The work which recognised women in agriculture, came fourth in the display category and placed fifth for quality of produce.

Central districts and Northern Districts won these two categories respectively.

“The team was disappointed but it’s hard to guess the judges’ decision…It’s a lottery,” Mr Medway said.

“In its design and the amount of work that went into it, with painstaking seed placement in the portraits, every second person said it should have won because of its workmanship and quality.”

Currawang artist Margie Fitzpatrick designed the 17 metre by 15m display.

Twenty panels up to two metres high depict women in agriculture, including NSW Farmers Association president Fiona Simson, Breadalbane woolgrower Jenny Bell, Marulan alpaca farmer Wendy Billington and many more.

She used a multitude of seeds to fill in the painted portraits. Meantime, volunteers went to work compiling district produce such as 80 wool fleeces, 100 jams, marmalades and preserves, fruit and vegetables, cheeses, eggs, hams and bacons, wine and much more.

Mr Medway said up to 30 people took 10 days to set it up, working long hours daily.

They included many locals, such as Frank Hannan and Joe Byrnes from Breadalbane and Ken Hewitt and Paul Seaman from Crookwell.

But the team performed well in sub-categories, winning the cheese section, third in wool and hams and bacons and second in preserves and jellies.

“We lost points on the grain section as they didn’t have protein content due to the floods out west,” Mr Medway said.

After the Show’s end on April 18 volunteers will pull down the exhibit and recoup some funds through produce sales.

Mr Medway and Mr Byrnes will join Governor Marie Bashir for dinner at Government House on Wednesday evening after their selection by the Royal Agricultural Society.