THE quality and the performance credentials backing the catalogue of 155 bulls at the third Beef Leaders Premier Bull Sale make it the best multi-breed selection ever offered in northern Australia, according to sale agents, Brodie and Co and McCaffrey's Australian Livestock Marketing.
The sale of 35 Charolais bulls, 15 Charbrays, 24 Droughtmasters, and 81 Grey and Red Brahmans is a feature of the Westpac Cloncurry Expo and will be held at 11am on Friday, September 9.
Sale vendors, David and Prue Bondfield of Palgrove Charolais and Charbray, Peter and Deleece Carrington of Rondel Droughtmasters, and the McCamley families of Tartrus and Lancefield Brahman Studs are all industry-leading studmasters who have been supplying northern Australian cattle producers with top-quality bulls for many years.
"Their drive behind this sale is fantastic for the north," said Brodie and Co manager, Sam Daniels.
"Certainly, this year's bull offering has gone up to a higher level again, with the overall quality and suitability of the four breeds unparalleled at any previous bull sale in the northern areas.
"Bull buyers across the north won't get any better opportunities to invest in quality bulls this season than at the Beef Leaders Sale."
Compared with 2010, catalogue numbers have lifted 30 per cent this year, due mainly to the inclusion for the first time of Palgrove's 15 Charbray bulls, and the doubling of the Rondel Droughtmaster offering to 24 lots.
"You can see the lift in herd performance and increased percentage of turnoff suited to more premium markets, year after year," Mr Daniels said.
David and Prue Bondfield have selected a draft of 35 Charolais and 15 Charbray bulls which they are sure would suit northern cattle producers.
"They're robust, sound, structured bulls of good constitution, with the ideal skin and coat type," Mr Bondfield said.
"They are bred from many of our most successful pedigree crosses so we know they will perform to a high level."
Nine poll bulls are in the draft.
The Charolais team is generally 24 to 25 months of age, while the Charbrays are a little younger, from 22 to 25 months.
Represented in the sirelines are the proven Palgrove sires Quintero, Champagne, Yukon, Zenith and Beefmaster, while the high-profile successful sires Bova Sylvain, Platinum Windfall and French sire Pinay also have sons in the sale.
Windfall sire sons Palgrove Zeal and Palgrove Zillmere are prominent in the stud's Charbray draft.
Registered and herd bulls make up the Rondel draft of 24 Droughtmaster bulls. The Carringtons have selected a run of bulls aged 22 to 27 months and a younger 19 to 21-month-old run.
Of the Rondel team, 17 are poll or scurred, and all are of excellent temperament and beef type.
"We appreciated the buying support for our initial Beef Leaders' bulls last year," Peter Carrington said.
"And this year's sale team is better again as we selected them from early in the year. A bigger offering also allows more choice for buyers."
Rondel Stud has invested heavily in top sires over the years and Billabong Noble, Vitwood Jarvis, Vale View Overload, Billabong Ritchie and Hamadra Wrangler Man feature in the sirelines of their sale lots, together with the retained sire Rondel Krackatinny.
A smorgasbord of select and successful Grey Brahman sirelines will attract bull buyers to the Lancefield draft of 36 bulls being offered by Scott and Lizette McCaffrey and Andrew and Anna McCamley.
Fit, young, active bulls of good temperament, suitable maturity, and excellent beef and carcase attributes comprise the team.
"We couldn't be happier with the draft we're taking to Cloncurry," Mr McCaffrey said.
"We have many valued stud and commercial clients in the north and we're looking forward to showing them this impressive team."
Mostly in the 21 to 25-month age bracket, the bulls' sirelines include the first sale sons of JDH Beckton De Manso, as well as JDH Sir Reno Manso, JDH Rick Manso, and sires that are breeding superior beef performance progeny for the stud - Lancefield Kalahari Manso, Lancefield Buster Manso, Lancefield Hercules Manso, Lancefield Sir Rick Manso and Lancefield Duke Manso.
Jennifer McCamley of Tartrus will offer 35 Grey Brahman and 11 Red Brahman bulls at the sale.
The sires of her reds include the highly regarded KP Monty, Mr 3H X-Ray 825, Somerview Mr Matt and the powerful red/grey-bred sire, Wilangi Xtra Look Manso.
Tartrus Karl Manso (sold for $105,000), Tartrus Lymeric Manso and Tartrus Samson feature as sires in the grey selection of bulls.
"The evenness of type, strong natural muscling and quiet temperament will appeal to cattle producers," Ms McCamley said.
"And those who have utilised our bulls before know that they are not pampered, and are bred and raised to do well in any country."
The Tartrus line are all around two years of age. The last time Tartrus bulls were presented in a sale ring was at January's Big Country Brahman Sale at Charters Towers when they topped the event with a bull selling for $40,000.
All sale bulls will be semen tested, vaccinated for three-day sickness, blooded or tick exposed.
The sale's supplementary sheet will list all available weights, dentition, scrotal measurements and carcase scan information.
Sale vendors also offer delivery assistance to bull buyers from areas such as Richmond, Hughenden, Charters Towers, Clermont, Winton, Longreach, Alpha, Blackall, Emerald, and other central and southern Queensland areas, as they will have trucks returning to those areas from the sale.
Beef Leaders catalogues are available from McCaffrey's Australian Livestock Marketing, Rockhampton, (07) 4922 6311, or Brodie and Company, Cloncurry, (07) 4742 1144.
