A REDUCED entry for the two-day show and sale of Swaledale shearling rams at Kirkby Stephen, ensured a buoyant trade throughout albeit with overall averages down almost £50 per head on last year’s trade which saw two six-figure prices.

In contrast to the 2023 sale which saw two rams sell for a record breaking £105,000 each, this year trade peaked at £34,000 for the No 2 from John and Dorne Richardson and sons Ben and Josh’s Ghyll House flock from Appleby, selling early on the first day.

The family, who sold one of those £105,000 shearlings last year, topped the event with Ghyll House Officer. He is by Ghyll House Keeper, which they sold two years ago and kept a small share in. The dam is a ewe by the £92,000 Valley Fandango. Officer sold in a four-way split to John White, Rigg; Martin Wilson, Arngill House; and father-and-son team John and Shaun Tully, Burn Croft and Corn Close.

Murton Hall Majestic from GE Harker made £32,000Murton Hall Majestic from GE Harker made £32,000 The flock’s pre-sale champion that day, Ghyll House Orlando, also by Keeper which is a son of the £55,000 Oakbank Endeavour out of a Fandango ewe, made £16,000 selling to John White, Rigg, and the Tullys.

Second top price was £32,000 paid for a ram from Ernest Harker and sons Jimmy and Stan’s Murton Hall flock. Their Murton Hall Majestic, is sired by a £9500 John Tennant tup bought at Hawes in 2019, while the dam is by a David Harker-bred ram. He headed home with Messrs Raine, Stanhope Gate.

Two shearlings made £25,000, with the first from the Lightfoot family, Gillside, selling jointly to James Beckwith, New Hall and Lenny Smith, Roachburn. For their money they get Gillside Legend, a son of the home-bred Jackpot, which was out of the flock’s show ewe, while the dam is by the home-bred Emerald sire.

The second £25,000 sale came late on the Friday, when Stephen Bland’s Cotegill YoYo was sold. He is sired by the £20,000 New Hall tup bought at Kirkby two years ago, out of a ewe by the £7000 West Briscoe and was knocked down to Peter Lightfoot, Gillside and David Allinson, West Briscoe.

Cotegill also took £15,000 for a son of a £26,000 Hargreaves ram bred from a ewe by the old Deano tup. He was bought by James Pritchard, Evistones.

A trio of tups went under the hammer at £18,000, all of them on the Friday. The first of those, Meadow Bank MN 19, from Richard Hargreaves, Meadow Bank, Barley, is sired by the old Bull and Cave tup shared with the Valley and Grayrigg Hall flocks, while the dam is by a £7000 Marwood lamb. He was bought by David Allinson, West Briscoe, and Robert Hutchinson Valley.

Another from the same flock but belonging to Bob Hargreaves fetched £12,000. He is by a John Tunstall tup and was purchased in a two-way split by the Hareden and Oak Tree flocks.

West Briscoe and Valley again went in partnership to buy the second £18,000 shearling – Howith Roger 1 from Johnny Cowperthwaite, Howith, Austwick. This tup is by a Roger Hird sire bought two years ago, while the dam is by a £24,000 Aygill.

The final £18,000 bid was made for the pen leader from the White family, Rigg Farm. Their Rigg Roman Emperor, by the same £20,000 New Hall tup as the Cotegill £25,000 tup and out of a ewe by the old Matt Mason tup, was knocked down to John Tully, Burncroft and Peter Lightfoot, Gillside.

The Whites also received £15,000, for another by the New Hall sire, purchased by Messrs Ridley, Wood Hall. Adding to the celebrations, Robert White won the day’s small breeders’ championship and reserve champion with a shearling by the same sire. He was knocked down at £12,000 to John Mason, Oddacres.

Averages: Thursday – £2506.86 (+£12.97 on the year with a clearance rate of 90.5%) Friday – of £2612.23 . Overall – £2556.96


MORE NEWS | St Boswells show and sale of spring born suckled calves

MORE NEWS | Asby Hall champion tops Kirkby Stephen at £3200


Leading Prices

Thursday – £34,000, £16,000, £10,000, £6000 Ghyll House; £25,000, £9000, £8000, £7000, £5000 Lightfoot; £15,000 Bry Stones; £14,000, £12,000, £7000, £5000 (x2) Grayrigg Hall; £12,000 High Draymans; £12,000, £5000 Helbeck Farm; £11,000, £6500 Gatehouse Farm; £10,000 Hareden Hall Farm; £8000 (x2), Town End Farm; £8000, £6000 Bleathgill; £8000 Barras Farm; £8000, £6500 Valley Farm; £7000 Pinfold House; £6000 High Beck Head; £6000 Stanhope Gate Farm; £6000 Tennant Gill Farm; £6000, £5000 Garnthwaite; £5500 High Beck Head; £5500 Oak House; £5500 South Wellhope; £5500 Turner Hall; £5000 Bull and Cave; £5000 West Briscoe.

Friday – £32,000, £9000, £6500 Murton Hall; £25,000, £15,000, £10,000, £6000 Cotegill; £18,000, £15,000, £12,000 Rigg Farm; £18,000, £12,000 Meadow Bank; £18,000 Howith Farm; £16,000, £5000 New Hall; £15,000, £10,000, £8000, £6500, £5500 Howe Green; £14,000, £6500 Haltcliffe Farm; £11,000, £8000, £7000, £5000 High Birkwith; £9000, £7000, £5500 Overthwaite Farm; £9000 Thwaite Bridge House; £8000 Penny Grange; £8000 Catlow Farm; £7000 Allergill Farm; £5500 Kilnstown; £5000 Seal Houses.

Auctioneers: Harrison and Hetherington.