Campsie Drambuie Texel sells for £65,000 Kelso record

In all, more than a third of the rams cashed were either registered or unregistered Texels, with the breed securing the day's four five-figure sales and, for the first time, the highest overall average, at £1412.72 – up a phenomenal £438 on the 2019 sale – for 657 registered shearlings.

Read more: The ultimate cross at Toftcombs

Enthusiasts did however have to wait until late in the day to see the new £65,000 record holder – Campsie Drambuie, a shearling ram from Donald MacGregor and his father Jimmy, Dyke, Milton of Campsie.

Surpassing the previous Kelso best of £35,000 paid for Scrogtonhead U Stoater in 2017, and the MacGregor's £5800 high, Campsie Drambuie sold in a two-way split to John Elliot, Roxburgh Mains, Kelso and Ken Hodge of the Greenarch flock based at Earlston.

A son of the 5500gns Ettrick Cockney Rebel bought at Lanark as a lamb in 2019, in partnership with Dalchirla Farms and Ettrick retaining a share, this big fella is bred from a ewe by the 6500gns Garngour Yeltsin.

Read more: NCCs – they’re a 'no brainer' at Attonburn

The 22-ewe flock, all of which are naturally tupped, enjoyed a flying trade, to average £14,433 for six, with five of those shearlings being sons of Cockney Rebel.

Second top price for the MacGregors was £8000 paid for their No 4, purchased by Robert Rennie, Sydenham, Kelso, with the previous lot making £6000 to Tom Cockburn, Kingside, Leadburn. These two were both bred from Garngour Yeltsin-sired dams.

Andrew Clark sold this Teiglum shearling for £20,000 Ref:RH100921108 Rob Haining / The Scottish Farmer...

Two sold for £20,000 within minutes. First was Teiglum Dirty Harry, from Andrew Clark, Blackhill, Crossford, purchased by commercial ram producer, Paul Slater, Whiteley Hey, Cheshire.

Backed by the best of breeding, he is by the 15,000gns Knock Yardsman which has produced numerous top sellers, and bred from a ewe by Fordafourie Youngstar, which is a maternal sister to £29,000 former Kelso topper, Garngour Awesome and a full sister to the 18,000gns ram, Garngour Bullet.

Mr Clark's Teiglum flock then took £5800 for the shearling ram, Knock Diablo, a Sportsmans Chieftain son bought last year. He sold to Page Farms, Ripon.

Teiglum also produced the second highest priced lamb at £3200 with a son of Procters Chumba Wumba, purchased by Craig Ridley, Haltcliffe, Hesket New Market and Sandy Hunter, Wedderburn, Huntly.

Kennedy family sold this shearling for £20,000 Ref:RH100921105 Rob Haining / The Scottish Farmer...

Matching the £20,000 sale, and achieving a personal best was Mitchellhill Diamond Star from Angus Kennedy and son, also Angus, Mitchellhill, Biggar. An AI son of the 10,000gns Canllefaes Bright Spark bought at Worcester by Dalchirla Farms, he is out of a five-year-old ewe that is still going strong by Ettrick Wagon Wheel. Diamond Star sold three-way split to Jim Gibb, Toftcombs, Biggar; Iain Minto, Townhead, Dolphinton and Jimmy Orr, Wester Walston, Carnwath.

His full ET brother from the 30-ewe flock made £6000 and was knocked down to Neil Anderson, Harehead, Cranshaws, Duns.

Neil Harvey's Blackadder flock from Duns is never far away from the top prices and he was up there again with a £15,000 sale to William and Libby McAllister, buying for their Artnagullion flock from Kells, Ballymena.

Selling at this price was Blackadder Doddie, a son of the £4000 Walston Batman bought here in 2019, out of a Wolfclyde Wawrinka daughter, one of 110 ewes in the flock.

Blackadder genetics were behind the best from Iain Minto's Townhead flock from Dolphinton, brought out with assistance of shepherd Ian Wallace, which sold to £8200, to Ian Hunter, Dalchirla Farms, Muthill, Crieff. This big lad is a by a home-bred son of the £16,000 Blackadder Albertz, a tup that is owned in partnership with Wester Walston and last year bred sons to £12,000 at Lanark for the Orrs. A natural born lamb, he is out of a ewe by Toftcombs Yorker.

Sons of Ettrick Cockney Rebel, a Garngour Awesome son, proved extremely popular for Gordon and David Gray's Ettrick flock from Selkirk, too, selling to £7500, £7200 and £6800, to average £3731 for 13.

Their No 2, which was first prize shearling at the Royal Highland Showcase and at the National show at Carlisle, is from the same family as the 17,000gns Everest and sold to Llion Jones, Pant, Gwynedd.

The third Ettrick shearling, which stood second at the Great Yorkshire, was knocked down to Chris Cornthwaite, Closes Hall, Clitheroe, and Russell and Gil Watkins, Millend, Hereford, went to £6800, for the pen leader, which stood fourth at the National show.

Another from the Grays, by the £11,000 Ettrick Cocky Bob sold last year at Lanark, made £7500, to Selby Robson, Yatesfield, Otterburn and RS McKay, Westhills, Rothbury.

John Elliot's flock from Roxburgh Mains, and Ken Hodge's Greenarch flock from Upper Huntlywood, Earlston, managed by Mr Elliot, were also in the money with AI sons of the 10,000gns Canllefaes Bright Spark.

Dearest for Mr Elliot was £7500 paid by DH Jones, Ddol, while the Greenarch consignment peaked at £6000 for a shearling purchased by John Green, The Craggs, Melrose.

There were more celebrations to come when Meikle and Ross Jackson, sold Wolfclyde Dynamo at £6500, to Roxburgh Mains. The father and son duo who run 60 ewes at Wolfclyde, Thankerton, received this money for a tup that boasts Elmscleugh genetics on both sides. The sire, Elmscleugh Bright Spark was bought here in 2019 for £5500, while the dam is by Elmscleugh Van Halen.

Alex and Russell Gray, also had a good day amongst their Suffolks, Charollais and Texels, with the latter peaking at £6000 for a son of the 23,000gns Peacehay Ya Belter, purchased by Messrs Watkins, Hereford.

Others by the same sire sold to £5200 and £5000 to Jim Pate and Sons, Toxside, Gorebridge and J Gray, Unthank, Whitingham, respectively.

Two shearlings realised £5500 to include the pen leader from Peter and Lyn Gray's Scrogtonhead pen from Cowgrove, Galston, purchased by Paul Slater, Whitely Hey. He is by Cambwell Blackadder and bred from a ewe by Clinterty Yuga Khan.

Later in the day, Allan and Karen Wight, Midlock, Crawford, received the same money for a son of Knock Bantastic also bred from a Yuga Khan daughter. The buyers were John and Craig Connell, buying for their Lauder flock from Wanton Walls.

Top price for Robert Laird's Cambwell flock from Biggar, was £5200 paid for a shearling son of Cressage Blockbuster out of a Cambwell Trademark daughter, purchased by MT Bulmer, Wellfield, York.

Just behind, on £5000 the Quick brothers from Loosebeare, Devon, sold a son of Sportsmans Bulletproof to Jonathan Watson, Bowsden Moor, Berwick upon Tweed. The dam is by Hollyford Vroom Vroom.

Ram lambs were topped at £5000 for a son of Sportsmans Cannonball from Davie Preacher, Holylee, Walkerburn, purchased by Messrs Grieve, Boreland, Peebles. The same way bred as Mr Preacher's 17,000gns topper, he is out of a ewe by Auldhouseburn Billy the Kid.

OTHERLEADING prices

Shearling rams – £4800 – A Gray and Son, Langside, to Slampton Texels. £4600 – G Gray, Ettrick, to Messrs Hedid, East Sussex. £4400 – J Watson and Co, Brijon, to Messrs Quick, Loosebeare. £4300 – JR MacGregor, Campsie, to Douganhill, Castle Douglas. £4200 – A MacGregor, Allanfauld, to N Harvey, Blackadder Mains; J Arnott, Haymount to Messrs Neill, Thornington.

£3800 – EJ and AM Fox, St Johns Kirk, to Messrs Jack, Woodend, Ross-shire; G Gray, Ettrick, to Messrs Mason, Preston. £3600 – Mrs K Wight, Midlock, to Jeanfield.

Averages: 657 registered shearling rams, £1412.72 (+£437.52 for 179 fewer); 115 registered ram lambs, £756.70 (+£240.56 for 59 fewer); 531 unregistered shearling rams, £777.40 (+£205.20 for 57 fewer)