MORE THAN 200 conker fanatics went head to head yesterday for a crack at the 2009 Irish Conker Championship title.
Thousands of conkers were smashed in hard-fought battles by players of all ages during the 10th annual conker championships in Freshford, Co Kilkenny.
Aileen Dooley from the town took the overall adult title and said: “All the hours of practice since last year had finally paid off.”
Ireland’s new conker champ was awarded a €500 cash prize and handed the perpetual Irish Conker Championship Cup.
“I’ll just have to try and keep my feet on the ground and not let this incredible achievement go to my head,” said Ms Dooley.
More than 60,000 conkers were collected for the event, with 2,000 eventually being “graded” and used in the final competitions for ages from 12 to adult.
Jude McKinley (8) from Woodsgift, Co Kilkenny, who won the under-12s event, said the fact he has a conker tree in his back garden enabled him to practise.
The event was held on the Village Green in Freshford, which is surrounded by 53 mature horse chestnut trees.
Players paid €6 per entry and €3 for every conker after that, with all proceeds going to Special Olympics Ireland, Prague House, Freshford and the Freshford Millennium Park Fund.
Roeland Van Elsen, originally from Belgium, travelled to Freshford from Dublin yesterday especially for the event.
“I heard about it from a friend and thought it was a wonderful idea for a seasonal festival,” said Roeland.