If I was hiring someone and two people showed up the first thing I would ask for is qualifications and references.
Judging the two individuals by that, the way they present themselves such as manners, are they safety conscious, do they seem eager to work, do they enjoy the work and do they have any people skills.
From that I would try and choose the better qualified of the two and I think you would probably do the same.
If you have a couple of guys on the ground you can afford to have one in training but if it`s just you and a new guy with little experience the work will become more difficult than it already is.