International field makes Longshaw Sheepdog Trials an event to remember

Competitors from across the world joined some of Britain’s leading sheepdog handlers as the historic Longshaw Sheepdog Trials returned for another successful event last weekend

Hope Valley legal firm, Graysons Solicitors, sponsored the event for the fourth year running.

Bumper crowds turned out at Longshaw Pastures for the 128th year of the event. They were treated to a top-class competition and a memorable flypast from one of the world’s few remaining airworthy Hurricanes.

The overall winner of the open class was Richard Saxon from Leek with his dog Don, while Alex Wilkinson from Thurgoland and Pip took the prestigious Longshaw Championship and its famous silver teapot.

Alex Wilkinson enjoyed a particularly successful event, also winning the local class and receiving the President’s prize of a Border Fine Art ornament and the L. E. Ward Cup.

This year’s event had a particularly international flavour, with competitors travelling from Argentina, Uruguay, Poland and Finland ahead of the World Sheep Dog Trials.

Peter Clark, Managing Partner at Graysons in Hathersage, said: “Longshaw is always a very special event and this year certainly didn’t disappoint.

“As a firm with strong roots in the area, we're proud to help support a tradition that has been part of the local landscape for so many years."

First held in 1898, the Longshaw Sheepdog Trials have only ever been interrupted by the two World Wars and the 2001 foot and mouth outbreak.