AVERAGES improved by £150-£200 per head on the month at Wright Marshall's Mid-Month Dairy Sale at Beeston, where Fife farmer, Gavin Struthers' Balcurvie Holstein herd, produced most of the lead priced lots.

At a sale which attracted an entry of 180 head of which 170 were forward on the day, some 45 animals sold for more than £2000 per head with 62 at more than £1800. Only 15 sold for less than £1000 which included the 12 animals that were either three/two-quartered, light or uneven or slow to milk.

In all Mr Struthers Balcurvie herd from Windygates, sold eight of lead 15 priced lots to include the two dearest at £2450 and £2400. Topping the trade was Meadowise Aventador Nagoya, a Coolawn-Com Aventador-sired heifer out of Meadowise Mammoth Nagoya VG88. She calved down at the end of October and sold to JR Beattie, Stourbridge, West Midlands.

Just behind on £2400, Bonsalls Mercaston, Market Drayton, bought the similarly aged Meadowise Silver Lecco, which was also paraded a month calved. She is by Seagull-Bay Silver and bred from Meadowise Printer Lecco.

Balcurvie also sold at £2350, £2300, £2250 and £2220. Tops here was Meadowise It Linz, another fresh calved heifer, this time by Silverridge V All For I, purchased by VW Trueman and Partners, Melton Mowbray, Leics, who also went to £2300 for Mr Struthers' similarly aged, Balcurvie Roosje 180, by R-E-W Seaver and £2350 for J and JM Walmsley's Fordswood Appleman Lustre, from Staffords Farm, Pilling, Preston. This fresh calved heifer is by Wyndford Appleman Red.

Top price amongst the cows was £2350 paid for Showell Farms' Moordown Pan Sallie GP84-2yr, a rising four-year-old by Holbra Pancake, which sold freshly calved in her second, from Top Farm, Higham Lane, Nuneaton. She was knocked down to JG and C Bayley, Nuneaton.

An uncharacteristically small entry in-calf heifers was topped at £1700 for a January-calving daughter of Gerwyn from David Ishmael, Wigan with six further heifers from the same stable averaging £1485.

Averages: 18 cows of all breeds and including lots with all faults, £1405; 138 heifers, including all breeds and all faults, £1712 (Including faults & all breeds); seven in-calf and served heifers, £1485.

Auctioneers: Wright Marshall.