Hawes Bluefaced Leicester and Swaledale trade up on year
A larger yarding of top-quality females met a firm enquiry at Hawes on Saturday (21 January), with trade for Bluefaced Leicester shearlings up £215 on the year and Swaledales £147 stronger overall.
A great day was had by the Smearsett flock, topping trade at £10,200 with sale champion J47 Smearsett, a Bluefaced Leicester gimmer shearling from the Booth family, Feizor, Settle.
The Booths took all first prizes in the pre-sale show.
A gimmer hogg from the Booth family made £10,200 © Wayne Hutchinson
Sired by Black Tag B13 Smearsett, the sire behind many of the flock’s best gimmers, the red ticket winner is out of the same ewe as G11 Smearsett and knocked down to a winning call from from Jack Lawson from the Hundith flock and Richard Harker, Grayrigg.
See also: More stocks and sales news
Next were two at £6,000, led by F50 Smearsett, which took reserve champion and caught the eye of Kevin Barker of the Keer flock.
She is by the 7,800gns C1 Shafthill, out of Black Tag’s dam and has already produced sires making £4,500 and £3,500.
Also at this money was the Hewgill flock with a powerful and stylish lamb from the E1 and D17 Hewgill lines. She knocked down to the Glenshane flock of Michael McKenna, Northern Ireland.
Elsewhere, the Bull and Cave flock dispersal saw 31 sheep level at £1,130, topping at £5,200 for two-crop ewe E23 Bull and Cave, a B3 Barley daughter out of Y30 Lunesdale.
She knocked down to Richard Hargreaves from the Barley flock and is in lamb with twins to G35 Midlock.
Swaledales
A strong female ewe entry levelled at £1,113, with 36 lots forward. Trade peaked at £4,800 with a ewe from Patrick Morris-Eyton, Millom, Cumbria, who saw £3,000 for his other ewe.
Patrick Morris Eyton topped Swaledale trade at £4,800 © Wayne Hutchinson
Securing second place in its class, the trade topper caught the eye of T Brogden, Brough, Cumbria. She was sired by a Paul Hallam tup that was by Patch and out of a Skidmore draft ewe and is in lamb with Kisdon Jimmy Choo twins.
Next in the money and in first place was a ewe from W Richardson and Son, Ghyll House, knocking down at £4,000 to J Nattrass, Alston.
Herdwicks
Trade hit £520 for an offering from TW and JR Rebanks, Matterdale End, selling to KM and L Throup, Silsden Moor.
A total of 24 lots saw gimmer hoggs to £180, levelling at £127, and gimmer shearlings to £380, levelling at £259.
Borderway Leicesters
Averages were up £87.87 on the year at Borderway’s Bluefaced Leicester female sale on Monday (23 January) and hit 6,800gns with “strong demand” for all types.
Leading the sale was J58 Skeughdale, a full sister to £14,000 H1 Skeughdale, exhibited by George, Gerry and Josh Shields, Ravenstondale, Kirkby Stephen. He caught the eye of Keith Ireland, Kirkland, Frizington.
H1 Skeughdale sister J58 Skeughdale © Wayne Hutchinson
She is by the home-bred G18 Skeughdale, which has sired significant numbers of top-pen lambs that have sold to £470, and out of a ewe by A3 Hewgill.
The day’s champion, J51 Kirkby Redgate from Richard Hutchinson, knocked down to Lee Beacom, Lakeview Blues, County Tyrone for 6,500gns.
This sharp and stylish lamb is out of a £5,000 daughter of B41 Hewgill and by G17 Marriforth.
Averages: Hawes Bluefaced Leicesters: ewes, £1,406; shearlings, £1,333 (+£215); hoggs, £1,196 (+£89). Swaledales: ewes, £1,113 (+£437); shearlings, £757 (-£298); hoggs, £263 (-£55).
Borderway: 21 ewes, £690 (-£529.37); 75 ewe lambs, £1,228.69 (+£168.68); 87 gimmers, £1,211.97 (+£240.33). (Hawes Farmers’ Auction) (Harrison and Hetherington)