A new breed record of £7500 for a Badgerface Texel, was paid at the Summer Sizzler's multi-breed pedigree sheep sale, staged through Harrison and Hetherington, when a ewe hogg from John and Bryony MacGregor, Allanfauld, was sold.
The timed online sale was topped by the first lot in the catalogue Tamtain Blackbird, from the MacGregor's up and coming flock from Allanfauld, Kilsyth, which is better known for breeding Blackface and Texel sheep and pedigree Charolais and Limousin cattle.
Blackbird is backed by imported Sunnybank genetics on both sides, with the sire and the dam both bought privately from Henry Jewitt, a few years ago. The MacGregors who run eight Baderface Texel females and were selling their second at public auction, sold Blackbird to Messrs Brown, Accraplatts, Skipton.
John and his father Archie, also produced the lead priced Blackface at £2800. Selling here was a four-crop ewe by Allanfauld Bullseye, a home-bred son of a £25,000 Crossflatt retained for breeding, which sold with ewe lamb at foot by the record priced £200,000 Dalchirla. This outfit heads up to Inverness-shire with Ewan Fraser, Laggan, Newtonmore.
Beltex females were also in the money, when Richard and John Wood's Kingledores Fiorella, a gimmer from Kingledores, Tweedsmuir, Biggar, made £5450 to Brian Hall, Ainstable, Carlisle.
Backed by the best of genetics she is by Woodhow Dakota and out of Kingledores Bessy, a College Awesome daughter out of the top breeding female, Kingledores Pearl.
Next amongst the Beltex at £2500 was the gimmer, Wilodge Foxy from Christine and Paul Tippetts' flock from Shifnal, Shropshire. She is by an imported sire owned by the Dooley flock and bred from the 7500gns Heber Park Carmen, by Buckles Balmoral. Messrs Bowring, Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, were the final bidders.
Mark Priestley's Limestone Suffolk flock from Seaforde, Downpatrick, Northern Ireland, also enjoyed a good trade with sales at £5300 and £2950.
Top priced Suffolk at £5300 from Mark Priestley's Limestone flock
Dearest was a gimmer by Castleisle Alabama, bred from a Summerhill ewe by Strathbogie A Kind of Magic which is a maternal sister to the dam of the 40,000gns Limestone Aston. She sold to Italy with Messrs Mosca.
The £2950 gimmer, by Pyeston Pumba, is bred from a ewe by Castleisle Knockout that has bred ram lambs to 8000gns and 5000gns. She sold down to Wales with Messrs Turner, Newtown, Powys.
Stewart Lathangie's Pyeston flock from Glenrothes produced the second top priced Suffolk at £3100 when selling to Cueto Muniz, Urbies Suffolks, Spain. This gimmer is by Limestone Legacy and bred from a home-bred ewe by Roundacre Real Deal. She is also a full sister to the 8000gns gimmer sold at the Three Nations Sale in 2019.
Robbie Wilson's lead priced Texel made £5100
Texels also made the grade with sales at £5100 and £4100. Sale leader in this section was the No 1 from Robbie Wilson's Milnbank flock from Turriff, a gimmer by Knock Yardsman, purchased by Messrs O’Donnell, Buncrana, Donegal, Eire. She is bred from a ewe by Strathbogie Yes Sir which is an ET sister to the 10,000gns Milnbank American Sniper.
Selling for £4100 was a mid February-born ewe lamb from Robert Cockburn's Knap flock from Hill of Errol, Perth. From the same family as the 5000gns Knap Angus Ogg and Knap Bandicoot, this youngster by Sportsmans Cannon Ball and out of a ewe by Procters Yankee, fell to Rob Evans, Hope Valley, Shrewsbury.
Dutch Spotted Texels again proved popular too selling to £4000 twice. First was a February-born ewe lamb from DL and BWH Jones' Beili flock from Wales, purchased by Henry Jewitt, Romaldskirk, Barnard Castle, Co Durham. She is by Tip Top DJ and bred from an imported ewe.
Matching that bid was an imported gimmer from fellow Welsh breeder, R Francis of the Topbank flock from Pistyll Chaf, Abergorlech, purchased by Messrs Jones, Maesycrugiau, Pencader, Carmarthenshire.
Topbank sold three of the top five highest priced Dutch Spotted with a three-year-old imported ewe with April-born ewe lamb by Ty-Gwyn Douglas at foot, selling for £3750 to Jimmy Bell and Rachel Buckle, Highfield, Auchengray, Lanark.
Another imported gimmer from Mr Francis made £3000 to Messrs Kerr, Enniskillen, Fermanagh.
Top price for Ali Jackson's Tiptop flock from Annan, was £3250 for Tiptop Emerald, a gimmer by Tiptop Diablo bred from an imported Bellino ewe. She sold down to Devon with Messrs Carter, Dawlish.
Blue Texels were also in demand peaking at £3950 for a recipient ewe with February, twin-born lambs – a ewe and a tup – at foot from Aberdeenshire breeder, Staysa Moyse, Broadwater, Skene. These lambs are the result of a flush from the show ewe, Saltire Blue A Beauty, a Hackney X Factor daughter, and sired by Caryl's Blues Captain. Their full ET sisters sold at 6000gns and 4500gns last year. The outfit sold up to Orkney with Messrs Scott, Holm.
Messrs' Jones' Beili flock was back in the money, selling the February-born ewe lamb, Beili Blue Flash and her recipient dam, for £3050 to the Barclay family from Harestone, Insch, Aberdeenshire. The genetics behind this youngster include Caryl's Blue Dazzler and a home-bred ewe.
Just behind, on £3000, David Gray's Ettrick flock from Lindean, Selkirk, sold a choice of two gimmers by Pistyll Dynamite out of the Nantyderri show ewe by Whatmore Walnut, to Messrs Francis, Topbank.
The Ingrams from Logie Durno – William and Carole and sons Gregor and Bruce – Inverurie, Aberdeenshire, enjoyed a cracking sale for Charollais securing the lead prices at £3100 and £2600 for gimmers. The first, by Springhill Untouchable, is bred from a ewe by Logie Durno Jackpot that bred the champion winner at Worcester in 2019 along with another ram at 5000gns. She sold to Messrs Roberts, Shrewsbury, Shropshire.
Selling at £2600 Messrs Lewis, Moston, Sandbach, Cheshire, was a Logie Durno gimmer by Logie Durno Untouchable, out of a home-bred ewe by Foulrice Rachamin.
Allan and Ben Wight, Midlock, Crawford, sold the lead priced Bluefaced Leicester at £2150. This was a ewe hogg by the Riddings M1 bred from a ewe by a Hewgill J6, purchased by Michael Woods, Lower Knockbarragh Road, Newry Co Down.
Averages: Three Badgerface Texel, £3483.33; 15 Dutch Spotted, £2320.00; three Bluefaced Leicester, £2000.00; 16 Blue Texels, £1766.88; 21 Suffolks, £1665.24; 27 Texels, £1577.41; 10 Charollais, £1515.00; 19 Beltex, £1439.47; eight Blackface, £978.75.
Auctioneers: Harrison and Hetherington.
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