A STEADY trade was met for Lleyn sheep at a society show and sale of males and females at Carlisle, last week, where the top price of 7000gns surpassed last year's leader and ram averages improved by more the £130 on the year.

Females may not have hit last year's £1000 record-setting price tag, but gimmers nonetheless met a strong commercial demand from many return and new buyers, including those looking for MVA ewes to carry embryos.

Setting that top price and the best at this sale to date for the Walling family – brothers Brian and Bob, with Brian's sons Tom and Ian presenting the sheep on the day – was their champion from the Great Yorkshire Show, a shearling named Whitlaw Europe. Sired by the 1600gns Incheoch Mojo and out of a home-bred ewe from the 1000-strong Whitlaw flock near Lindean, Selkirk, he also stood any other breed champion at Campsie.

He attracted the attention of two Scottish bidders, with the Laga Farms team of Michael and Martin Cussiter, from Arwick, Evie, Orkney, while under bidder Lorna Scanlon, of Burghmuir, Biggar, paid 2200gns for another from the Wallings, Whitlaw Extra.

A few lots later and attracting the second highest price of the day of 4500gns was the dearest from Hamish Goldie's three flocks, with this one coming in the shape of Lochar Extract. He is among the first crop of sons by Plasucha Chief, a tup bought over the phone from Exeter, and out of a daughter of Lluest Nobleman. Selling to Derek and Cindy Steen for their Ballylinney flock at Whitcastles, Corrie, Lockerbie, Extract sits in the top 5% of the breed for maternal and carcase index.

Following on at 4000gns and also heading north to Laga Farms with the Cussiters was the second in the Plasucha pen from Welsh breeders, Alun and Helen Bennett together with son Robert, of Upper Hall, Meifod, Powys. Their Plasucha Elroy is among the first crop by the 3500gns Lochar Conquest bought here a couple years back while the home-bred dam, just a ewe lamb, is out of the same ewe that bred the 11,000gns Plasucha Dependable.

Heading up the female section was the second prize individual gimmer from Jim and Hamish Goldie. She is by a home-bred son of the 18,000gns Lluest Nobleman known as Goldies Director, and she sold to Clive Long, Ballee Road, Strabane, County Tyrone, who bought Hamish's first and second prize gimmer here last year and plans to flush this year's purchase for the Finnleigh flock.

The Geldards received the second top female price of £400 when their reserve pen of five gimmers from their Wray Castle flock was knocked down to John Kingan for his Laneside flock near Troqueer, Dumfries.

See this week's issue of The Scottish Farmer, out October 1, for the full report, pictures and averages.