The Irish Texel Sheep Society held its premier sale in Blessington Mart on Saturday last. Nearly 300 sheep packed the stalls before going through the ring to record the society’s most successful sale to date.
Shearling ewes sold through the ring to average €853, while 22 ewe lambs settled at €721. The males fared even better, with 43 shearling rams selling to average €750.
However, it was the ram lambs which set the sale alight, with 111 selling to average €1,341. This means 154 rams met trade to average €1,175, up over €150 on the year.
Leading the charge and selling for the fourth-highest price at a Texel premier was a ram lamb from Neville Myles’ Silver Hill flock based in Ballyshannon, Co Donegal.
€15,000 highseller from the Silver Hill flock \ MacGregor Photography
This January-born ram is steeped with a top-priced pedigree, with his sire Strathbogie Yes Sir selling for £60,000 and his grandsire Castlecairn Vavavoom making a notable 38,000gns.
A firm favourite with breeders in attendance, the Silver Hill pen seemed to have a crowd surrounding it throughout the two-day event. Securing the high-seller was Northern Ireland breeder Danny McKay.
The high prices didn’t stop at that, with a further 21 lots making €2,000 or more. To put this in perspective, this is double the number that made €2,000 or more at last year’s premier.
Next highest at a price of €9,500 was Sligo-based Ronan Gallagher with a ram lamb from his Enniscrone flock.
Enniscrone ram which sold for €9,500 \ MacGregor Photography
This ram came with an excellent show record behind him, placing top of the males at the recent Texel national championships in Kilkenny.
Sired by the 32,000gns Tophill Wall Street, who also sired last year’s 17,000gns top seller, he is out of a full sister to the 2015 Blessington female champion. The hammer dropped to KJ McBarron, Co Antrim.
Daire and Enda McManamon from Newport, Co Mayo, realised €6,200 for their top ram Derrylahan Big Balls. This February 2018-born ram lamb is sired by well-known breeder Knock Yazoo and out of a well-grown Knock Reebok daughter.
This ewe carried five stars on the terminal index and found a new home with Flor Ryan, Naas, Co Kildare.
Directly after Big Balls was ET full brother Derrylahan Bagatelle, who sold for €2,600 to Limerick breeder Robert Walker.
Wexford native Liam Dillion put down a weekend to remember in both the sales and show ring. Top of his lots at €5,000 was the ram lamb Kilclammon Brody.
Kilclammon Brody which sold for €5,000 \ MacGregor Photography
This February-born ram is sired by Arkle A One and out of a maternal sister to the 20,000gns Knock Travis.
With five stars on both the terminal and replacement index, Brody found a new home with Shane McHugh, Co Donegal.
The success didn’t stop there for young Dillion. Having claimed the reserve supreme and overall female championships the previous day, the champion ewe went on to sell for the top female price of €4,000.
Female champion and top priced female at €4,000 from the Kilclammon flock \ MacGregor Photography
Born February 2017, this stylish ewe comes with a proven show record, having placed as reserve female champion at last year’s all-Ireland finals.
Sired by Knap You’re The Man, she is out of a daughter of former sire of the year Oberstown Usain Bolt. Successful bidder of the female champion was Kilkenny-based Paddy Morrissey.
Ronan Gallagher was back in the money when he sold his second ram for €3,700. This was another son of the 32,000gns Tophill Wall Street, while the dam was purchased privately from the Clarke Teiglum flock.
This one was knocked down the way of Ronald Edwards from Letterkenny, Co Donegal. Not stopping there, Ronan went on to sell a third lamb for €3,000, this one a full ET brother to the €3,700 ram. Securing this one was Tom Bailey, Batterstown, Co Meath.
Topping a highly successful day for Liam Dillion, his second-top ram Kilclammon Bertram sold for €2,700. The 20,000gns Knap You’re The Man was again the sire behind this high-flyer, while the dam is a homebred ewe by Cherryvale Ringmaster. Acquiring Bertram was Meath breeder Pascal Keogh.
Roger Strawbridge of the Tamnamoney Texel flock in Northern Ireland was given the task of judging the pre-sale show and he found his overall champion in a ram lamb from Patrick Joyce’s Recess flock.
This stylish lamb is sired by the aforementioned Knock Yazoo, while the dam goes back to Garngour Vintage. The champion now heads to Meath with new owner Brian Kirkham at a price of €2,500.
Patrick Joyce’s champion ram from the Recess flock sold for €2,500 \ MacGregor Photography
Matching the champion at the money was Chaylee and Lorinne Green’s Greenstar Boomerang.
Sired by Scotsman Ace, Boomerang is out of a full sister to the 2017 Balmoral Texel champion. This one heads back to Donegal with successful bidder Charlie Doherty.
Reserve male championship honours went the way of well-known breeder John Neville of the Thornville flock in Co Wexford.
Reserve male champion Thornville Better Class which sold for €2,400 \ MacGregor Photography
His February 2018-born ram lamb Thornville Better Class is sired by a homebred ram and carries five stars on the terminal index. Dam of Better Class is the best ewe in the flock and a full sister to the 32,000gns Garngour Upper Class.
After back and forth bidding, the reserve champion was eventually knocked down to Paddy Morrissey.
The reserve female championship went the way of Michael Dwyer’s Oran flock. His first-prizewinning ewe lamb was sired by Strathbogie Ya Belter, while the dam is a full sister to the reserve female champion at Blessington 2016. This one was knocked down to Arthur and Patrick O’Keeffe, Mallow, Co Cork, at €1,400.
The Irish Texel Sheep Society held its premier sale in Blessington Mart on Saturday last. Nearly 300 sheep packed the stalls before going through the ring to record the society’s most successful sale to date.
Shearling ewes sold through the ring to average €853, while 22 ewe lambs settled at €721. The males fared even better, with 43 shearling rams selling to average €750.
However, it was the ram lambs which set the sale alight, with 111 selling to average €1,341. This means 154 rams met trade to average €1,175, up over €150 on the year.
Leading the charge and selling for the fourth-highest price at a Texel premier was a ram lamb from Neville Myles’ Silver Hill flock based in Ballyshannon, Co Donegal.
€15,000 highseller from the Silver Hill flock \ MacGregor Photography
This January-born ram is steeped with a top-priced pedigree, with his sire Strathbogie Yes Sir selling for £60,000 and his grandsire Castlecairn Vavavoom making a notable 38,000gns.
A firm favourite with breeders in attendance, the Silver Hill pen seemed to have a crowd surrounding it throughout the two-day event. Securing the high-seller was Northern Ireland breeder Danny McKay.
The high prices didn’t stop at that, with a further 21 lots making €2,000 or more. To put this in perspective, this is double the number that made €2,000 or more at last year’s premier.
Next highest at a price of €9,500 was Sligo-based Ronan Gallagher with a ram lamb from his Enniscrone flock.
Enniscrone ram which sold for €9,500 \ MacGregor Photography
This ram came with an excellent show record behind him, placing top of the males at the recent Texel national championships in Kilkenny.
Sired by the 32,000gns Tophill Wall Street, who also sired last year’s 17,000gns top seller, he is out of a full sister to the 2015 Blessington female champion. The hammer dropped to KJ McBarron, Co Antrim.
Daire and Enda McManamon from Newport, Co Mayo, realised €6,200 for their top ram Derrylahan Big Balls. This February 2018-born ram lamb is sired by well-known breeder Knock Yazoo and out of a well-grown Knock Reebok daughter.
This ewe carried five stars on the terminal index and found a new home with Flor Ryan, Naas, Co Kildare.
Directly after Big Balls was ET full brother Derrylahan Bagatelle, who sold for €2,600 to Limerick breeder Robert Walker.
Wexford native Liam Dillion put down a weekend to remember in both the sales and show ring. Top of his lots at €5,000 was the ram lamb Kilclammon Brody.
Kilclammon Brody which sold for €5,000 \ MacGregor Photography
This February-born ram is sired by Arkle A One and out of a maternal sister to the 20,000gns Knock Travis.
With five stars on both the terminal and replacement index, Brody found a new home with Shane McHugh, Co Donegal.
The success didn’t stop there for young Dillion. Having claimed the reserve supreme and overall female championships the previous day, the champion ewe went on to sell for the top female price of €4,000.
Female champion and top priced female at €4,000 from the Kilclammon flock \ MacGregor Photography
Born February 2017, this stylish ewe comes with a proven show record, having placed as reserve female champion at last year’s all-Ireland finals.
Sired by Knap You’re The Man, she is out of a daughter of former sire of the year Oberstown Usain Bolt. Successful bidder of the female champion was Kilkenny-based Paddy Morrissey.
Ronan Gallagher was back in the money when he sold his second ram for €3,700. This was another son of the 32,000gns Tophill Wall Street, while the dam was purchased privately from the Clarke Teiglum flock.
This one was knocked down the way of Ronald Edwards from Letterkenny, Co Donegal. Not stopping there, Ronan went on to sell a third lamb for €3,000, this one a full ET brother to the €3,700 ram. Securing this one was Tom Bailey, Batterstown, Co Meath.
Topping a highly successful day for Liam Dillion, his second-top ram Kilclammon Bertram sold for €2,700. The 20,000gns Knap You’re The Man was again the sire behind this high-flyer, while the dam is a homebred ewe by Cherryvale Ringmaster. Acquiring Bertram was Meath breeder Pascal Keogh.
Roger Strawbridge of the Tamnamoney Texel flock in Northern Ireland was given the task of judging the pre-sale show and he found his overall champion in a ram lamb from Patrick Joyce’s Recess flock.
This stylish lamb is sired by the aforementioned Knock Yazoo, while the dam goes back to Garngour Vintage. The champion now heads to Meath with new owner Brian Kirkham at a price of €2,500.
Patrick Joyce’s champion ram from the Recess flock sold for €2,500 \ MacGregor Photography
Matching the champion at the money was Chaylee and Lorinne Green’s Greenstar Boomerang.
Sired by Scotsman Ace, Boomerang is out of a full sister to the 2017 Balmoral Texel champion. This one heads back to Donegal with successful bidder Charlie Doherty.
Reserve male championship honours went the way of well-known breeder John Neville of the Thornville flock in Co Wexford.
Reserve male champion Thornville Better Class which sold for €2,400 \ MacGregor Photography
His February 2018-born ram lamb Thornville Better Class is sired by a homebred ram and carries five stars on the terminal index. Dam of Better Class is the best ewe in the flock and a full sister to the 32,000gns Garngour Upper Class.
After back and forth bidding, the reserve champion was eventually knocked down to Paddy Morrissey.
The reserve female championship went the way of Michael Dwyer’s Oran flock. His first-prizewinning ewe lamb was sired by Strathbogie Ya Belter, while the dam is a full sister to the reserve female champion at Blessington 2016. This one was knocked down to Arthur and Patrick O’Keeffe, Mallow, Co Cork, at €1,400.
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