The 2026 Irish Stock Fencing Championship will take place at Clonmel Show, Powersown Park Racecourse, on Agricultural Show day, on July 5.

The main event is for contractors and is made up of two-man teams.

The teams are given a set of specifications to follow which has a time frame built into it. 

Public relations officer Arthur Harvey explained: "The course is about 25m long with a 10-15° turn. It will have sheep netting and barbed wire and also a live wire on top.

"All of the straining posts and stakes are put in the ground by hand. This year we may use a steel post - a Tornado i-post - as a trial."

Each team mate has their own tasks to perform during the event, which should take about 2.5 hours to complete.

 Harvey said: "A team of judges will follow a set of rules and mark as they see fit, for example, plumb, height and spacing on the strainers and stakes for the wire as well as the props supporting the strainers. Wire tension and Lazy D knots are also checked.

 "This year we will have an international element taking part as 2026 is a competition year here and in Malvern, England.

"Ireland has taken part in the Malvern competition before in 2024, very ably represented by Dan Flood from Kildare and Alan Duffy from Monaghan," he added.

Harvey is chair of the Irish Stock Fencing Championship while Henry Kavanagh is secretary.

The competition is open to all Irish fencing contractors.

"Competitors will pit their skills against each other for the coveted bragging rights of being the winner of the 2026 Irish Stock Fencing Championship," Harvey said.

 The Irish team that will take part in the Malvern competition this year will comprise Jack Bennett from Kerry and Henry Evans from Belfast.

Harvey said: "A novice competition taking place on the day will be hopefully the starting place for the next generation of fencers.

"The competition this year will be part of a small fencing village of stands and, as always, there will be people on hand to chat all things fencing."

Entries should be submitted as soon as possible as numbers are limited.

For those that would like to take part, contact Henry Kavanagh on 087 6123122 or Alan Duffy on 087 9700803.