A new club record was achieved at the Northern Area Club Sale, Skipton, when Peter Longdin’s Wellingly Emperors sold at 7000gns.
This son of the £100,000 Sportsmans Batman is out of a dam by Wellingley Whiskey Galore and sold in a 50:50 split between Cheshire’s Ken Hodge, Greenarch Texels in Mobberley, and John Elliot, Roxburgh, Kelso.
The Longdins followed up with a further sale highlight when hitting second top price of 4800gns with Wellingley Elliott. This time by the Beautry Achilles son, Hornacott Commander, he is out of a another ewe bred by Whiskey Galore and which joined D H Ryder, Otley. Two other Longdin shearling rams made 2000gns and 1800gns, their six-strong consignment selling to an overall average of £3115.
Other keenly sought sheep produced a 3500gns sale for the first prize winner in the texelplus shearling ram show class from East Yorkshire father and son, Jack and Mark Lucas, who run the Fimber flock. Their Fimber Emperor is a son of Rugley Bonzo and is out of an Ettrick Tartan Special-sired dam. He too was claimed by the Hodge and Elliot partnership,
The two other rosette winners in the same show class both hit four figures, the runner-up from Jennifer Aiken’s Coniston flock in Wennington, Coniston Excalibur, a son of Mullan Chancellor, out of a Rugley Best Ever-sired dam, making 3000gns, her trio forward averaging £1960.
The third prize winner from Steve Richardson’s Stonebridge flock, Stonebridge Ernie, by Hilltop Cobra, bred out of a Bregagh Barney dam, got away at 1600gns, with two further Stonebridge shearling rams doing better at 1800gns each, the six-strong Stonebridge consignment averaging £1575.
The Procters Farm flock managed by Jeff Aiken saw its shearling rams top at 2500gns, with two others at 1800gns, plus another at 1400gns for the third prize winner in the main shearling rams show class. The eight forward sold to average £1496.
Two more shearling rams from Ben Marsden’s Liley flock in Penistone and the Pawson family’s Yellow Hill flock in Blackburn got away at 2200gns each.
John Green’s Greenall consignment topped at 1800gns for a Teiglum Crackerjack son, Greenall Embark, which earned a price tag of 1800gns, as did a second shearling ram from the same home.
In the ram lambs it was the Alwent flock of Stephen Nesbitt, Winston, Darlington, which headed the section at 2000gns with Alwent Foremost, a February-born Sportsmans Batman son bred out of a ewe by Sportsmans Tremendous II, which ranked in the top 5% of the breed. The top price performer sold to Jonathan Watson, for the Brijon flock, Northumberland
Mr Nesbitt also picked up third prize rosettes in the two ram lamb show classes, one bred the same as their section-topping lamb doing best at 900gns, plus another at the same price, one more at 1000gns. Five Nesbitt ram lambs averaged £1113.
Charles Ashbridge, who runs the Hambleton flock in Cold Kirby, Thirsk, accounted for the second top ram lamb price of 1200gns with Hambleton Fireball, a March-born Allanfauld Dare Devil son, which sold to the Keighley family’s Manderlea flock, Otley. Another Ashbridge ram lamb hit 1000gns, the four forward successfully sold to average £853
The texelplus ram lamb show class winner went on to be crowned first male, then overall supreme champion courtesy of Long Preston show judge John Mellin. This was Procters First Class, a lamb by the 70,000gns Bradleys Eubank. He sold for 1000gns to J G Sutherton, Doncaster.
Champion Texel from Procters Farm Ltd.
Females
Turning to the females, prices peaked at 1600gns, then 1300gns, both for shearling ewes from Scottish Borders breeder John Green’s Greenall flock, Lilliesleaf. The top price performer, a daughter of Teiglum Crackerjack, out of a dam by the homebred Greenall Yaya Toure, went to Nidderdale with Martin Brown, Lofthouse.
The second top price, by the same sire and out of a dam by Ettrick Tartan Special, joined R S & A Percy in Masham.
David Houghton saw his first prize shearling ewe later tapped out as female and reserve overall champion. This daughter of Sportsmans Desert Star, sold for 1000gns to D Pearson, Tadcaster.
The second prize shearling ewe and reserve female champion came from Sam and Sarah Beachell. She is by Garngour Double D and out of a bought-in Milnbank ewe by Cowal Bucking Bronco. This one made1100gns when again joining the Percys.
Show regular Chris Riby’s Stonehills flock hit 1100gns with a shearling ewe by Sportsmans Cannon Ball and out of a Claybury Yates-sired dam. The buyer was Mark Phillips, Castle Douglas.
The first prize ewe lamb came from new breeders Stephen Peel and Helen Johnson’s Washburn Valley flock. Their March-born daughter of Garngour Alabama, out of a Knock Crackerjack-sired dam, topped its section prices when going for 500gns to Kimberley Pickering, Gowthorpe.
Averages; shearling rams £1121, ram lambs £476.07, shearling ewes £464, ewe lambs £278.25 (Craven Cattle Marts).