It was a fight to the bitter end between two colleagues at stockbrokers WH Ireland in another rollercoaster year for the Birmingham Post 2010 Share Tips competition.

As the markets closed on December 31, Alan Aldridge’s pick of Herencia Resources took the crown after an eleventh hour surge by the mineral exploration firm.

Herencia’s 631.5 per cent increase over the year, leaping from 2.8p to 3.9p on 29 December alone, saw Mr Aldridge beat his WH Ireland colleague Andrew Lidsey’s choice of oil exploration firm Rockhopper.

Although in second place, Rockhopper clocked up an impressive 498 per cent rise after it struck the black stuff in the Falklands, despite nearly triggering a war with Argentina in the process.

Third place went to James Lammas of Barclays Wealth, whose pick of Nyota Minerals grew by 286 per cent during the year.

Each year the Birmingham Post holds its share tips competition – which is a strictly for-fun affair that should not be taken seriously by compliance officers or as investment advice by non-participating readers.

Entrants simply pick a stock they like the look of and the winner is the one whose choice gains the most over the last 12 months.

For all their eye-popping gains, this year’s high flyers could not come close to last year’s winners, who rode on the coat-tails of the 2009 stock market rally.

Alex Fullard of Arden Partners came first in 2009, notching up a huge 1214.29 per cent increase on his choice of Pendragon, the car dealership firm.

BRI Asset Management, which helped compile the table, saw one of its brokers in the top ten for 2010 – Oliver Mustin’s choice of European Goldfields which came in at 148.5 per cent up.

Eighty one of the region’s finest finance minds took part this time around – including a few chancers from the Birmingham Post business desk – but just 42 managed to outperform the FTSE 100, which closed the year 8.8 per cent up.

A few bright sparks picked banking shares, correctly forecasting 2010 as the year the sector found its feet again, with Royal Bank of Scotland up 34 per cent and Lloyds Banking Group up 30 per cent.

But there will be a few blushes among those at the bottom end of the table – with picks including ROK, the property firm which went into administration in November.

Birmingham Post deputy head of business Graeme Brown was also left languishing in the nether regions, coming in at number 71 with his pick of Desire Petroleum, the Malvern-based oil exploration firm also trying its luck in the Falklands Basin. The firm ended the year down 48.1 per cent.

Mr Brown said it was particularly galling to see Desire, which admitted to finding nothing but water during 2010, come in so low while Rockhopper was riding so high after its strike.

“I was rooting for the Midland firm,” said Mr Brown in his defence. His tip for 2011 is BP, reasoning it couldn’t possibly have a worse year than 2010.

Although he has now left the Post for pastures new, former legal editor and Mastermind contestant Tom Scotney’s choice of Indian cleantech firm Greenko redeemed the Post’s lacklustre performance, coming in at number 15 with a rise of 67.5 per cent.

Editor Alun Thorne was left mid-table as he punted on a property revival and saw his Land Securities stock lose less than one per cent over the year.

Attention now turns to 2011, where uncertainties over consumer demand, global growth and commodity prices will no doubt provide inspiration for a fresh batch of share tips.

See this year’s entries in next week’s Birmingham Post