Welsh breeder Esmor Evans, certainly made his presence felt at the Charolais show at Stirling, winning not only the champion and reserve honours amongst the junior bulls but also his 10th supreme overall at the Bull Sales.

Mr Evans who runs 160 pedigree Charolais alongside 60 Limousins in his Maerdy herd based at Monfa, Mold, took centre stage with the September 2017-born Maerdy Northernboy. This big white boy is from the first crop of calves by the Spanish-bred bull Maerdy Figaro, and out of Maerdy Gorgeousgirl, which was got by semen from the French sire, Veilleur.

The same Spanish-bred bull was behind Mr Evans' reserve junior champion, Maerdy Norwegian, brought out by Scott McInness. Slightly younger than his herd mate, this October 2017-born entry is out of the Maerdy Alcazar daughter, Maerdy Dancer which goes back to the great Maerdy Grimaldi.

The judge, Michael Minto, who is now in charge of the Farleycopse herd from Billinghurst, found his reserve supreme in the intermediate champion, Balthayock Nanook, a June 2017-born bull from local breeder, Major David Walter, Balthayock, Perth, who is celebrating 50 years in pedigree Charolais breeding this year. His show stopper, brought out by Tracey and Davie Nicol, is a son of Balthayock Imp, a former champion and reserve inter-breed beef winner at the Highland that has also bred sons to 19,000gns and 14,000gns. His dam, Balthayock Gemma, is by Barbican Lancer, one of 100 pedigree cows in the herd.

Standing next in line to him to lift the blue and white sash amongst the intermediates was Catherine MacGregor's Harestone Novel, from the farm based at Insch, Aberdeenshire. He is the result of the in-calf cow purchase, Blelack Elderflower, a Thrunton Socrates daughter and the sole Charolais female owned by Catherine after buying her at the Blelack dispersal sale two years ago. The sire is Caylers Hustler.

This Farming Life celebrities father and son duo, Johnny and Raymond Irvine who own the Inverlochy herd from Tomintoul, were also in the top tickets, lifting the senior honours with Inverlochy Nelson. This popular 21-month-old is by the Irish-bred stock sire, Kilbline 1 Instigator, a former champion winner at the National breed show at Turriff and at Highland, which has since bred sons to 8000gns.

Coming a close second to him in the seniors was the Allen Drysdale and his father Peter's Glenericht Notable, brought out by Allen's wife, Fiona. This similarly aged bull is by Maerdy Hwre, a 16,000gns purchase here that bred the reserve senior champion in October that went on to make 8500gns. The dam, Glenericht Idyll, by Blelack Digger, is one of the best breeding females in the 30-cow herd.