BOTH the prime cattle and prime lamb champions went on to sell for the top price in their section at Hexham this week, where an outstanding show of cattle and no fewer than 28 pens of sheep were on show. 
Champion in the cattle was the female champion, a British Blue cross heifer from Messrs Tomlinson, Sunniside, which later sold for £1579 or 270p per kg to the pre-sale judge, David Higginson, Castle Bank Butchers. 
Regular consignors, Reg, Colin and Kevin Sparke from Little Swinburne, Colwell, scooped both the champion and reserve honours to include their champion, a pen of five Beltex cross lambs which made £125 apiece to the judge, Jamie Curle, Bowsden, Berwick, buying for Linden Foods Ltd. 
Reserve for the Sparkes was a pen of five Dutch Texel lambs which also sold to Linden Foods Ltd for £120 apiece. 


LEADINGprices:
Prime lambs – Tex X – £95 Sunniside, £92.80, £90.20 High Eshells; £90 Lingey Field and Sunniside; 215p, 208.8p Low Ardley; 207p Lingey Field. Dutch Tex X – £120 Little Swinburne; £94 West Mill Hills; 235.3p Little Swinburne; 235p West Mill Hills.
Suff X – £91 Flotterton; £89.50 Thockrington; 172p Steel Hall; 169.6p Thockrington; 169.1p East House. Bel X – £125 Little Swinburne; £100 St Oswalds; 297.6p Little Swinburne. Char X – £100 Sunniside; £90 Longlea; 214.3p Longlea; 209.8p St Oswalds.
Rye X – £75 Snape Farm; BFL – £73 Hedley Park. Chev X – £80.50 Flotterton; £78 West Mill Hills; 195p West Mill Hills, 187.2p, 172.5p Flotterton. Mule – £70 Flotterton; £69.50 Longlea;
173.8p, 163.2p Longlea. 
Prime cattle – Heifers – BRB – 270p, £1579.50 Sunniside; Blonde – 251.5p, 241.5p, 237.5p, 235.5p Low Leam; 235.5p Jubilee Buildings; 231.5p Low Leam; £1516.62, £1500.12 Low Leam; £1459.05 Jubilee Buildings; £1413.13, £1413 Low Leam; £1410.47, £1397.66 Jubilee Buildings; £1307.80 Low Leam; £1302.32 Jubilee Buildings. Char – 249.5p Flotterton. Lim – 247.5p Hard Riding; 245.5p Barker House; 235.5p Hard Riding; 232.5p Nunwick; 231.5p Elrington Hall; 230.5p Nunwick; £1480.60 Elrington Hall; £1474.23 Hard Riding; £1446.25 Elrington Hall; £1390.35, £1335.69 Nunwick; £1323.67 Flotterton; £1302.02 Nunwick. Steers – Lim – 235.5p High Town. BRB – 231.5p, £1516.33 Glebe Farm; £1447.88 Lough Green. Char X – 231.5p South Acton; £1503.43, £1448.73 Flotterton; £1423.73 South Acton. 
A-A – £1406.48 Wallhouses. 
Auctioneers: Hexham and Northern Marts