Episode 1 One Man and His Dog

We've 12 top handlers and their champion dogs anxiously waiting to complete.

The sun is shining, the course is set and this year,

we even have a royal castle as a backdrop.

Welcome to One Man And His Dog 2011.

A warm welcome from Balmoral Castle and a very special One Man And His Dog.

This year is our 35th anniversary.

35 years on the BBC and so we couldn't think of a better place

to host this year's competition than the grounds of Balmoral,

the Scottish home of the Royal family.

As usual, this year we've four countries competing,

England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

We have three challenging courses to test the nerve

and the skill of our handlers and, of course, the dogs.

First of all, we've got young handlers, all of which are under 18.

Then we move on to the brace which is one man and two dogs.

Then we've a round, the singles round, it's one man, one dog,

but two flocks of sheep.

Well, the man with all the knowledge is, of course, Gus Dermody,

who set this course.

Gus, not only did you set it, you've had a go of it. What are your predictions?

Well, it's a little bit smaller than usual but it's difficult.

It really is difficult.

And maybe Scotland have got a slight advantage.

They're on their home territory but we're also using

-Scottish Blackface sheep which can be a little bit stroppy.

-They can be feisty.

We're going to start with the young handlers and we don't make things easy for them.

That's why we're putting them on first. Let's have a look and see what's on store for them.

So, here's the course and it's worth a possible 100 points.

To start, five sheep are set

at the lift post at the far end of the course

and heading in the direction of the castle, the handler sends

their dog out on either a right or a left outrun to reach the sheep.

There's a possible 20 points here.

Then the dog approaches the sheep and moves them

gently back towards the handler.

That's the lift and it's worth 10 points.

There's 20 points up for grabs with the fetch that all the sheep

must go through the fetch gates

and the handler must remain at the post to get maximum points.

Next, it's the drive, hugely important

and worth a possible 30 points.

The dog needs to keep the sheep moving at a steady pace here

so they don't miss the drive gates. It'll be points lost if they do.

The drive ends when the sheep into the shedding ring

and this is one of the many places where it can all go wrong.

Here, any two sheep can be shed off and the dog must hold them

until the judges are satisfied for a maximum of 10 points.

For a final 10 points, all five sheep must be penned

and the gate closed.

The whole course must be completed within 12 minutes

for maximum points.

I'm not the only one with a pretty good seat in the house.

Our judges Arthur Roberts

and Barra O'Brien have a pretty good spot too and we've raised them up

above the course so that nothing can escape their expert eyes.

Earlier on, we did a draw to see

who would be the first competitor of our 2011 competition

and it turns out it's ladies first, Susan Venney from Ireland.

My name's Susan Venney. I come from Ros Glas in County Down

and this year I'll be running Jill in the competition.

It's an honour to be completing with Frankie and Sammy.

Here in Ros Glas, we're situated at the coast of County Down

and we can see the mountains.

Our farm has been in the family for generations.

It's a beef and sheep farm.

It consists of Limousin cows and Suffolk Cheviot cross sheep.

Jill is a quite, good-natured dog and she was bred

out of Frankie McCullough's craig and I've had her since a pup.

Away.

I learned how to handle my dog from Frankie and when I go to trials,

I constantly watched the experienced handlers to learn more tips.

I'm the only female competing in this year's One Man And His Dog.

I'm very honoured to be representing my country

and I hope we can show that women can do a good job.

Doing it for the girls then, 16-year-old Susan Venney

and three-year-old Jill.

Jill, here. Jill.

Now this is interesting because Jill, from that lower position, couldn't see the sheep.

I wonder if she can clap eyes on them in this position.

She might be able to. I don't know but that was good. I like that.

-Absolutely allowed.

-Yes, oh, yes. And away she goes.

There you can see our head of sheep, Malcolm, with his dog,

just holding the sheep at the end.

-Good start and that's the first worry over.

-Beautifully done.

-Yes.

We're looking for that 12 o'clock position

and she absolutely nailed it there.

And the dog is responding to every whistle that she gives,

left and right.

The sheep are coming up rather fast now and she needs to push them

further over towards the gates. Two have slipped.

Full marks for the outrun, full marks for the lift

but these sheep are going at some pace here.

Yes, they're zigzagging a little bit and they've not turned.

She didn't get them all through the fetch gates

so there'll be points lost there.

She's been given 12 out 20 for the fetch.

She's got to go straight down the field towards those gates

in the middle of the field itself.

And they don't want to go straight, these Blackfaced sometimes,

on the drive. You can see they're going left and right.

Anything but go in a straight line.

It's going to be points lost,

but Susan is doing her best to try and keep them on line.

That's better. That's better. And through they go but what a struggle.

The judges will be knocking some points off there unfortunately.

This is the bit that Susan is a little bit concerned about,

this pull through. She's only ever done it once before and the sheep

are going like the clappers here. Two have missed.

Come by, lie down.

And again, they're coming at a pace

so the little dog has got to come round and head the sheep.

21 points for the drive.

So at the shed,

Susan has to get Jill to separate two of the sheep from these five.

It's worth thinking about these sheep

out on these vast highland moors

and what have you and confined spaces aren't really their thing.

There may be a chance here, may be an opportunity.

Yeah, it's looking for that natural gap. She might have one there.

Yes, there's a chance coming now.

The dog is waiting to be called in. Here's the opportunity coming.

We've got two off on the right but she's going for the back two.

Oh, I like it! But the judges, I don't think they'll accept that.

Didn't hear a shout come because whilst she almost held them,

she didn't actually come through and hold them away from the other three.

She's got to do it again.

Now, here we go, here we go! The dog has come.

-And the judges have accepted it.

-Super job there. Well done, Susan.

Four awarded for the shed so six lost.

She's got to go ever so careful here.

I hope that they don't nip down on either Jill's side.

Susan looking after her side.

Come by. Lie down.

-Now then, she's in with a chance.

-There's one having a look there.

Yes, that was the one that spun around before.

It's gone to the back again. Now it's just might lead them in.

It's coming down the far side. It's over now on Susan's side to our left

but looking back at the dog.

Jill waiting for the command. Here we go. This looks like...

the others are going to follow. That's it, Susan shaking the rope

and that's just enough to get them in and complete the first round.

Nine points awarded for the pens

and let's see what that does to the overall score.

76 out of 100 for Susan and Jill.

Relieved it's over.

I think Jill done well getting the sheep to the top

because there was a bit of a hollow in the field but disappointed

with her missing the sheep in the gates but overall good.

Our next competitor isn't just a promising young handler,

he's also a keen sportsman. Obviously trying to get a win today

and put the brakes on the these sheep that don't want to hang around.

It's Llion Harries for Wales, with his dog, Bess.

My name's Llion Harries. I'm from Crymych, which is in north Pembrokeshire

and in this year's competition I'm running Bess.

I live on the family farm.

It's 190 acres,

rolling countryside, and it's close to the Preseli mountains.

Bess is a great dog.

She's very friendly,

she's very skilful, and she's very, very fast.

Come by.

She is a champion and her mother was,

and this is the reason why she's so good

because she's got a really good pedigree.

When I'm not on the farm or not in school

I enjoy playing rugby.

I play with my local team which are Crymych and I play on the wing.

I'm very excited to be competing on One Man & His Dog

because I've been watching this series so much on TV,

and I can't believe that I'm doing it now.

Well, this obviously means a lot to Llion here,

and what a place to step out

for the first time on One Man & His Dog, in front of Balmoral Castle.

Llion is 15. Here he is with his two-year-old dog, Bess.

Opting to go off to the left.

I think we should point out here that each competitor

gets a new flock of sheep, so everyone's got the same chance.

That's nice.

WHISTLES

He's managing quite well,

just stopped a little bit short at the end of the outrun

and so lost a couple of points.

Two points lost for the outrun

but a full 10 points for the lift.

But he is doing well,

got them nicely balanced right through the middle of the fetch.

-Beautiful.

-And the pace is good.

WHISTLES

Get up.

So switching to voice commands here.

As he sheep round Llion.

Well, I am impressed, up to now.

And as you were saying, Gus,

eight months into his training it's remarkable.

Tremendous.

Three points lost on the fetch.

WHISTLES

He's got them lined up now for the first set of drive gates.

Well, look at this. This is a brilliant, brilliant performance.

Yes, he is doing a good job here. He's had a better line

down the first leg of the drive than Susan.

He's doing well. Now he has got to turn them on to the crossdrive.

The sheep are quite steady,

well bunched together.

Maybe he should've turned a little bit sooner

so the judges might be penalising him here.

It's a very difficult manoeuvre, this one.

It's quite deceptive.

WHISTLES

But they're going a bit to the side of the gates, he's covered that.

Will they go through?

Yes. Nicely through and so steady.

So steady.

Well, they haven't missed an obstacle yet.

They're coming towards the ring.

And into the shedding ring they come.

Get up.

Llion back on to word commands now.

Bit of frustration in his face there as he was looking at them.

Get up, get up, get up!

Come by. Come by.

24 for the drive,

just 11 points lost so far.

That is great, and there is a possibility coming in here now

that he's got the two,

will he go onto the front two,

will she go on, will the judges accept it?

Come by.

Yes, the judges have accepted it.

Full marks for the shed, Gus.

Oh, that's great. That's great.

And she gives nice room here.

This is where he's keeping the sheep calm.

Just easing them now. Will she have enough? Will they turn onto it?

At the moment they are looking the right way.

Don't let them down the side.

The front ones looking in.

They're all pointing in the right direction here.

Yes, Bess is doing a good job here.

Well, they're both working well.

He's got them looking right as you say, in towards the mouth.

That's it, she's up on her feet again now.

A little cheeky one at the front there.

They're just going to...

Don't want to start any stamping, girls, come on!

This is where you could do with a 12-foot crook.

-Yes!

-To just help the men.

-Just one to go to turn round.

-A 12-foot gate!

-She is waiting.

A 12-foot gate would help!

But no, he's managed it and the gate is shut.

What a good round for Wales.

Just one lost

for the pen there,

that is a total of 88.

I tell you what, there will be lots of older handlers out there

looking from behind their crooks with raised eyebrows.

I think it went great.

I was a bit more lucky than Susan with the sheep,

but I think that's really good, one of my best runs ever.

I was really nervous to start with but I feel great now.

Well, Llion and Bess are going to be a tough act to follow.

But next up to the podium is a Scottish young handler

who is celebrating his 14th birthday.

Let's hope he leaves the field with a reason for a double celebration.

My name is John Ramsay. I come from Glenluce in Dumfries & Galloway.

I will be running my dog Glen in One Man & His Dog.

This is a dairy farm here, and I enjoy milking the cows

and working with the cows down here as well as

I like working up with the sheep.

This is Glen, and he's the first dog I ever had.

I got him as a pup just before Christmas,

I've just started working the sheep with him. A lot of people say to me

I'll never have another one as good as him.

He's a very loyal dog, he won't work for anybody else.

And my grandpa, Thompson McKnight,

he ran a lot of trials and he won lots of cups.

He judged One Man & His Dog once.

To run in One Man & His Dog,

I'm quite nervous, but I know Glen will just do his best for me so that's all I ask from him.

What an occasion to be celebrating your birthday, Gus.

Isn't it just? Isn't it just?

-Oh, dear.

-Dear, oh, dear. That's crossed.

He started out going to the right then crossed to the left which is not allowed.

He's put him right now

but it depends what the judges are going to do.

And he ended up behind the sheep all right.

But the lift's good.

And I like the bit

where he said this dog never takes a backward step.

And with that face,

it's going to be an advantage.

Both John and Glen

are used to running these black-faced ewes.

They have 650 of them back on their farm, Just near Glenluce.

Just given one for the outrun. Nine for the lift.

No doubt it was nerves when he was starting off.

He just didn't set the dog up right to go off to the right-hand side.

It's not bothering him now though,

he's staying on top of the job and he's got these sheep

under nice control.

Three points lost on the fetch.

Just a little bit zigzaggy now

as they're going down this first leg of the drive.

That's better.

No, it isn't, I spoken to soon! Dear, oh dear.

You can't have a retry

at a gate once you have gone past the gate itself,

so he's got to keep going now.

WHISTLES

Lie down!

You can sense there in the voice that maybe

Glen is getting a little bit too keen,

doing his own thing a little bit.

He's wanting to get round them, not wanting to drive any more.

Oh, and he has come the side of the drive gate.

So both the gates on the drive have been missed.

And that will be a lot of points tumbling down.

He's still trying.

These sheep are coming up now

in a good, straight line,

and into the shedding ring.

Sit down. Come by. Sit down.

Nine given for the drive.

9 out of 30.

He's got these sheep spreading out.

Look at that. When he has that in, that was a really good shed.

Full marks, of course, for that shed.

Yes, that was good. That was good.

Sit down. Sit down! Come by.

And it was the authority and the way the dog came through then

and the confident way that he did it.

This dog can do it,

it's just not been his day today.

Sit down, Glen! Sit down.

Come by. Sit down.

Come on.

Come on, Glen.

Now they're facing in.

Ever so steady.

One looking round at him,

Glen's just overflanked a little bit

and the sheep are looking round at him now.

Ever so gently will do it.

I don't think these are going to stamp at Glen,

because I think they know what he is about and he's done it.

An efficient pen that, wasn't it?

Eight points for the pen, lost two there.

A total of 54 out of a possible 100

for Scotland, John and Glen.

When Glen crossed over it was a bit disappointing

because it's not like him, he's usually very good,

but when he was out he was looking towards the left

so maybe I should have changed him.

After that he got things that together a bit, and ran quite well.

Pleased after that.

Well proving to be the trickiest obstacle

on the course so far are these sets of drive gates,

and it's this pull three.

You can see from the handler's perspective it's very difficult

to see when you turn these five sheep,

especially if they're going at a good, strong pace,

but hoping to get England cleanly through

is the youngest competitor of the day.

My name is Matt Carter, I come from Delabole in Cornwall,

and this is my dog, Blue.

Delabole is a bit windy at times and that. It's not far off the coast.

I wouldn't move.

My grandad, he's brought me up to dog trialling

because I used to always ride with him to trails.

And I've just learnt on and he's taught me a lot.

Blue's my first ever dog I've had, she's got a bond with me now

and we've been working and working.

My grandad, John,

he competed in the One Man And His Dog in 2002.

And he won this stick and I'm hoping to get as far as he did,

and follow in his footsteps.

On we go then with England.

This is Matthew Carter, 13-years-old, with his dog Blue.

-To the right-hand side then.

-Let's hope she stays out.

He stopped her early then.

Another stop whistle and now a walk on whistle.

So they'll just be a few points off the...

Ah, she nearly ran them then.

Ah, she's got herself wound up here.

A bit uptight. Whether it's the presence of another dog there.

She's just, unfortunately, too wound up altogether.

Matthew was saying he was a bit concerned about the lumpy

bumpy ground because he wouldn't be able to see what Blue was doing.

-17 scored for the out run. No points for the lift.

-Ah well.

To be expected, yes, what a shame.

And the sheep are coming up the field fast,

the dog just has upset these sheep

so he'll have to watch that he doesn't lose them altogether.

She's covered them they're not going to be escaping, thank goodness.

And she's coming onto them nice and steady now.

Can he keep them going on a straight line now

down to the first set of gates?

Ten points awarded for the fetch. That's ten out of 20.

He's got the first set of drive gates, now onto this second set.

How much do the judges take into consideration

when the sheep stop like this?

If you were judging a competition such as a national sheepdog trail,

then every time the sheep stopped you would be taking a point off.

They may not be quite as hard with it being Matthew, a young handler.

The line's good.

Now, she's gone very fast round, but he paid that time.

Wahey! He's through those drive gates, well done, Matthew.

-HE WHISTLES

-Come by.

22 scored for the drive.

That's good, he's making up points now.

But this is where you do want them to be nice and calm

and almost stopping, as long as they're not too bunched together.

Lie down. Way, way. Lie down!

Here's an opportunity coming.

Ohhh! I think that was just a yawn, wasn't it?

Oh, hang on.

Here's his opportunity, come on, in you come now.

Are the judges going to take it? Is she going to go on to those two?

Yes, yes.

-Seven for the shed.

-And so for the pen.

I think this will be one of the most difficult parts

of the course for him, to try and get these sheep into that pen

because he needs to push that little bit harder, but not lose her temper.

Lie down. Walk on. Come by.

Just edging in there, Blue.

Oh, and it's looking... He's...

Oh! Well done that man, and dog.

-What about that.

-Great.

The finest pen we've seen today.

Full marks for the pen,

let's see what that does for the overall score.

Matthew and Blue score 66 for England.

As I've seen all the other handlers run already

I had a bit more of an idea of how well I have to do.

It went OK, it was a bit of a shame about the lift, but other

than that she ran quite well and she kept control of the sheep well.

Gus, you always said this would be a tricky course,

are you surprised at how the young handlers coped with it?

I thought two of them did very, very well at it.

The way Llion and Susan managed things, they did well, yes.

You were surprised at the start with Susan getting Jill up onto

the podium, and that was a great little move, wasn't it?

She was perfectly entitled to do it

and it was to an advantage because her outrun was good.

A bit of a nightmare at those drive gates.

That is a really tricky obstacle.

Yes, it is and not many if them had done that before.

The actual pull through is rather difficult.

He's through those drive gates, well done, Matthew.

What do you think this means for Wales?

Llion's given them a massive score of 88.

-I think Wales could be the danger team now.

-Well, time will tell.

Guys, you can now relax. How are you all feeling?

What was the hardest part, Matthew?

It's the drive gates when you're going back across.

-You've got the dip and the dog goes out of sight.

-Right, OK.

John, a bit tricky at the start for the out run.

It's not like him at all, he's never done that in his life before.

Did you see Susan's trick of getting the dog up on the podium

to see the sheep, you didn't fancy doing that?

-I didn't see that.

-You didn't?

-Oh, John, that's the key, Susan, wasn't it?

-Yes.

How was the round for you?

Good, but just the pull through as well,

I thought two sheep would slip round the side.

-Do you wish you could do it again now?

-No, I'm glad it's over.

Just happy! Llion, yours was absolutely sensational.

-88 scored and you've only been trialling for eight months?

-Yes.

All the eights for you!

The second drive gate was the hardest bit, I think,

the dip was really tricky to get right.

Listen, you've given Wales a belting start.

Let's see how far ahead Wales are after the first round.

There it is, Wales on 88, but Ireland are not out of the running

just yet, only 12 points behind.

Even third placed England on 66 and Scotland,

the current champions, on 54 are still in with a shout.

Now before we see how the more experienced handlers deal

with these troublesome sheep,

let's meet the man who makes it all work behind the scenes.

Malcolm, you've been involved in One Man And His Dog

for over 15 years and you have this title of Head Of Sheep.

-It's very glamorous, isn't it?

-It is.

We'd be absolutely snookered without you

because the sheep don't just arrive by magic at the end of the field.

It's all you, your dogs and what have you.

This year we're running these traditional Scottish Blackfaces.

Yes, traditional for the area.

They've been in a glen nine miles long which rises nearly 3,000 feet.

-And they see nobody. So coming down here is a big shock for them.

-They don't even see dogs, do they?

No, cos you only round them up when you need them.

The young handlers seemed to do quite well with them.

They did very well, I was impressed.

Young handlers, obviously nervous, cameras, a field they don't know, sheep they don't know -

they did very well, they were excellent.

And the pressure's on for the older handlers to follow.

Yeah, they've set the standard, really.

Nobody knew what the sheep were, the older ones have an advantage

having watched someone else go round the course.

The young handlers were dealing with five sheep,

now we move on to the brace, where our handlers are dealing with 10.

It's one man and two dogs.

Let's look at what's in store with the course.

The stakes are higher in the brace. Now we're playing for 140 points.

This time, 10 sheep are set next to the lift post at the far end of the course.

The handler sends one dog to the left

and the other to the right on the outrun,

Each dog can be awarded a maximum of 20 points.

Both dogs approach the sheep,

and together get them to move gently towards the handler with the lift.

10 points are available for each dog.

The sheep are then taken on a straight fetch,

through the fetch gates towards the handler - 20 points.

The next hurdle is the drive, worth 30 points.

The sheep are driven around the handler's post and,

starting to the left, are taken on a triangular drive

through two sets of drive gates.

It's possible the handler may lose sight of one dog

along the ridge here on the crossdrive,

so this could be a tricky part of the course, and points might be lost.

The drive ends when the sheep entered the shedding ring.

The handler then chooses one dog to divide the 10 sheep

into two lots of five inside the ring, and that's for 10 points.

On completion of the shed, the handler uses one of his dogs

to move one group of five sheep towards an open pen.

Once the sheep are penned, the same dog must hold them

until the round is complete - 10 points.

The handler can then turn his attention to moving the final

five sheep into the gated pen with the remaining brace dog.

The trial is complete when these final five sheep

are in the pen and the gate is closed - 10 points.

And the course needs to be completed within 18 minutes

to be in with a chance of the big points.

Well, perched up on top of our commentary box are our judges,

Barra and Arthur, casting their eagle eye across the field.

Lads, you still happy?

Good, that's the main thing.

Finishing fourth in the last round was Scotland,

which means they're going first, and that falls to Jimmy Menzies.

Here he is at home with his dogs, Hope and Cher.

My name is Jimmy Menzies.

I farm in North Perthshire and I am running Hope and Cher in the brace competition.

Hope does all the work at the moment because Cher is in pup,

but by the time of the competition

the pups will probably be about three-weeks-old,

so Cher will be OK to run and compete.

Hope is an exceptional bitch.

Move anything anywhere for me, she'll do anything.

Farming's a seven-day-a-week job,

but when I'm not busy working on the farm or trialling with my dogs,

my pursuits are Scottish country dancing and I like a tune on the box.

ACCORDION PLAYING

Everybody needs a bit of luck.

If you get luck and don't have the dogs then you've no chance,

but if you've got the kit and you get luck, we'll do well,

because I know I have the kit.

Jimmy, then, with his two dogs, Hope and Cher.

Away.

Both dogs are away.

WHISTLING

Are they going to cross?

Yeah, they've crossed at the bottom.

-And arrived at exactly the same time.

-Spot on.

Top scores for both dogs on the outrun.

10 and 5 scored for the lift.

Wow, straight down the middle.

Jimmy qualified for the Scottish national team last year,

so certainly knows what he's doing here.

These dogs are both working nicely together.

WHISTLING

Starting off on the drive.

It's a job to get these sheep just onto the correct line.

WHISTLING

Three points lost on the fetch.

Oh, nicely through, so that was a good recovery from a bad stop.

They're starting on the crossdrive now from left to right.

What a comeback this could be for Scotland.

Yeah, the line is quite good at the moment.

Now they're at a little bit of a stalemate here,

because the sheep want to come up the field,

Cher wants to keep them down so they'll be able to be

pulled through the second set of drive gates.

She's done her job. Now he's got to bring Hope round pretty fast.

Hope coming in a wide circle around to our right.

They're certainly not keen on zipping through there, are they? They're just milling away.

There we are, all of them through.

Now we've got the 10 sheep coming up towards the shedding ring.

-It'll be a split five and five.

-That's it, yes.

20 of 30, then, for the Drive.

That's perfect. Get in there, quick.

And straight through, no problems, at all.

Oh, yes, problems! One just got back, that was a shame,

because the dog certainly came through.

By, by. Cher in, in.

In with a chance now.

That's it, very well-behaved sheep.

Oh, just one out of 10 for the shed.

This open pen a real challenge, cos there's no gate on this, so you can't funnel their end.

That's true.

Sit. Come out.

Sit, come. Come out!

Close, close, will that one go in?

And will it gets to the others?

Oh dear, dear, dear, it's all to start again.

He should put those sheep back together again,

so how the judges are going to judge this, I'm not too sure.

Away.

WHISTLING

-There we go.

-This is opportunity.

Away, down, in.

In, in, in, down, by.

Sit there. Sit!

Sit. Me. Sit.

Me. Between, between, between.

Come between!

Sit, walk, walk, walk, stay there.

Super job, Hope.

So that's half of the penning over with.

One out of ten for the open pen, our attentions turn to the gated pen.

The clock must really be ticking on now.

Out. Away, away.

-Oh, the other dog's moved from the second pen.

-Oh, no!

-Oh no!

-There they go!

Trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble, trouble.

Dear, oh dear, he's got to go back.

The others are staying near the mouth - in they go.

Now come on, Hope.

Between, Hope, between.

Stay there, now.

-Time is really ticking by.

-It is.

30 seconds. Come on.

The sheep aren't challenging this dog at all,

-so she's got the ability to do it.

-Come on!

It's getting extremely close.

Oh, nice and steady.

No! One down the side!

10 seconds left!

And he's telling her to stay out.

-What a shame.

-What a shame indeed,

but a very entertaining round.

Well, no score for Pen two.

Jimmy, Hope and Cher finish with a score of 94 for Scotland,

and that was out of a possible 140.

The dogs performed well, they were answering me all the time,

they never not took their commands.

I probably let slip one of Hope's commands when I was at the pen here,

and that's probably why she left and let them out.

It was maybe more my fault than the dog's fault.

Over the years, England's brace competitor has become

as much a regular feature on the programme as our Gus,

so no doubt he's already sorted this sheep to make sure he doesn't get a bad one.

Anyway, once again he's England's Richard Hutchinson.

My name is Richard Hutchinson,

I'm from Littledale near Lancaster and I'll be running Roy and Sweep.

I was born and raised on this farm,

and my family have been new for five generations, about 150 years.

Roy and Sweep are a father and son team.

Roy's the father, he's seven-years-old,

and Sweep is only three-and-a-half.

WHISTLING

There's no jealousy between them, so they're quite happy

to let the other dog do its work while they concentrate on their work.

Ashley's just getting to the age now where he can come out with me on the farm.

He likes to help me with a bit of walling,

and generally getting in the way, but it's great to have him about.

This'll be my third time in a row on One Man & His Dog,

and I haven't yet won it, so hopefully it'll be third time lucky.

Roy's the English National Brace Champion,

also the International Brace Championship winner,

so he's certainly got the pedigree, Gus.

He certainly has, yes, and here we go.

Roy's going way out to the right.

Sweep out to the left.

Now Roy comes across, there he is behind the sheep.

WHISTLING

And the sheep under way on the lift.

They're just turning round, looking at Roy.

Nice, steady walk up here.

Both dogs balanced on each corner.

And right through the middle.

14 and 20 scored for the outruns.

Lie down.

WHISTLES

10 and six given for the lift.

-Oh...

-There's a breakaway.

WHISTLES

Out.

Roy!

Roy, Roy, Roy.

-Sweep.

-Sweep on our left, Roy on our right.

Lie down.

WHISTLES

Just five out of 20 scored on that fetch.

Must be going through his mind that he's got a rogue sheep in there that could break again at any time.

WHISTLES

No doubt we'll see her again at the pen.

WHISTLES

Roy coming around,

followed by Sweep,

who's stopped there,

and now for the start of the crossdrive.

WHISTLES

Of course, Roy is the more experienced of the two.

Seven-years-old and he is actually Sweep's dad.

They need now to bring the sheep through those second drive gates

is what we call a pull through, so they come from the back

towards the front and they're nicely through.

Not forgetting there's 30 points available for this drive.

Richard needs every single point he can get here.

Lie down.

And so, it's the shed. Two sets of five we want here.

Interesting he's got both dogs on the far side.

Lie down.

Clawing points back here, 26 scored for the drive,

-just four points lost.

-Oh, that's good.

WHISTLES Stay there.

Lie down!

-Here we go.

-Oh. Yes.

Beautifully done.

It may well be... Yes...

Oh!

Well covered this time.

Lie down.

What he's going to do here now is push them well down the field.

WHISTLES

Well, Richard will be delighted with the 10 points for the shed.

So now he's using Roy to put the sheep into the ungated pen.

Lie down!

Oh, it's all happening on the other side.

Come. Stay there!

So he's in with a chance now of concentrating on

getting Roy to get this first five in.

Stay there.

-Rich just creeping in gently.

-Slight movement with his stick.

He's doing the little pen dance. There it is.

There's one down the side, what a shame, what a shame.

Start again.

See if can hold them this time.

Stay there. Out!

That's better.

That's better.

Oh!

And away.

Roy, get up.

WHISTLES

Well, Jimmy had trouble at the pen

and it's exactly the same situation here for the Richard.

He's lost points.

Even if he gets them in now, he's got them all looking in.

Stay there.

-Surely he's got them boxed now.

-Come on, girls!

That one at the back, just push forward.

Oh!

WHISTLES

Will she go in? Yes!

Stay there. Get her, get her.

Stay there.

So, Sweep goes round now to get the second group of sheep.

WHISTLES

Three scored for pen one. At this stage, Richard and Jimmy are level.

Lie down.

He's going to turn these sheep

and hope they don't get down the side... One going down the side.

WHISTLES

-Ay-yay-yay!

-Oh!

This clock really is starting to tick by now, so...

WHISTLES Lie down.

-It may happen this time.

-There's the proof.

Yes, there we are.

Seven points given from our judges for pen number two.

Let's have a look what that does to the total.

It comes in at 101 for England.

I felt I did as well as I could.

Sweep was disappointing on his left hand gather. He went straight, not what he usually does,

but could have done worse with the sheep.

I'm not just blaming the sheep,

I'm sure I could have handled it better, too. It's over and that's what I've done.

Now, another handler returning this year is the Irish brace competitor.

Mind you, he'll be hoping things turned out a little bit differently

to how they did last time.

Here's a reminder.

My name's Sammy Long.

I'm from Ballybofey in County Donegal

and this year I'll be running Moss and Sam.

My family's been in this farm for the past 50 years.

I've been working on the farm since I was a child, really.

Just sheep farm, we keep about 250 ewes.

At the moment, I have about 14 dogs at the house there,

and I have four pups as well which are very popular

with my grandchildren.

THEY CHATTER

Sam is five years old. He has a nice temperament, very friendly dog.

Moss is a similar age and he's a friendly dog as well.

Normally I'm quite confident bringing them two dogs.

They're both good outrunners but last year Moss let me down

by jumping the fence.

Unfortunately, Moss has cleared the fence

and he's going over towards the gorge.

I will make sure this year that I wouldn't be so confident

or take anything for granted.

On we go then with Sammy Long. Moss and Sam.

WHISTLES

Sam goes down the field. He needs to open out a little bit.

Moss is over on the right-hand side going down well.

Both dogs coming round and they've put themselves right.

WHISTLES

-This time they've stayed in the field.

-Yeah!

Now he's got them nicely out on the corners and the sheep

are coming right through the middle of the first set of fetch gates.

WHISTLES

16 and 24 for the outrun. 10 and eight for the lift.

The score to beat is 101. So far.

Let's hope they come round the podium

and don't try and do an exit stage left around our commentary box

because they certainly caught Richard out.

They're just milling,

they're ready to challenge the dog at any minute

but I'm sure these two dogs are up to it.

Just four points lost, Gus, on the fetch.

WHISTLES

Just as they go towards these first drive gates they're starting

to push a little bit to the right.

WHISTLES

-But on a good line here.

-Yeah, yeah, good line.

WHISTLES

Sam's just doing a bit of over flanking at the back of the sheep.

WHISTLES

I don't know.

Oh...

Seems there's always one.

This brace around, there's always one! Unbelievable.

If they think they're in with a chance of doing their own thing,

these blackface sheep, they will.

Moss has covered that well. Come on, Sam, round you come. Here he comes.

-Go on, perfect.

-Looking in, down on the floor. Followed by Moss.

And they've got them lined up now.

To pull them back through the second drive gates.

He may be losing the odd point here or there

for line and what have you, but he's getting them through the obstacles.

So, that the drive finished and the shed begins.

16 out of 30 for the drive.

Come back.

They are tightly bunched.

He's just going to have to let them string out a little bit.

Lie down, Moss.

-Oh, how many's that?

-Four and a six.

Moss, lie down, lie down. Lie down.

That's better now. Now he's in with a chance.

Lie down, lie down. Come in here, Moss.

There we are, he's got it.

Stand here, Moss.

Stand here. Stand here.

Calling Sam up now.

Here, here!

Come on, Sam, come on Sam.

-Oooh...

-Oh, well held, at the moment well held.

Well, impressive.

Full marks for the shed.

Oh, 96 he's on.

Stand here.

WHISTLES

He's doing the right thing, pushing them well down that field.

So now it's up to Moss.

Moss, Moss, stand here!

Moss doing a good job, oh, one down the side. He's covered it.

Back again.

This is the problem pen.

Stand here, Moss. Stand here.

Stand here, Moss. Come back.

Keep out, keep out, Good lad. Well done, got that one back.

Moss, Moss, come back, stand here. Stand.

Stand here, come by, stand here.

Moss, Moss, stand here.

Stand here.

-Yes.

-Oh, that looks better.

Stand here, Moss. Here, Moss, stand there. Moss, here.

Now don't let me down, Moss.

See now whether or not we can get Sam to get the last lot of sheep.

Spin them round and up we come.

-Woah!

-Steady, steady, lad! Steady.

My word. Just eased back a little bit now, he's just pushing too hard

and the judges will be knocking a lot of points off.

7 for pen one.

Ireland really need this pen if they want to try and catch Wales.

Come on up! Keep, keep!

Just see... Oh, that was close!

But he's got the sheep back.

Here, here, here. Here, here, here.

Round here, round here.

Now we're looking as if we could do something.

Time must be getting close.

Keep! Stand there. Keep, keep! Stand there.

No more breaks, don't want to over-flank, dog.

Don't want to over-flank!

-GUS CHUCKLES

-Away! Away!

Shoulder, belly, bum, in.

-And they're in!

-CHEERING AND APPLAUSE

Well, well, well!

Just two scored for the second pen

and he gets a total of 105.

Well, that's the highest brace score we've seen so far.

That makes me feel very good.

I didn't feel it was a risk bringing Moss back, no,

because what he done last year, I think, was a once-off

and both dogs have performed fairly well for me,

so I'm happy enough, yeah.

Believe it or not, this simple white post

is the most important part of the whole course,

as this is where the sheep are waiting.

Hopefully, the dogs arrive here in unison

and all of the characters

and personalities can meet for the very first time.

Next up, to find out what's in store

is a man who won the brace round and the single round

in the same year.

It's Colin Gordon for Wales.

My name is Colin Gordon, I'm from Llanrhidian on the Gower Peninsula.

The dogs I am running in this year's competition will be Mirk and Jess.

I've been on the farm all of my life.

I started coming out to the marshes

when my father was alive, on a pushbike, two dogs running behind.

Mirk is a very, very powerful dog.

He'll move sheep, he'll move cows and calves,

any job you ask him to do, his whole heart is in it.

Jess is a good bitch, she's always willing to give you a day's work.

I've been on One Man And His Dog one four occasions.

I've been lucky enough to win three times.

The trouble is, with a sheepdog trial, there's always luck involved.

Luck is a heck of a thing to have to rely on,

but it's a heck of a thing to be without,

and if your luck is gone, it's gone.

Well, I don't know how much luck is involved,

but Wales are winning at the moment.

-Can Colin Gordon and Mirk and Jess keep them there?

-Jess, stand there.

Jess is going to be running first, off to the left.

And Mirk is away to the right.

COLIN WHISTLES

Just an extra whistle to get Mirk round.

WHISTLES

Mirk! Come on, Mirk!

17 and 18 scored on the outruns.

Mirk on the right now, bringing these sheep right through the fetch gates.

Eight and seven for the lift.

It's quite good, they're slightly off-line

but it's been a good fetch.

Such an incredibly experienced handler, Colin.

He's won the Welsh National Brace six times.

Stand, ah-ah! Stand!

The sheep go down, and that's a nice start on to the drive.

Only three points gone adrift on the fetch.

-Milling and skewing all over the shop, aren't they?

-Yes.

Mirk's gone and what we call run the sheep,

he's gone right the way round,

so a lot of points will have been taken off by the judges there.

And he's crossed again.

Very unusual that a dog of Colin's

would ring with the sheep at this point, so he's in trouble here.

-This could be very costly for Wales.

-It certainly could.

He's got them bang on line again now and nicely through.

WHISTLING

And so for the crossdrive.

WHISTLING

Gently does it.

It's all either go or stop, it just isn't a nice, steady flow,

that he's obviously trying for.

Both the dogs balanced behind the sheep

as they come towards the shedding ring.

Just 10 out of 30 for the drive.

Yes, that'll be because of ringing the sheep

on this first leg of the drive, it's cost him dearly.

Now it's Jess who's going to be used

to split these sheep into two groups of five.

-Stand.

-Here, come here.

Beautifully done.

It's going, coming in, Colin.

HE LAUGHS

But he was ready for it.

Full marks for the shed.

This is that dratted ungated pen

that has proved so difficult for so many of the handlers.

Steady now.

Stand! Stand!

He's got to try and get them balanced

so that all of them are in the pen now.

And one tries again, but she covered well.

Now, this could be it, they could be in.

In they go.

Stand there. Stand there.

Just four points lost, then, on that first pen.

SHEEP BLEATS

And again they start blarting to one another. This could be dangerous.

Obviously its mate's in the other pen.

Here we go.

-And Jess has come out.

-Oh, Jess!

Back, get down. Stand there!

Look at that, that is good command,

he managed to get Jess back towards the other pen.

Well, these aren't settled, they're not settled.

Jess is on the verge of moving,

so we'll have to keep our eye on her...

-Oh, no!

-Oh!

We'll have to see what the judges decide to do about that.

Jess has moved, the other sheep are coming out.

Oh, they've come out the pen! Oh, dear me.

He knows full well he's got to now go back into the shedding ring

and start all over again.

So the points for the first time are now scratched, are they?

-No, they'll hold, it's the time that has gone.

-I see.

-This is an impossible task.

-It is, really.

Mind you, I say it's an impossible task, look at this.

Once they have been in the pen, there is a scent there

and the next ones are that little bit easier to get in.

Having said that, the time's ticking by, so...

Oh, dear, and another breakaway.

It's not looking good at all.

The clock is counting down now.

Stand.

-Time?

-Time, what a shame.

But he'll have his points to that particular stage.

No score for the final pen.

That is a total of 93 for Wales.

The shed was good, the first shed, got to the pen,

first pen wasn't too bad, and then things went haywire on the second pen.

I feel now a day older and hopefully a day wiser!

Let's have a quick reminder of the brace round,

and we had Jimmy and Colin both running out of time.

Yes, Jimmy Menzies as well, he had a good start

but he had real problems in the shedding ring and at both pens.

Then Colin, he got round OK, but it was just his final pen he struggled with.

Richard Hutchinson didn't do too bad at all with Roy and Sweep.

No, but unfortunately the sheep shot out by the judges' podium

and caught him unawares and everybody else, really,

so he was really hit hard for his fetch.

OK, then finishing up, of course, with Sammy Long,

who did a sterling job with Moss and Sam.

He did, he had me worried on the final gated pen,

I thought he was going to run out of time,

but he did it and had the best round of the lot.

Well, Sammy achieved a score of 105,

beating England's Richard Hutchinson into second,

Jimmy Menzies finishes for Scotland in third,

and then Colin Gordon for Wales with 93.

Jimmy, is it fair to say that Balmoral's front lawn

isn't really very well-suited to brace work?

Absolutely, the pens for a brace were too close, you a wee bit more out.

That's the challenge, man, isn't it?

Well, we've 50,000 acres on Balmoral estate,

and here we are crammed into two, approximately.

Excuses, excuses. Richard, this is your third time, isn't it?

-Wasn't third time lucky for you.

-No, I'm still thinking of some excuses.

Er, the wind was bad, that's it.

-And keeping an eye out for those midges, as well.

-That's it, yes.

Good stuff. Well, Colin, Sammy was triumphant,

what do you think his trick was?

He had better dogs on the day, suited the sheep better.

And coming here, the same sheep everybody had,

the same chance we had, but Sammy's dogs were better on the day.

Well, Sammy, huge congratulations.

How do you feel as our little brace champion?

I feel very good, aye, it's nice to win on the day.

As Colin says, my dogs worked on the day.

That's not saying they're better all the time, but maybe a bit better today.

Well, I don't know if any of you lads are mathematicians,

but it turns out that going into the final round

there's a dead heat between Ireland and Wales on 181,

England are in third, and Scotland have a lot to do in fourth.

What a wonderful way to start this year's One Man & His Dog

and a fantastic end to the programme.

A tie, it couldn't be any closer.

You'll have to tune in next time for the singles round.

That's one man, one dog, but with two flocks of sheep.

Only then will we know who'll be crowned the winners

of One Man & His Dog 2011.

Where else would you rather be?

So, from here at Balmoral, it's goodbye.

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