The breeding sheep sales got off to a lively start in Ballymena on Saturday with the annual sale of Suffolk Cheviot and Continental cross hoggets and ewe lambs.

Topping the sale by a long way at £340 was Diane Gibson from Newtonabbey’s first of 14 pens of Suffolk Cheviot hoggets. The top-priced pen was also placed first in the Suffolk Cheviot show before the sale.

Patrick Donnelly from Rathkenny had the second placed pen of Suffolk Cheviots that sold for £190, with his first pen of hoggets selling immediately before this for £195. Coming third in the show was Desmond Knox from Kesh, with a pen of hoggets that went for the second highest price on the day of £200.

A show of Texel cross hoggets also took place before the sale and was topped by N. McGarrigle from Irvinestown with a pen of 14 that sold for £165.

Ewe lambs

In the far ring, Shaun Irvine auctioned off the ewe lambs with Logan Anderson from Kilwaughter taking the top price for ewe lambs on the day at £142 for a pen of Suffolk Cheviots. He then received £115 for his second pen and Tony Rogers from Broughshane sold his top pen of Suffolk Cheviot ewe lambs for £112.

Further coverage of the sale will feature in next week’s edition of the Irish Farmers Journal and on www.farmersjournal.ie

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