NSA South West Ram Sale
Date: 18th August 2021
Location: Exeter Livestock Centre
This year saw all the sheep being sold through two cattle rings to make use of the MartEye selling platform and the top price Charollais was sold online. Texel females started the day in Ring 1 with females being sold first. Star of the show was a shearling ewe from Ben Roberts that had been female and overall champion selling for 1,400gns. There was a good trade for the shearlings with several selling at over 600gns for various vendors and ewe lambs sold to 300gns. The 26 females on offer averaged £519.
Aged rams made 500gns for Robert and Rebecca Jordan and Angus and Sue Howie made 450gns for a ram lamb with the average for those sold being £394.
There was a flying trade for the shearling rams with the average being £218 up on 2020 for the same number sold. Leading the way at 1,450gns was one from Phil and Lesley Martyn-Uglow and averaging £918 for 10 sold. EW Quick and Sons had their usual impressive consignment that sold to a top of 1,400 gns and a tremendous average of £1,001 for 14. Others selling at 1,000gns or above were Malcolm Coumbe and family to 1,300 gns, Joanna Killin to 1,200gns and Michael Lear, FH Chave and Son and Henry Summerhayes’ reserve champion to 1,000gns. 104 shearlings sold averaged £785.
Suffolks were next into the ring and what a tremendous day it was for them. Robin and Emma Irwin sold a ram lamb for 4,200gns (on the phone) to RH Black in Fife – top price of the sale and also a record price for Exeter Livestock Centre and the NSA South West Region sale and the 13 ram lambs averaged £672. Shearlings had a great day with a top price of 1,400gns from EW Quick and Sons and Nicky Hartwright with another four over 1,000gns to average just under £1,000 for 13 sheep. HC Derryman and Sons topped at 1,220gns with two others over 1,000gns and Andrew and Wendy Reed sold to 1,000 x 4. 56 shearling rams averaged £759 and two ewe lambs for the late Mike Waycott averaged £399.
Last in this ring were the crossbreds with a top of 750gns for a Suffolk x Beltex from Andrew and Wendy Reed.
Ring 2 was various breeds and the first in the ring was a Rouge shearling from Anthony Carter for 450gns. HC Derryman and Sons made 900gns for a Romney destined for Scotland. Blue Texels topped at 280gns for a shearling ram from the Kimber family.
There was a large number of Beltex sheep forward and the females had a good trade topping at 650gns for a shearling ewe from Colin Roots. John Howieson and family topped the ewe lambs at 400gns. There was a selective trade for the shearling rams to a top of 650gns for Louise Elworthy.
Adrian Dufosee sold a Polled Dorset shearling to 650gns.
This was an official sale for the Roussin Society with shearling ewes to 300gns for Sue Martyn two times over and David Prouse and shearling rams also to 300gns for Sue Martyn and Anthony Carter.
There was a large entry of Lleyns and the long journey for the Jones family from Machynlleth – their first time at the sale – was rewarded with a top price of 900gns with their other 4 all making over 500gns.
There was keen interest in the Charollais for both males and females. Gerald Burrough sold older ewes to 450gns and Carol Irwin topped the shearlings at 550gns. Ewe lambs sold to 450gns for Ben and Amelia Watts. Gerald Burrough won Overall Champion and this was the first ram through the ring making 1,000gns with another at the same price. Tom Newth had the top priced shearling at 1,250gns. 43 shearlings were sold and averaged £632 an increase of £130 on the year. The highlight of the Charollais sale came with the last ram lamb and Reserve Champion through the ring for Laura Monk when some spirited bidding resulted in a sale of 2,000gns on MartEye. 29 ram lambs - 50% more than 2020 - sold to average £423 – up £75 on the year.
David Gwynne, another regular vendor from Wales sold Berrichons to 600gns and the Derryman family sold their Hampshires to 500gns.
Border Leicesters were the last breed through the MV ring and attracted keen bidding from across the UK. Shearling ewes were forward for the first time for many years and topped at 650gns twice for Sue Martyn with WR & HD Norrish selling in the Non MV ring to 380gns and the nine ewes forward averaged £419. Shearling rams sold to 500gns for MJ & VM Pile.
In the Non MV ring Bluefaced Leicesters from Richard Turner sold to 400gns twice and Berrichon’s from Malcolm and Kathy Yeo topped at 450gns.
The committee would like to thank Kivells and their staff for all their hard work before and on sale day, our team of inspectors and an army of volunteers who help to make the day such a success but especially our vendors and purchasers. We look forward to seeing you all again on August 17th 2022.!
