I sometimes wonder what might have been. I’m not thinking so much about how my life might have been so different had I applied myself at school, instead of messing around.

You see, I didn’t take my school days seriously and, in fact, one or two regular readers of this column who were in school with me are quite surprised I’m able to string a few words together.

But wondrous as that may be, it isn’t what I’m thinking about today.

We’ll slip back to 1984. We had just bought the Moyrath farm and consequently needed more horsepower.

My father was fully onboard with buying the farm and made it possible (in truth, he was much more a businessman than a farmer) but didn’t like spending money on machinery. Nonetheless Dad had been a Ford tractor man from his early years, as was his father.

Between them, they had most Ford models from a 1940s Fordson E27N Major to a 1976 Ford 7600. I do remember a David Brown Cropmaster and an International B275 but these were only brief flirtations.

Ford man

Dad was a Ford man at heart. In the 1960s, my mother had a Ford Anglia and he a Ford Zephyr before discovering German engineering.

However, in the 1970s, the hugely cheaper Zetor and Ursus tractors arrived on the scene. Despite Dad now always driving a Mercedes car, he loved value and needed a tractor bigger than the Ford 7600. Smiths in Navan quickly sold him an Ursus 1201 (120hp).

I was in college in England at the time and was nearly sick when word trickled across. And worse still, it leaked out. It was bad enough being slagged for my Irish accent without that.

Dad could have bought a 120hp Ford 8600 but no, the Ursus was value. I don’t think he sat on it for an hour in his life. Still, it could have been something worse - like a Belarus MTZ. They were floating around then too, like brown matter in a sewer.

My call

Back to 1984. I’d gained more stripes and tractor choice was now largely my call. We needed an Ursus replacement to pull a four-furrow plough. The Ursus wouldn’t lift the plough or if it did, it wouldn’t turn it over.

You’d imagine I would revert to my Ford roots after the Ursus trauma but no.

I did go as far as pricing a 134hp Ford TW15, at a list price of £34,000 (inc. VAT), less 10%. But no thanks - too thirsty and not up to the spec of the other tractors in my sights.

Fendt enthusiasts should look away now and skip to the last paragraph.

But shock and awe, I actually fancied a 115hp John Deere 4040S with a list price of £34,803 with then John Deere dealer, Philip Greene in Ratoath.

Conceptually, selling a 115hp Fendt 611 LSA to me was easy as I was silly about hand-built German engineering. But what about the crazy cost of it?

Should I have bought it? Maybe. I often wonder, had I done so, whether there would be John Deere tractors and probably a combine in the yard now and I’d be wearing John Deere shirts, trousers and striped green and yellow underpants. I’d be looking at a John Deere calendar on the wall now.

It was not to be. Former Fendt dealer, John Maher, over in Dunshaughlin, heard I was looking at the Deere.

Conceptually, selling a 115hp Fendt 611 LSA to me was easy as I was silly about hand-built German engineering. But what about the crazy cost of it?

I had the best of both worlds. I’d got my choice and Dad did the business. He struck a deal at an unbelievable £27,000 with (the crying) John Maher and threw the Ursus in. I think he was secretly glad to see it go.

Dad was an incredible man to do a deal. I am but a poor copy.