Scottish Blackface sheep breeders made their presence felt at the Ulster Ram Breeders' Association sale at Ballymena, on Monday, buying three of the four highest priced lots to include the sale leader at 9000gns.

The sale which includes both North and south-type sheep saw both lots sell better than anticipated given the uncertainty within the industry, with the day's high coming for the latter from Charlie Phillips' Finglen flock from Draperstown.

This shearling ram, sold early on in the day, is by a £6500 Aitkenhead lamb and bred from a ewe by a £4200 Lurg. Used at home as a lamb and done particularly well, he sold to Richard Nixon, Marbrack, Carsphairn, and Ian Hunter, Dalchirla, Crieff, with Northern Ireland breeders, Seamus and Stephen McGinn, Downpatrick, later taking a third share.

There were plenty of fireworks at the end of the sale too, with south-type lambs selling to 8500gns and 7000gns. Topping this section was the pen leader from Veronica and Patrick Fullerton, who run 400 ewes just outside Draperstown. Backed by the best of bloodlines, this ET lamb shown by their 11-year-old daughter Shona, is bred from the show winning ewe lamb by an £11,000 Nunnerie that was inter-breed champion at Omagh Show last year. The sire, an Elmscleugh-bred son of a £12,000 Gass, has also already proven himself, having bred the £85,000 Elmscleugh lamb sold in 2016 for Willie Dunlop. The buyers were John Harkin, Loughash, Co Tyrone and Frankie and Kevin McCullough, Ballynahinch.

With two other lambs selling at 2800gns and 2600gns, the Fullertons also produced the lead lamb average at £4865 for three.

Ayrshire-based breeder, John Murray, Crossflatt, Cumnock, also got in on the action, forking out a half share for Jimmy McCurdy's No 1 lamb from Broughshane, which made 7000gns. Buying back some of his own genetics, this lamb is by a Crossflatt son of Tornado, out of a ewe by a £9000 Crossflatt. Mr McCurdy retained the remaining half share.

Top price amongst the North or Perth-type rams was 5500gns paid for the champion lamb, selected by Scottish breeder, Elizabeth Johnston, Chamberwells, while Bert MacIntosh, Tombreakie, placed the shearlings.

Her choice of winner, from the Conway Brothers, John and George, Plumbridge, boasts Scottish genetics on both sides too, being a son of a £200 Woolfords bought at Stirling in 2016 that bred the 2000gns champion winner here last year for the Conways, out of a ewe by a £6500 Woolfords. Placed first in his class at Plumbridge Show and with a full brother retained for breeding in the 420 North-type ewe flock, the champion also sold across the Irish Sea to Stephen Duncan, Achdregnie, Glenlivet and David Baillie, Calla, Carnwath.

The reserve champion from Cathal Breslin's 200-ewe flock from Castlederg, followed in the price ratings, selling for 4800gns to Tom Adams and sons Joe and Alan, who alongside their flock of 250 Perth-type ewes also run a dairy herd. Again, Scottish genetics are behind this big lamb later christened 'The Milkman', with the sire being a £10,500 Achdregnie shearling bought last year at Stirling, out of a ewe by a £900 Woolfords.

Almost financing that purchase, the Adams sold their No 2 lamb for 4500gns to Peter Moss, Castlederg, Co Tyrone.

Brian Curran's Blackmore flock from Co Derry then took 3400gns for a show lamb by last year's 15,000gns Billy Grant lamb. Second at Clonmany and first at Ardara Shows, he is bred from a home-bred ewe by a Harkin ram and sold in a three-way split to John Gerrard Dermott and Edward Canny, with Mr Curran retaining the final share.

The second prize single in the pre-sale show from Gary and Ian Watson, Macosquin, then made 3000gns selling to Sam Adams, Broughshane. The breeding behind this lamb that was also placed at Limavady Show, includes a 1400gns Tom Adams onto a Vincent Brennan-bred ewe by a son of a 4500gns Harkin, bought as a ewe lamb.

Mr MacIntosh's choice of Perth-type shearling champion topped its section at 3000gns, for Mark and Russell Smyth, Macosquin, Coleraine. This was a Watson-bred tup bought here last year as a lamb, by a Watson-bred son of Vincent Brennan's Sonny Bill. First in his class at Limavady Show, he sold to Seamus and Claire Harkin with the Smyths retaining a half share.

Back amongst the south-type, Eoin McKenna,'s Tullykeeran flock from Maghera, produced its best shearling trade to date with his 12 cashing in for more than £1000 per head. Most of these were sons of a £2000 Dalchirla tup bought at Dalmally in 2016, with his pen leader, bred from a ewe by a £3000 Blackcraig, selling to Damien McSwiggan, Gortin, for 4500gns.

Renewables developer Karl O Mullan, who runs 400 ewes at Dunloy, also enjoyed a great trade selling 13 shearlings to a top of 4200gns to average in excess of £1500. Most of these were got by frozen semen to include the pen leader, which was bred from a Crossflatt ewe and sired by a £20,000 Midlock purchased by Desmond McCollum, Loughiel.

Robert Loughrey's Limavady-based flock at Gortnarney was another in the money with numerous four-figure sales and a top of 4000gns paid by Perthshire-based breeders, Tom and Mairi Paterson and son Robert, who run north and south-type flocks at Craigneich and Dunruchan, at Comrie and Crieff respectively. The shearling is by Crossflatt Spectre and out of a Grimmet-bred ewe.

Next best was a 3600gns sale for the pen leader from Alwyn McFarlane's Benbradagh flock from Dungiven, which numbers just 120 ewes, run alongside 380 Blackies crossed to the Blue and 1000 Mules. His lamb, bred from a Dalwyne ewe by Dalwyne Buffalo is by the £22,000 Dalchirla lamb sold last year at Dalmally. Allan Wight, Midlock, Crawford, and the Macarthurs from Nunnerie, Elvanfoot, were the final bidders.

Averages: North-type rams – 36 shearling rams, £582.75 (+£244.05 for one more); 73 ram lambs, £923.57 (-£188.93 for 10 more). South-type rams – 203 shearling rams, £826.19 (-£42.15 for the same number); 64 ram lambs, £1132.85 (+£120.83 for 17 more).

LEADING prices

North-type – Shearling rams – R Smyth, 1800gns, 1000gns, 900gns; S Carson, 1600gns; T Adams, 1100gns. Ram lambs – Curran Bros, 3400gns; G and I Watson, 3000gns; M and K McAleer, 2800gns; M Smyth, 2600gns, 1400gns; T Harkin, 2200gns; S Adams, 2000gns; P McEvoy, 1700gns, 1500gns; J Hunter, 1400gns; C Breslin, 1400gns.

South-type – Shearling rams – K O Mullan, 3200gns, 2600gns, 1700gns; P Fullerton, 3200gns, 2000gns; R Loughrey, 3200gns, 1800gns; J McCalmont, 3000gns; Glenhead Farms, 3000gns, 2600gns; M Conway, 2500gns; C Phillips, 1800gns. Ram lambs – G Crawford, 3000gns; S Fegan, 3000gns; D Lennox, 3000gns; P Fullerton, 2800gns, 2600gns; B Devine, 2200gns; C Harkin, 2200gns; C Phillips, 2000gns.