Dark Diamond Export Sale

This year’s instalment hosted the first multi vendor Export sale In the Country, with plenty of interest internationally and a number of sheep going to Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, Portugal and Spain.

Topping the sale at 16,000gns was a Kings ewe lamb from TA Irwin & Son, Devon. This lamb was sired by the Irish ram Castlewood Shark. She sold to Mr Evan’s Rhaeadr flock.

Mrs Helen Goldie, Harpercroft, Kilmarnock, bought the first Kings ewe lamb, which goes back to a 13,000gns Cairness gimmer, at 3500gns. She is a direct daughter of Roundacre Manu and out of a ewe by Birness Bang Tidy.

Melvin Stuart and family, Milltown of Birness, Ellon, sold the equal highest priced gimmer at 6000gns to Craig Paterson, of the Cranorskie flock, Aberchirder, Huntly. His purchase is by the 2020 Sire of the Year, Salopian Scuderia, a shared tup that has bred sons to 40,000gns, and out of a ewe by Crewelands Megastar. She changed hands carrying a single to this year’s new stock ram, Ballynacannon Bazinga, bought at Lanark.

The family’s sole ewe lamb, by Mogford Major, a tup purchased jointly for 5500gns at Shrewbury, was another to make the grade, attracting a 3200gns bid from James Wallace, Claycrop, Stranraer. Her dam is by Ballynacannon Noah.

Alastair Gault of the Forkins flock from Newtownabbey, Northern Ireland, was in fine form producing the lead flock average at £3255 for six, when selling the second gimmer at 6000gns and a ewe lamb at 5500gns.

The former, a daughter of the €32,000 Cloontagh Chieftain, is bred from a ewe by Broomknowes Touch of Class, that has bred sons to 4000gns. Harry Lyons of Cloudside Suffolks, Congleton, Cheshire, was the last man in on this entry which sold due with twin lambs to Forkins Masterplan, a son of Birness Freedom that has produced progeny to 10,000gns.

Selling back across the Irish Sea, the 5500gns Forkins ewe lamb was purchased by Richard Henderson, Magherafelt. Bred from the same family as the 26,000gns Forkins McCoy, she is the result of a flush from a ewe by Forkins Black Gold that has bred lambs to 6000gns and sired by the €44,000 Ballinatone Show Stopper that stood male champion at Balmoral in May.

On the debit side, Mr Gault went to 4000gns for a gimmer carrying triplets to Forkins Samson, from Jim Cannon, Redbrae, Wigtown. This year’s show gimmer, she is maternal sister to the 4000gns Redbrae female sold last year here to Harpercroft, being bred from a ewe by Strathbogie Samurai and sired by Benedyglen Black Caviar.

Top price for Jimmy Douglas’ Cairness flock, Fraserburgh, was 5000gns paid by Arthur O’Keefe, Mallow, Co Cork, for a gimmer by Cairnton Prince, a tup that has bred sons to 30,000gns for John Gibb’s Cairnton flock. Bred from a ewe by Cavanagrove Catalyst daughter, she changed hands carrying a pair to Frongoy Fire Power.

Dennis Taylor’s Ballynacannon flock from Macosquin, Coleraine, was another in the money with two gimmer daughters of the 26,000gns Birness Freedom, selling for 4000gns each. The first, bred from a ewe by Lakeview Innuendo, and scanned carrying triplets to the 40,000gns Lakeview Fury, was purchased by Messrs Graca, Portugal.

The second, which is a maternal sister a 15,000gns gimmer sold to Sportmans, being out of a ewe by Mountford Mustang, also sold with a pair to Fury, to Islay breeder, S Woodrow, Port Charlotte.

Other ewe lambs reached 3400gns and 3200gns, with the former, from Lesley and Mervyn Liggett of the Carony flock from Drumquin, Co Tyrone, selling back across the Irish Sea with Norman Robinson of the Benrafton flock from Downpatrick. An ET sister to a 2000gns female at the Big Bang sale, she is the result of a flush from a 2800gns Rhaeadr ewe lamb by Limestone Lightning and sired by Ballinatone Show Stopper.

The 3200gns entry, from John Gibb and his daughter Sophia’s Cairnton flock from Fraserburgh, was purchased by Jimmy Douglas, Cairness. Her pedigree features the Creagislay Cracker-sired, Cairnton Prince that was retained for breeding, and a ewe by Millhouse Remarkable. Her grand-dam bred this year’s top priced Suffolk, Cairnton Chaos which made 75,000gns.

Flock Averages
Kings Flock – 2 @ £10,237
Forkins Flock – 6 @ £3255
Birness Flock – 11 @ £2701
Cairness Flock – 5 @ £2163
Ballynacannon Flock – 8 @ £2008
Redbrae Flock – 4 @ £1942

Sale Averages
17 Ewe Lambs @ £2776.32
77 Gimmers @ £1628.86