James Innes’ Strathbogie flock claimed the top two prices in what was an exceptional sale of in-lamb Texel gimmers at Hetherington and Harrison livestock mart Carlisle on Saturday last.

The sale peaked at £16,000gns for a sparky Glenside Wild Boy-sired gimmer, IJS 1600671. This fantastic ewe possessed all the desired attributes of the modern Texel ewe with a super carcase, correctness throughout and that “X-Factor” which saw her being the topic of all the pre-sale talk.

The gimmer’s back-breeding matched her appearance, an embryo daughter of a Scholars Twenty Twelve dam, herself being a maternal sister to the renowned Strathbogie Smokey blue and sold carrying twins to the £32,000gns Mullan Armani. After some fierce bidding, she joined the Sportsman and Mellor Vale flock of Boden and Davis.

The second top price of the day came from the same flock to give Strathbogie a pen average of over £3,500gns for his 13 gimmers forward. This gimmer, another ET, IJS1600706 followed her aforementioned comrade, also joining the flock of Messrs Boden and Davis, Stockport.

Bidding finally ceased at £12,000gns, securing the second-highest price of the day. Sportsman used this opportunity to reinvest some of their takings from the Scottish National sale in August when they sold Sportsman A Star for £130,000gns.

This gimmer was sired by Millar’s Windbrook, from a dam by Clinerty Par One, and sold again carrying to Armani. This powerful gimmer is a maternal sister to the noted Strathbogie gimmer previously sold to Edward Pugh for £22,000.

Mr Boden then recovered some of his earlier investment when he sold the next two top prices. This brace of gimmers sold at £8,000gns each. Both headed south to Shrewsbury to the Hope Valley Flock of Mr Robert Evans. The first, BGS1602172 was sired by Mellor Vale Wild cat and out of Tullylangan Tonka-sired ewe. She sold carrying to the top-priced £70,000gns Teiglum Young Gun from the Lanark sale 2016.

The second gimmer at this sum, BGS1602163, is an ET-bred Strathbogie Whiplash daughter out of a dam by Cairnam Talisman. She was offered in-lamb to Deveronvale Aerostar.

Two more gimmers then sold at £7,000gns. The first coming from Graham Morrison’s Deveronvale flock, sired by Millar’s Windbrook and again carrying to the highly regarded Mullan Armani, and out of dam by 2015 sire of the year Glenside Razzel Dazzel. This ewe joined Sandy Lee and his Fordafourie flock.

The second ewe to fetch £7,000gns, CKP1600786, was put forward by Robert Cockburn’s Knap flock. This flashy daughter was sired by the £145,000gns Knap Vicious Sid and from an Ettrick Rainbow Warrior-sired dam. She sold in-lamb to Mullan Amigo, joining Robert Bennett’s Plasucha Flock.

Deveronvale’s second-best ewe then sold to £6,000gns, MGV1600934, a twin-born daughter of Millar’s Windbrook out of a dam by Strathbogie Terminator and in-lamb to Glenside Willie Winkie. She sold to Northern Ireland, joining the McCollam family, Co Antrim.

The best from Robbie Wilson’s Milnbank pen also sold to a top of £6,000gns. This was an exceptionally well-muscled gimmer by Glenside Valhalla. She sold carrying to the £60,000gns Strathbogie Yes Sir, being knocked down to Jemma Green.

Deveronvale continued their success, selling MGV1600964 at £5,000gns. She’s another by Millar’s Windbrook and is out of a Glenside Razzle Dazzle dam. This tight-skinned, well-bodied ewe sold to Skelbister Farms carrying to Irish breed Greenstar Alfie. Cowal sold their best at this price too, CKC1607760, an ET gimmer by Glenside Willie Winkle and out of a dam by Tullylangan Tonka.

This gimmer joins John Forsyth’s Glenside flock carrying to Plasucha All Star. Mr Forsyth then received the same money for his best sale of the day when Alistair Beaton bought his best gimmer, FPG161601267. Sired by Hexel Wild Bill and out of a dam by Mellor Vale The One, a super carcase ewe sold carrying to this year’s £130,000gns Lanark topper, Sportsmans A Star.

Gordon Gray then invested in the second best from the Knap Flock, CKP1600830, going back to Ettrick Van Gogh and out of a Milnbank Sound Investment dam. Bidding finally settled at £4,000gns for this exceptionally well skinned gimmer, carrying a pair to Mullan Amigo.