“Small boy heaven” was how one father described the panorama of 70 busy tractors striving to create the perfect ridge and furrow at Surrey County Ploughing Match and Country Fair on Sunday, September 28.

Warm autumn sunshine bathed the stubble fields around the stunning setting of Loseley Park, near Guildford, drawing thousands of people of all ages to watch a wide variety of rural activities.

Bob Hogg’s Lamb National had the crowds round the main arena roaring with laughter as the athletic Herdwick sheep leaped their fences only to perform unscheduled U-turns or jump out of the racetrack. Herding ducks with over-enthusiastic sheepdogs and children was also great entertainment, as was the ever popular display by the super skilled gun dogs and their handlers.

The visiting packs of bloodhounds and beagles from the Staff College and Royal Military Academy hunt and the Brighton, Storrington, Surrey and North Sussex Beagles proved a great hit with the children who swarmed into the ring to meet these gentle, yet energetic hounds.

This was a hands-on, have-a-go, event, where visitors could handle ferrets, eyeball an eagle owl, enter dog agility, go dog training, drive tractors, try fly casting, wool spinning and clay shooting and find out about ploughing with horses and machinery big and small, old and new. Visitors were kept refreshed by a huge range of locally produced food and drinks, from sausages to cheese to cider, and took home souvenirs created by local craftsmen.

The County Ploughing Match was fiercely competitive and it was wonderful to see youngsters carrying on the tradition of competitive ploughing. Christopher Matthews aged 15 from Wotton has a special tradition to keep up. His grandfather Fred Matthews was the first Young Farmer to win the Bennett Trophy for the highest score by a ploughman under 26 years old back in 1948. He won it again in 1951 and 1952.

Last year young Christopher’s name was added to the trophy and this year he clinched it again. And with another 11 years to go before he passes the Young Farmer age limit, he will have plenty of opportunity to beat his grandfather’s record.

The overall championship was won by Hugo Hoyle from Oxfordshire, competing with a Fordson Super Major and classic plough, with Max Cherry in reserve.

The highest placed Surrey Ploughman to go forward to the 2015 National Ploughing Championships was Raymond Langridge. Ian Smith qualified for the vintage section and Andy Ford for the horticultural section.

Richard Todd, Chief Executive of the Surrey County Agricultural Society (SCAS) said “Today was a true celebration of everything rural in Surrey and we are thrilled that it proved to be a fun and educational day for all. We are extremely grateful to every one of the thousands of visitors who came to the Country Fair today.

"SCAS is a charity and we rely on the support of the public and our members to enable us to continue with our aims to promote all aspects of farming and rural life. This event, and the Surrey County Show in May is our way of giving something back to the public and helping to support the huge rural community in Surrey.”

Next year’s Country Fair is to be held at Loseley Park on Sunday 27th September. Keep an eye on www.surreycountyshow.co.uk for details of this event and the County Show next May.