Girl power reigns in first Junior contest
A talented duo from Milton have taken top honours in the first FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year regional final.
Zoe McElrea, 13, and Nicole Keen, 15, won the hotly-contested event at the Tokomairiro A&P Showgrounds on Saturday February 16.
More than 50 TeenAg members from across the Otago and Southland region worked in pairs to tackle a range of challenges. The modules tested the students’ practical and theoretical skills and included a quiz hosted by Te Radar.
Zoe’s mum Lisa McElrea said she was stoked with the result.
‘’Zoe’s only in Year 9 and we’re really impressed with how she went in the buzzer round,’’ she said.
Holly Clarke, 16, and Tia Dougherty, 15, from St Hilda’s Collegiate School in Dunedin, took out second place. Both teams have qualified for the FMG Junior Young Farmer of the Year Grand Final in Hawke’s Bay.
Meanwhile, Hamish Goatley, 17, and Ryan Currie, 15, from Gore High School were third.
Te Radar told the 170-strong crowd at the Milton Coronation Hall that it was fantastic to see the two top teams were all girls.
Cooper Mitchell, Ben Cairns and Danny McDonald from Limehills School near Winton won the fiercely-contested AgriKidsNZ contest.
That regional final saw 144 students, working in teams of three, take on a series of eight fun modules.
The top seven teams went head-to-head in a race-off.
Competition co-ordinator Jake Lonegan said the aim of the event was to get kids excited about opportunities in primary industries.
Chonelle Ayson, Jessie McFadzien and Hanna Lawlor from Longford Intermediate School in Gore placed second.
Archie Chittock, Flynn Hill and Shamus Young from Blue Mountain College in Tapanui were third.
All three teams have qualified for the AgriKids Grand Final in Hawke’s Bay.
Both national finals will take place alongside the prestigious GMG Young Farmer of the Year Grand Final in July.