I hear lots of claims about "insurance" and "customer req'r" being just excuses.
Sometimes they may be, but I've been in the position where we have had to lie to customers about how many hours a guy had to get him on the job, because we thought he was good enough, and I've spent days in a conference room justifiying our minimums to suits representing Marsh.
I've also chosen to hire a 500 hour guy over a 10,000 hour guy.
That said, if both guys are competent and have the right attitude, then of course the guy with 3000 gets the job over 2000, as he has seen that little bit more (and likely has that many more seasons under his belt). It is a big leap of faith to choose the guy with 1 season under his belt over the guy with 25!
Again: Your "job ad" is for a captain on a twin (so probably a 2 pilot crew) and you are asking why the guy with only 50 hours in an aircraft that (likely) has a crew of 2 isn't considered? A bit of a chance is one thing, but shooting craps with a multi-million euro helicopter and several lives is something else.
Your description of No 2 is just an average 10,000 helicopter pilot outside of the N.Sea.
Does it bite? Yep. But every business, every trade, every profession is the same: experience is valuable.
This isn't just a rain on your parade post, but I'm seeing too many guys these days looking 2 steps beyond where they are instead of keeping their eyes on the job at hand. Your No 1 should be looking for the copilot job, and proving that he is ready before he hits the full requirements listed in the ad for captains.