Beltex cross lambs again ruled supreme at LiveScot, with a pen of lambs from the Hall family’s Inglewood Edge operation from Dalton, lifting the tri-colour.

Taking centre stage this year for the family – John, his daughter Joanne, and John’s brother Peter, was the winning duo from the lightweight class, home-bred lambs which scaled 42.5kg each. Securing a sixth overall championship for the family here was a wedder and ewe lamb combo, which first won the butchers’ championship and then the supreme overall. They are by the six-year-old ram, Northcop Ramraider, a tup bought at Kendal for 800gns in 2013 from Anne Story, Longtown, that has since bred numerous champion winning lambs. April-born, they are out home-bred Beltex cross ewes and were brought out with assistance from David McTaggart, as the family’s usual assistant, Johnny Aiken, was attending his brother’s wedding in Northern Ireland. The winning lambs later sold for £310 each, to the judge, Jimmy Stark, who buys up to 900 lambs per week and 300 ewes, primarily for the Asian market.

"It was an outstanding show of sheep, with the champion pair being perfect in every way, with a great gigot and loin," said Mr Stark pointing out that too many farmers produce lambs that are too 'fit' for the market. "Farmers need to produce lambs to meet the demands of the market and for me that means leans lambs that kill out at 17-21kg with U2 and U3L grades."

The Halls, who run 2200 breeding ewes also won the continental title, with a pair of similarly aged lambs by a Rouge sire. They are again bred from Beltex cross ewes and left LiveScot bound for the Welsh Winter Fair.

Just pipped at the post for the supreme overall was the Mountain and Moorland champion winners, mediumweight Blackface lambs from Hugh Hamilton, Glenmanna, Thornhill, Dumfriesshire.

Mr Stark added: "The Blackface winners were tremendous and just what the export market is looking for. I don't tend to buy Blackface lambs, but I would if I could find a lot more like these."

Mr Hamilton, who led the Blackie breed at Agri Expo, just three weeks previously, won the reserve overall the Lanark event, with a pair of home-bred April-born lambs brought out with assistance from shepherd Callum Cuthbertson. They scaled 37.5kg and made £175 per head to Ballard Butchers, Castle Douglas.

Regular breed winners here, this big win was the second time the family has scooped the reserve overall, with the last time being exactly 20 years ago at the old Perth market. It was nevertheless, the first time the 2160 Blackie ewe flock had won the prestigious John Thorley shield for the best native breeds.

Adding to the Glenmanna celebrations was the fact that Mr Hamilton also scooped the reserve breed honours with his first prize heavyweight duo which scaled 90kg total.

Robert Rennie and his girlfriend, Rebecca Oldham, again came up with the goods too, winning the young breeders’ section, the reserve overall butchers’ and the best pen of Texels. Their young breeders’ lambs, were pure Beltex ewe lambs that passed the weighbridge at 39kg each. April-born, they are daughters of Airyolland Alonzo, a tup bought at Kelso in 2016 for £3800, from Neale and Janet McQuistin. They later made £150 per head, again to the judge, Jimmy Stark.

Reserve Mountain and Moorland was the champion pen of Cheviots – North Country Cheviots from Innes Graham and his nephew Jack (13), Carruthers, Waterbeck, Lockerbie. Their show stoppers which scaled 44kg were both wedder lambs and were sons of an old Nun Cote Nook sire bought several years ago at Lockerbie.

Andrew Reid's Glendearg operation from Eskdalemuir, Langholm, produced the reserve Cheviot winners with his champion South Country Cheviots. These 44.5kg April-born wedder lambs are by a home-bred sire sold last year at the breed sale at Lockerbie.

Runner up in the Southie section were the second prize winners to the champion, home-bred lambs from Blair and Morag Cockburn, Stirkfield, Broughton, Biggar. One is by a home-bred sire while the second is by Kale Engineer, with the duo scaling 89kg in total.

Local sheep breeder, John Linton, who runs a mixed flock of 1200 ewes at Sornfallow, Wiston, enjoyed a good day too winning the championship amongst the Mules and the reserve honours in the North Country Cheviot section. Not surprisingly, his champion Mules were Cheviot Mules by a Merkland sire bought at Dumfries in 2015. Home-bred and mid-April born, they passed the weigh-bridge at 96kg.

His Northie lambs which stood runner-up were heavyweight lambs scaling 106kg. They are both by an Allanshaws ram bought in 2015.

North of England Mule wedder lambs from Peter Lee, Morley Hill, Hexham, scooped the reserve Mule honours. They are bred from a home-bred Bluefaced Leicester ram.

The top two awards amongst the Swaledale breed also went south of the Border, when Carlisle-based breeder, John Thirlwall, Quarry, scored a hat-trick and won the breed section for the third year in succession.

His champion duo, which scaled 84kg, were April-born wedder lambs by a Calverts of Pry House sire bought in 2013 and out of home-bred ewes.

The same home also took the runner-up award with a similarly aged and bred pairing from the 260 Swale ewe flock bred pure which run alongside another 350 Swaledale ewes crossed to a Bluefaced Leicester.

LEADINGawards

Blackface – Lightweight – 1 and 2, B Dickie, Spango; 3, DC and JJ Marshall, Blendewing . Mediumweight – 1, breed champion, mountain and moorland champion, native champions and reserve overall champion, H Hamilton, Glenmanna; 2, B Dickie, Spango; 3, H Cockburn and Partners, Kingside. Heavyweight – 1 and reserve breed champion, HF Hamilton, Glenmanna; 2, B Dickie, Spango; 3, DC and JJ Marshall, Blendewing.

Swaledale – 1 and champion, JG Thirlwall, Quarry; 2 and reserve, JG Thirlwall, Quarry; 3, H Huddleston, Round Meadows.

North Country Cheviot – 1, breed champion, Cheviot champion and reserve mountain and moorland – CR Graham and Sons, Carruthers; 2 and reserve NCC, T and J Linton, Sornfallow; 3, A G Dempster, Castlehill.

South Country Cheviot – 1, breed champion and reserve Cheviot, A Reid, Glendearg; 2 and reserve SCC, B and M Cockburn, Stirkfield; 3, J and J Frame, High Dyke.

Mules and crosses – Cheviot or Blueface cross – 1 and Mule champion, T and J Linton, Sornfallow; 2, H Cockburn and Partners, Kingside ; 3, T and J Linton, Sornfallow. Blueface cross – 1 and reserve cross-bred champion, P Lee, Morley Hill; 2, P Lee, Morley Hill; 3, W Watson, Sanders Close. Scotch Mule – T and J Linton.

Single ewe lamb – Blackface – 1 and 3, G and S Donald, Windhill; 2, J Boswell, Burnhead. Scotch Mule – 1 and 3, GW Allan, Highfield Place; 2, J Guild, Laight. Bluefaced Leicester – 1, Lana Bell, Highfield; 2, J and W Bell, Highfield; 3, N Lang, Perryflatts.

Butchers lambs – Untrimmed native – 1 and 2, MM Stewart, Brotherstone; 3, T and J Linton, Sornfallow. Untrimmed continental – 1, G Whyte, Pett; 2, J Guthrie, Cuiltburn; 3, R and M Struthers, Collielaw.

Trimmed – Native – 1, J and H Padkin, Muirhouse; 2, E Orr, Lawhead; 3, J and J Frame, High Dyke. Texel – Lightweight – 1 and reserve Texel, KI Johnstone, Boghouse; 3, R Hall and Son, Inglewood Edge. Heavyweight – 1 and Texel champion – R Rennie, Sydenham; 2, KI Johnstone, Boghouse; 3, R Hall and Son, Inglewood Edge.

Beltex – Lightweight – 1, champion Beltex, champion Butchers and supreme champion, R Hall and Son, Inglewood Edge; 2, A Baillie, Carstairs Mains; 3, R Garth, Peaks View. Heavyweight – 1, J Guthrie, Cuiltburn; 2, MM Stewart, Brotherstone; 3, AG Dempster, Castlehill.

Continental – 1, R Hall and Son, Inglewood Edge; 2, D Cunningham, Walkerdyke; 3, A Baillie, Carstairs Mains.

Young breeders' – 1 and reserve butchers – R Rennie, Sydenham; 2, D Cunningham, Walkerdyke; 3, A Clark, Meikle Glengyre.

Young handlers – Junior – 1, Cameron Barclay; 2, Finlay Barclay; 3, Ethan Bentley. Senior – 1, Rachel Baillie 2, Jack Graham; 3, Jamie White.