SALE SUMMARY
2017 2016
Offered 66 83
Sold 63 74
Top $52,000 $40,000
Av $12,814 $8845
MOORUNDIE Poll Merino stud, Keith, completed the hat trick, topping the SA Stud Merino and Poll Merino ram sale at Adelaide on Friday for the third year in a row.
A 20.1 micron autumn shorn ram offered by Geoff and Bernadette Davidson was knocked down for $52,000.
After winning a class of 40 entries PB388 went on to be the champion medium wool March shorn Poll Merino ram, two days prior to the sale.
The 108 kilogram ram caught the eye of many in pre-sale inspections with its exceptional wool quality and impressive wool tests including a standard deviation of 3.0 and comfort factor of 99.8 per cent.
Mr Davidson said it was one of the best woolled ram they had offered for sale with “great staple length and rich nourished wool.”
“It has got a very special wool growing skin with great length of body and comes from a family we have developed over four generations which goes back to a ram we purchased for $50,000,” he said.
The son of – a ram sold at Adelaide in 2015 – was used as a ram lamb.
“As a young sheep it had tremendous whiteness through the summer rains,” Mr Davidson said.
The successful buyers were WA studs Pyramid Poll, Esperance and Wiringa Park, Nyabing, who outlasted strong bidding from the Daniell family’s White River stud, Poochera.
Pyramid Poll stud principal Scott Pickering said the 15-month-old was the best polled ram in the shed with great structure and offered an outcross for both studs.
“I knew I probably couldn’t get him on my own so I spoke to Allan (Hobley) and we went half shares,” he said. “We thought he was actually going to make a lot more money so we had a bit more up our sleeve.
Semen shares have been sold in PB388 to Minta stud, Mount Cooper and Brimanna stud, Cummins.
It continued a dream run for Moorundie which has also taken top price honours at the Hamilton Sheepvention sale for the past two years.
The Adelaide catalogue of 66 rams was considerably smaller than 2016 but there were plenty of memorable highs as buyers recognised the depth of quality.
Fourteen rams made $20,000 or more as stud breeders went on a genetic splurge reinvesting the proceeds from their buoyant on-property sales.
This helped lift the average nearly $4000 on 2016.
In the breakdown the 19 SA and one Vic vendor sold 63 of 66 rams for a $12,814 average.
The Sullivan families, Greenfields stud, Hallett sold their reserve grand champion March shorn Poll Merino ram for the sale’s $36,000 second top price.
The stylish medium wool son of Mianelup P55 is bound for Minta and Brimanna studs, who also secured Lot 17 for $20,000.
Greenfields also sold the sale’s $31,000 top priced Merino ram.
Its seven rams averaged a fantastic $23,429.
Fellow Mid North breeders George and Sophie Millington, Collinsville stud, Hallett sold their lead ram for $34,000 to be exported to Larguna Del Toro stud, Argentina.
Their three rams averaged $28,000.
Also at $34,000 Nick and Kate Wadlow, Old Ashrose stud, Hallett, sold a top wool 20.0M to the Hams family, Broadoak stud, Whyte Yarcowie.
“It has rich sirey wool with density and length of staple,” Broadoak’s stud classer Ian Bradtke said of the lot 33 ram.
Mutooroo Pastoral Company was the sale’s largest buyer with five rams to $24,000 averaging $16,400.
For the second consecutive year the Dalla family, Orrie Cowie stud, Warooka offered a feature ewe lot.
The grand champion strong wool ewe from the recent Dubbo Show made $3000 to Meltrac Enterprises, WA.
- More to come
