Hampshire Downs hit £1200 at Stratford

Yesterday’s show and sale of Hampshire Downs at Stratford saw the breed pass the £1000 mark when Geoff and Jean Boyles sold their tup lamb by Parkstock Pride and out of a dam by Owlesbury Stirling at £1200 to Charles and Sally Horrell for their Pode Hole flock, Peterborough. This one carries an SRS index of 232 and was subject to a fierce bidding battle late in the sale.

Next best call of £655 was made for Jim Cresswell’s pre-sale show champion from his Wattisfield flock, Diss. This exceptionally correct lamb had stood first in the tup lamb class under judge Lewis Knight and went on to take the overall championship. He’s by Wattisfield Topper and out of a dam by Wattisfield What and sold with an SRS index of 249 toJim Birkwood, Grimsby.

Then back in spending mode at £550 were Charles and Sally Horrell, when they bought the first of Henry Derryman’s tup lambs from his Yarcombe flock. This one is by Yarcombe Surprise, a son of NZ sire Bilberry Oak Supreme, and out of a dam by Owlesbury Progress and sold with an SRS index of 318.

And the Yarcombe flock took the next best call too when selling another Yarcombe Surprise son out of a dam by Yarcombe Echo for £400. This one sold to dutch breeders Gert Smit and Bert Hadderingh, Ruinen, with a massive SRS index of 324.

Jennifer Atkinson achieved the same money for an Owlesbury Yeoman son which was out of  a dam by the exceptional backended sheep Owlesbury Rapier. This one sold to Jennifer Borsey, Waen, St Asaph.

Best call among the shearling tups on offer was a £480 call for the only one on offer from Jim Cresswell, Wattisfield Top Not. This one is by Yarcombe Erroll and out of a dam by Wattisfield What Next and sold with an SRS index of 244 having stood third in the shearling class.

A select show of females met a solid demand with shearling ewes leading the way to top at £360 for a Highlander gimmer consigned by Jennifer Atkinson. She’s by Pode Hole Dragoon and out of a dam by Redhouse Xanthic. Next best was Jim Cresswell’s first prize shearling ewe, a Lakemead Knight daughter out of a dam by Wattisfield What Next which sold at £330 to Tim Hunter.

Topping the ewe lambs on offer was the female and reserve overall champion from Tim Hunter. This one is by Lindsey Thor, a multi interbreed winning sire, and of a dam by Parkstock Rambo. This one sold at £240 to Jonathan Long and Chrissie Lawrence for their Chaileybrook flock. and the next top priced entry headed back to Kent on the same load when the couple bought Phil Kettle’s fourth prize entry from the pre-sale show, a daughter of Ballyvester Mr Power out of a dam by Lindum Xtra Special.

Averages: five shearling rams £344; 12 ram lambs £445; nine shearling ewes £275; eight ewe lambs £189