeck YFC’s Cumbria B team of Leah and Ted also played well and were placed seventh overall.
Those teams taking part in Rounders (12-15) enjoyed their games, with the Raughton Head YFC Cumbria A team delighted to take second place. The Cumbria C team from Kent Estuary YFC were sixth and the Kirklinton YFC Cumbria B team placed seventh.
Continuing the weekend’s winning streak, the mixed Ballroom Dancing team, comprising of members from Crook, Eden Valley, Furness, Grayrigg, Kent Estuary, Lowick and Sedbergh YFCs, were thrilled to be placed first for Cumbria A, with their many hours of rehearsal time paying off.
Also delighted were Raughton Head YFC with a well-deserved first place in the Cheerleading competition, also for Cumbria A. Hot on their heels were the Cumbria B Greysouthen YFC team, who were second, and Cumbria C’s Skelton YFC team in fourth place.
The Kent Estuary YFC members taking part in their pantomime Snow White gave their all on the stage at the Bacup Royal Theatre and were thrilled to be placed third for Cumbria B. Grayrigg YFC were sixth for Cumbria A and Sedbergh YFC were seventh for Cumbria C. Chris Calder and Luke Robinson’s rapping talents were recognised with the awarding of joint first place (with Northumberland YFC) for the Best Moment in the Theatre, and Chloe Dawson was delighted to be awarded second place for Best Supporting Actor for her role as the Evil Queen.
After a fun filled and action-packed weekend of competitions, Cumbria YFC were delighted for Cumbria A to be placed first, Cumbria B second and Cumbria C fourth. This is the 13th consecutive year that Cumbria YFC has won the Northern Area Weekend and their success is acknowledgement of the commitment and skill that the county’s young farmers continue to strive for year after year.
