Brimanna new sires lead to average jump

The sale had full clearance on the 83 rams offered in the main auction to a high of $8400.

Another 20 rams were offered in the mini auction, with all 20 sold to a top of $2500, leading to an overall sale average of $2448.

The top price ram was bought by repeat buyer Dan Vorstenbosch and daughter Charlotte, Arunta Pastoral, Warramboo, who previously paid the top price at Brimanna in 2017.

This was a son of new Brimanna sire Greenfields 082, which was bought by the stud for $20,000, in partnership with Minta, Mount Cooper.

The top price ram weighed 108 kilograms with an eye muscle depth of 40 millimetres.

Its fleece measured 22 micron, 3 standard deviation, 13.4 coefficient of variation, a 98.8 per cent comfort factor and weighted 2.1kg above the flock average.

Mr Vorstenbosch said the size of the ram and lustre of the wool caught his eye.

"It's just a great, huge, animal all-round, with excellent fat and eye muscle," he said.

The Vorstenbosch bought another ram at $6000 and a third "gem in the rough" at $1500.

Mr Vorstenbosch said he had initially seen the rams at the Eyre Peninsula Pre-Sale Expo at Wudinna, and followed up with them at the sale.

The rams will go into their commercial flock, which has an equal focus on wool and meat.

"We have big-framed sheep and need to keep that going," he said.

"These are large, easy-doing rams with great figures and a nice, bright, good style of wool."

The second highest price at the sale was $7000, paid by Andrew Cabot, Yallunda Flat, for a son of Greenfields 079, which was bought in partnership with Minta for $36,000.

The ram weighed 110kg with wool of 18.7M, 2.6SD, 14CV and 100CF.

There were three new buyers at the sale - KW&BM Mozol, Ceduna, who bought two rams to $4800, JH McKenna & Sons, Kyancutta, with two rams to $3000 and MWF&EM Burns,Cummins, with two rams to $2600.

Volume buyers included Kaira Pty Ltd, Wirrula, with eight rams to $5500, RJ&VR Giddings, Wangary, bought seven rams to $3600, GA&DJ Giddings, Wanilla, with seven rams to $2000, P&L Pluckridge, Wangary, three rams to $6000, WP Mickan & Sons, Cummins, with three rams to $5400, and GR&M McLachlan, Karkoo, with six rams to $1300.

Brimanna principal Jayden Harris said it was great to see the impact of new sires into their sale team.

"We've invested a fair bit in genetics in the past year and this is the first drop of four new sires," he said.

"It's good to see the investment paying off."

Mr Harris said there were 18 sons of Greenfields 082 - sire of the top price ram - in the sale, which sold for an average $3500.

The stud has also retained one of these sons, as well as the runner-up for the Eyre Peninsula Elders Hogget of the Year - a son of Moorundie PB388, which sold for $52,000 at the 2017 Adelaide Ram Sale. Their sons will be offered in the 2020 sale.

The sale was conducted by Landmark with Gordon Wood wielding the gavel.