UA Stirling Shearling Sale

UA Stirling Shearling Sale

578 shearling rams averaged £1544.98 (+£152 for 9 fewer sold).

The Dunlop family – Willie and sons, Quintin and William – had a day to remember at Stirling Blackface ram sale, achieving the lead price in both the shearling and ram lamb rings, with rams from their Elmscleugh flock at Dunbar.

They topped the trade with a shearling ram at £45,000, while a strong commercial demand, and a further four shearling rams at five-figure prices, ensured an average price of £1544.98 for 578 shearling rams – an increase of £152 per head on last year’s sale.

The £45,000 seller, which is the best Stirling price to-date for the 2000-strong Elmscleugh flock, is sired by a home-bred son of £60,000 Dyke, while the dam is by a son of £60,000 Loughash. He was knocked down to Alastair and David MacArthur, Nunnerie, Elvanfoot, Biggar.

From the same pen, another Elmscleugh shearling, by the same sire as the first and out of a different ewe by the son of £60,000 Loughash, sold at £10,000, to Joe Burnett, Rhodders, Alva. Another from the pen of 12, made £4200, to John and Richard Wood, Kingledores, Stobo. That one is sired by a £4000 Nunnerie.

Second top shearling price was £35,000, for one from Alan McClymont, and sons, Sam and Oliver, who run 2000 Blackface ewes between Kirkstead and Dryhope, Yarrow. This boy, from the 850-ewe Kirkstead flock, is sired by £32,000 Dyke, bought at Lanark two years ago, while the dam is by £40,000 Burncastle. He sold to Dan Walton, Wanwood Hill, Alston.

Next best for Kirkstead was one at £4200, which went to A and J MacPherson, Abersky, Dores. He’s sired by a £3800 Kirkstead sold last year.

Two shearlings hit the £14,000 mark, including the best from Willie Graham and son, Billy, Craigdarroch, Sanquhar. He is sired by a home-bred son of £32,000 Elmscleugh which the Grahams used before selling at Stirling last year for £4200. Out of a ewe by a home-bred son of £2200 Midlock, that one went to Gavin Donald, for his Windhill flock at Sandford and Greg Frame, for the Craigenhill flock at Hamilton, with the Grahams retaining a third share.

Also from Craigdarroch, was one at £8000, sired by a home-bred son of £11,000 Milnmark which was used before being sold at Lanark last year for £5000. Out of a ewe by a home-bred son of £17,000 Dyke, he sold in a two-way split to Andy Paton, Craig, Straiton, and Danny Hair, Drumbreddan, Ardwell.

The other at £14,000 was sold late in the day, by Burncastle Farming, Lauder, managed by Alan Rogerson. Sired by £32,000 Glenrath, he is out of a ewe by £2000 Burncastle, a home-bred son of £25,000 Elmscleugh. That one was knocked down to PA Junor, Ballachraggan, Torness.

At £9000 was a shearling from the Hamiltons’ Crosswoodhill flock, managed by John Robertson at West Calder. He is a son of a £4500 Dyke, out of a daughter of £5500 Blackhouse, and sold to the McClymonts’ Kirkstead flock at Yarrow.

The Ramsay family, Milnmark, Dalry, produced some excitement early on in the sale, with their consignment selling to a top of £8500, for a son of a £45,000 Auldhouseburn, out of a ewe that had been sired by a son of Belter – the £45,000 Drannandow. Buyer was WS Robson, Yatesfield, Otterburn.

Best for Archie and John MacGregor’s Allanfauld consignment, from their Kilsyth-based flock, was £8000, for a shearling son of a £10,000 Glenrath, out of a ewe by £70,000 Glenrath. He went to JB Pate and Sons, Toxside, Gorebridge.

Una Hodge sold to a top of £6800 for shearlings from her Kirkland flock at Sanquhar. That one, sired by a home-bred son of a South Cobbinshaw sire, went to Corrylorn Farm, Kilninver, Oban.

Top for Keith and Andrew Campbell’s Overburns consignment, from near Biggar, was £5800, for one sired by a home-bred son of £8200 Dyke, out of the show ewe, a daughter of £32,000 Dalchirla. He sold to A MacDonald, Ess and Dalbuiack, Carrbridge.

The Kay family, Gass, Straiton, achieved a top of £5200, with that one selling to Gary Thornborrow, Fruid, Tweedsmuir, and Malcolm Coubrough, Whelphill, Symington. He is by a son of £48,000 Midlock, out of a ewe by £80,000 Auldhouseburn.

Three rams hit the £5000 mark, including one from the Bennies at Merkins, Gartocharn. Sired by a £70,000 Dalchirla, he went to K Taylor and Sons, Dall, Killin.

Jimmy and Donald MacGregor, Dyke, Milton of Campsie, also hit a top of £5000, with that son of £160,000 Dyke selling to Glenfernate Estate, Blairgowrie.

Likewise, Ian Hunter’s Dalchirla pen, from Crieff, also peaked at £5000, for a son of £23,000 Dalchirla, which sold to HR McCulloch, Kilmichael, Bute.

One from the Renwicks’ Williamhope consignment from Clovenfords, made £4500, and was another to sell to the Patons at Craig, Straiton. He is a son of a home-bred tup sold at Lanark last year for £5500.

Other leading prices:

£4000 – S McClymont and Son, Tinnis, Yarrow, to GS McClymont, Cuil, Panmure; A Kennedy and Son, Mitchellhill, Biggar, to WA Penny, Cranshaws, Duns; A Kennedy and Son, Mitchellhill, Biggar, to A MacFadyen and Son, Bragleenmore, Kilninver; Dalchirla Farms, to AJ Robb, Townhead, Stirling; Burncastle Farming, to A and J MacPherson, Abersky, Dores.