McFayden, 19, won the New Zealand Certified Builders Apprentice Challenge regional heats at Mitre 10 MEGA Ferrymead.
He took home a $1000 prize package, courtesy of Mitre 10 Trade and Makita.
Easton Stocks, 22, was the runner-up, while Brent Butler, 40, finished third.
The challenge saw the apprentices test their carpentry skills in an eight-hour marathon build of a pātaka (community sharing cupboard).
The judges evaluated their workmanship, joint accuracy, material efficiency, safe working practices, and their ability to follow a detailed plan.
McFayden, who is an apprentice with Keenan Construction, will now compete for a $10,000 prize package at the national final during NZCB’s annual conference in Auckland on June 5-6.
"The most challenging part was trying to keep a high standard with everyone watching.
"You start rushing, you start not thinking, and that's where mistakes happen.
"Once you get to the end and start working out how long everything's going to take, the pressure really kicks in.
"I was pretty surprised to win to be fair. It was hard under all that pressure, but you just have to do the best you can.”
-Allied Media
