Southdowns top at 550gns at Maidstone

A highly selective trade saw Southdowns sell to a peak of 550gns at Maidstone on Saturday, with this top price paid for the second prize shearling ram from Daniel Bunting’s Golden Valley flock. This one by French sire TC70098 is out of a dam by Steepdown S38 and sold to the pre-sale judge Brian Glaves for the Brompton flock, Scraborough.

Second best in the males was a 460gns bid for a shearling from Philip Whitcombe’s Southern Cross flock. This son of Southern Cross Bradman is out of a dam by Bryvale Victor. Selling at 260gns was a shearling ram from Goodwood Estates when he joined Messrs Latham. This one is by Chaileybrook 06/0007.

And Mr Bunting led the way in the ram lambs too, selling the reserve male champion from the pre-sale show at 380gns. This was another son of TC70098 which went to Leconfield Farms, Petworth.

A brace of lambs from Jonathan Long’s Chaileybrook flock then sold at 220gns, with the first being a son of French sire TC4028 which sold to Robert Paton, while the second, again by TC4028 sold to Alison Allen.

Chaileybrook breeding was to the fore in the female trade with a pair from the flock setting the standard when selling at 260gns apiece. First at this money was a TC4028 daughter which sold to Messrs Bulmer for the Habton flock, Malton. The same buyers then paid the same price to take a Southern Cross 07/0013 daughter back to Yorkshire.

At 240gns was another shearling ewe from Chaileybrook, again by the Southern Cross sire. This one, out of a TC4028 daughter, sold to Mr Glaves.

Best of the ewe lambs was a 150gns call for the first prize lamb from the pre-sale show from Messrs Clark and Littmoden. This Southern Cross 07/0004 daughter sold to Messrs Latham.

And shortly behind that at 140gns was the best of the day from the Chaileybrook team, a Brompton 09/0026 daughter which sold to Messrs Bulmer.