There can be no doubting the atmosphere at Dalmally Market on a Blackie tup sale day and last weekend’s event was one of the best yet with a packed ringside of buyers from the very start to catch a glimpse of what most described as the best show this year.
While prices failed to hit the high spots of £90,000 paid twice in 2023, a phenomenal trade for real breeders’ sheep, resulted in some bumper prices for all.
As a result, from a top price of £70,000 paid twice for ram lambs, a further 22 sold at or above the magical £10,000 mark. As always, while the top end of lambs attracted the big bucks such was the demand for ‘breedie’ tups that shearling averages improved on the year and for fewer forward when many had already been sold at Stirling the previous weekend.
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Ram lambs
While the first shearling in the ring from Longcroft, kicked the sale into gear when selling for £7000 at 9.30am, it was one of the first lambs cashed in the second ring that really set trade alight when the hammer fell at £70,000.
This was the pen leader from Ian Hunter’s Dalchirla consignment from Crieff, brought out with assistance of his brother Alan. The lamb, a son of a £23,000 Dalchirla shearling sold here last year to Lurg, of which a share was bought back, is out of a ewe by a £24,000 Connachan. He sold to Willie Dunlop and sons Quintin and William, with Dalchirla taking an equal share.
The three Dalchirla lambs were all by the £23,000 shearling, with the second making £13,000 to John Marshall, Gosland, Broughton, Biggar. The dam is by a £36,000 Midlock shearling.
Their pen leader from the 450-strong ewe flock is sired by a £22,000 Dyke lamb bought last year which also bred a £26,000 lamb the previous day. Bred from a ewe by a £22,000 Auldhouseburn, he sold in a four-way split with Richard Carruthers, Merkland, Thornhill, Dumfries, taking half and the remainder selling jointly to Hugh Rorison, Clonrae, Thornhill and Rory Kerr, The Glen, Drymen.
The Wights from Midlock, Crawford, were in the money too in the shearling and the ram lamb rings. Top here was £60,000 paid for a lamb by the Emperor – a home-bred son of a £30,000 Crossflatt retained for breeding that also produced a £60,000 lamb at Lanark. The dam is by their own Hawkeye ram. He sold to an undisclosed bidder.
Another by the same sire made £9000 to Aberuchill Estate, Comrie, managed by Craig Paterson; Andy Woodburn, Netherwood and Sanny Blackwood, Greenside, both Muirkirk.
His dearest at Dalmally at £50,000 is a twin to the £40,000 lamb sold the previous day, with the dam being a daughter of McCoy Look Alike which is a former ‘herds champion at Muirkirk Show. He sold jointly to Billy and Andrew Renwick, Blackhouse, Yarrow and Malcolm Coubrough, Hartside Farms, Lamington.
Another Crossflatt lamb by the same sire but out of a daughter of a £32,000 Dalchirla, made £12,000 when selling jointly to Archie and John MacGregor, Allanfauld, Kilsyth and Robert Cockburn, Hill of Errol, Perth.
Sons of last year’s £90,000 Dalchirla lamb sold here last year also proved popular for Alasdair and David Macarthur, Nunnerie, Elvanfoot, with sales at £24,000 and £9000, both of which were bought by Midlock. The two lambs are both bred from ewes by a £60,000 Loughash.
The other £90,000 tup sold here last year, a shearling from Glenrath was behind a £10,000 ram lamb from Hugh and Alan Blackwood, Auldhouseburn, Muirkirk. He is out of a ewe by an £82,000 Loughash and sold three ways to Greenside, John Angus MacCusbic, Skye and Ally Williamson, Eallagro, Lewis.
Shearling rams
A first class show of shearling rams peaked at £35,000 for the pen leader from Duncan and Ashley MacGregor’s 300-strong Blackface ewe flock from Burnhead, Kilsyth. The tup, a son of a £12,000 Dyke shearling ram bought at Lanark in 2021, is bred from a ewe by a £15,000 Midlock. He was knocked down to Nunnerie and Dalchirla.
Midlock was back in the money amongst the shearlings too, taking £30,000 for a son of the £75,000 Dyke bought here in 2022, out of a ewe by Hawkeye. Three flocks shared the cost to include Willie and Ewan Bennie, Merkins, Gartocharn, Upper Wellwood and Eoin and Kirstyn Blackwood, Dalblair, Muirkirk.
Another Midlock shearling, by a £60,000 Loughash and out of a £24,000 Connachan-sired dam, made £10,000 to Nunnerie.
Shearling rams from Andrew Kay and sons Robert and Andrew, Gass, Straiton, are always a bit special and they had a bumper day with sales at £30,000, £20,000 and £17,000.
Their pen leader which is a full brother to the £26,000 shearling sold last year to Dalchirla, Midlock and Nunnerie, made £20,000. A son of the £48,000 Midlock shearling bought here in 2021, out of a daughter of a £24,000 Glenrath, he headed home with Neil Manning, Earlshaugh.
The No 2, the exact same way bred then made £30,000. He goes out to work at Elmscleugh.
Ewen Macmillan, Lurg, Fintry and David Morrison, Dalwyne, Barr, joined forces to buy the £17,000 shearling from Gass, which is a son of last year’s £26,000 Gass. The dam is by a £38,000 Dalchirla.
Top price for Dalchirla shearlings was £22,000 paid for the No 4, by a home-bred son of a £100,000 Midlock retained for breeding, out of a ewe by a Dalchirla-bred son of £24,000 Connachan. He sold jointly to neighbours, Robert and Mairi Paterson, Dunruchan, Crieff and Stephen Duncan, buying for his Livet hirsel from Glenlivet.
The same sire was behind another two from Dalchirla which made £15,000 and £9000. The dearest and pen leader which was out of a direct daughter of £24,000 Connachan, was knocked down to Robert Cockburn, Hill of Errol.
The No 2, which was bred the exact same way made £9000 to Fulton Ronald, Fidden, Mull.
Four breeders teamed up to buy the No 12 from Dalchirla at £10,000. The tup which is sired by a 19,000gns Tullykeerin ram bought at Ballymena in 2022, is out of a ewe by Boris, a home-bred son of a £10,000 Nunnerie. The buyers were Gerard McGinn, Chirmorrie, Barrhill; John and Iain Finlay, Blackcraig, Corsock; Willie Lockhart, Culdoach, Kirkcudbright and Davie Ferguson and Jim McEwan, Drannandow Farms, Newton Stewart.
On the other side of the coin, Dalchirla went in partnership with Midlock to buy the No 2 from Dyke at £20,000. He is sired by the £12,000 Dyke sold last year and out of an £8000 Auldhouseburn-sired ewe.
Midlock also bought a half share of the first Dyke shearling with Keith and Andrew Campbell, Overburns, Biggar, which made £18,000. For their money they get a grandson of the £17,000 Midlock, out of a ewe by a £2200 Dalwyne.
Top price for Allanfauld was £18,000 paid for their pen leader brought out by shepherd Davie Kinloch. A son of the same £48,000 Midlock shearling that bred the two top sellers from Gass, he is out of a ewe by a £5500 Elmscleugh that was a twin to the £130,000 Allanfauld. He sold jointly to Midlock and Dyke.
Matching that £18,000 sale was the pen leader from Glenrath, brought out by Steven Renwick. He is sired by the £160,000 Dyke, out of the 2022 Peebles Show champion ewe by a £160,000 Elmscleugh and sold in a three-way partnership to Dalchirla; Richard Colley, Mitchellslacks, Thornhill and Billy and Willie Graham, Craigdarroch, Sanquhar.
Two shearlings made £12,000 to include the first from new breeder, Scott Dalrymple, Linlithgow, who runs just 27 Blackface ewes. His best which was sold in the Lurg consignment, is out of a Lurg ewe bought privately from Ewen Macmillan and sired by a £13,000 Greenside lamb. John and Patrick Harkin, Loughash, and Lurg were the final bidders.
Robert Cockburn, Hill of Errol, also took £12,000 for a shearling from Glenrath. His pedigree features a £24,000 Dyke sire and a ewe by a £26,000 Dalchirla.
Elmscleugh was another in the money amongst the shearlings, taking £10,000 for a son of a £40,000 Midlock out of a ewe by a home-bred son of a £12,000 Gass. Allanfauld and Tommy Renwick and son Tam, Williamhope, shared the cost.
Gordon Pate, Moorfoot, Gorebridge, sold to £9000 for a full brother to last year’s £5800 shearling. A son of a £40,000 Burncastle, he headed home with Burncastle Farming Co, Lauder.
Averages: 476 aged and shearling rams, £1690 (+£41.72 for 65 fewer sold); 193 ram lambs, £2774.92 (-£816.45 for 26 fewer).
Other Leading Prices
Ram lambs – £8000 – Elmscleugh, by a home-bred son of a £60,000 Dyke to A Frame, Dullator and I Houston, Culbae; Auldhouseburn, by an £18,000 Craignell, to C Harkin, Rock, Loughash.
£7500 – Elmscleugh, by a £90,000 Glenrath to S McClymont and Sons, Tinnis, Yarrow. £7000 – E and K Blackwood, Dalblair, Muirkirk, by a £22,000 Dyke, to I MacLarty, Little Port, St Fillans.
£6000 – Dyke, by Franco, a home-bred son of £160,000 Dyke, to to Blackbriggs; £6000, Crossflatt, by Titan, to The Glen; D Jackson, Pole, Lochgoilhead, by a £52,000 Dalblair, to S Heads, Aitkenhead, Fenwick. £5500 – Elmscleugh, by a £90,000 Glenrath, to Middleton. £5000 – Midlock, by a £30,000 Crossflatt to Tinnis; Dyke, by a £160,000 Dyke, to Dalblair.
Shearling rams – £7000, Longcroft, by a £15,000 Waterhead, to J and G Sinclair, Crookston, Heriot; Dalchirla, by a home-bred son of a £100,000 Midlock, to A Provan, Parkhall, Douglas; Moorfoot and M Hamilton, South Cobbinshaw, West Calder; Dalchirla, by a home-bred son of £100,000 Midlock to Little Port; Elmscleugh, by a £125,000 Nunnerie, to M Grant; W and E Bennie, Merkins, Gartocharn, by a £70,000 Dalchirla, to Gass.
£6000 – Midlock, by a £30,000 Nunnerie, to Glengorm, Mull; E Macmillan, Lurg, Fintry, by Aucheye, a son of a £22,000 Dalchirla, to R Munro, Mull. £5800 – Glenrath, by a £160,000 Dyke to J Carruthers, Silloans, Rochester.
Flock Averages
Farm (No) Top (£) Average(£)
Shearling and aged rams
Longcroft (3) 7000 2633.33
Balliemeanoch (8) 600 493.75
Cromlix (17) 2800 894.12
Whelphill (6) 2000 1233.33
Blackcraig (5) 1600 780.00
Grimmet (3) 500 500.00
Arnicle (6) 2200 891.67
Littleport (8) 3200 1175.00
Wester Crosswoodhill (4) 1300 1125.00
Langholm (6) 1300 741.67
Dalchirla (22) 22,000 4575.00
Moorfoot (5) 9000 2170.00
Blackhouse (6) 1100 800.00
Hill of Errol (6) 12,000 2816.67
Dall (16) 1400 646.75
Cragabus Croft(5) 350 290.00
Corrylorn (5) 800 620.00
Letar (7) 1100 735.71
Burnhead (6) 35,000 7458.33
Allanfauld (14) 18,000 2285.71
Dullator (6) 1000 783.33
Dalwyne (7) 1100 514.29
Overburns (5) 3000 1540.00
West Lethans (12) 1800 1041.67
Gartincaber (5) 900 650.00
Midlock (15) 30,000 4263.33
Shawhead (7) 4800 2392.86
Corsebank (3) 1200 766.67
Windhill (4) 550 325.00
Braeleny (4) 450 337.50
Burncastle (7) 1700 842.86
Castles (7) 2000 657.14
Auldallan (3) 450 316.67
Dunruchan (6) 1800 983.33
Shenlarich (8) 2400 781.25
Elmscleugh (10) 10,000 3030.00
Mains of Mause (4) 2800 1475.00
Merkins (12) 7000 1904.17
Williamhope (9) 2200 922.22
Lettoch and Belnoe (6) 700 541.67
Lurg (5) 6000 4060.00
Glenrath (14) 18,000 3721.43
Drannandow (3) 500 466.67
St Mungoes (7) 900 764.29
Gass (10) 30,000 8000.00
Gosland (6) 1100 591.67
Braes of Ardeonaig (9) 800 344.44
Nunnerie (10) 2500 775.00
Bragleenmore (5) 500 410.00
Mid Cragabus (4) 800 437.50
Culbae (4) 900 437.50
East Bracklinn (14) 1400 1025.00
Pole (11) 1200 681.82
Dyke (18) 20,000 3358.33
Drumbreddan (5) 650 370.00
Glenstrathy (4) 600 462.50
West Bracklinn (6) 1200 808.33
Lephinchapel (6) 2000 800.00
North Amulree (7) 5500 1157.14
Stronmagachan (10) 700 401.00
Crossmount (5) 500 282.00
Lynemore (3) 600 483.33
Ram lambs
Acharonich (3) 200 166.67
Gass (4) 1200 750.00
Dalchirla (3) 70,000 29,066.67
Lephinchapel (3) 900 583.33
Little Larg (3) 350 350.00
Scott Street (7) 100 97.14
Allanfauld (6) 3600 1683.33
Dyke (4) 6000 3150.00
Mitchellslacks (3) 3200 1733.33
Fidden (5) 500 360.00
Strath (4) 150 150.00
Upper Wellwood (5) 70,000 15,900
Elmscleugh (5) 8000 5180.00
Crossflatt (4) 50,000 17,125.00
Crackaig (4) 500 350.00
Parkhall (3) 700 616.67
Dalwyne (6) 450 178.33
Dalblair (4) 7000 2137.50
Orchilmore (3) 1000 833.33
Burnhead, Darvel (3) 200 200.00
Harestone (4) 1700 825.00
Midlock (6) 60,000 13,250.00
Dall (4) 450 337.50
Nunnerie (7) 24,000 5728.57
Auldhouseburn (6) 10,000 5166.67
Midlock Glespin (5) 800 580.00
Towiemore (3) 2000 1033.33
Glenrath (5) 2200 1280.00
Drumbreddan (3) 500 300.00
Whytebank (4) 100 100.00
Netherwood (3) 2200 1433.33
Eallagro (3) 200 166.67
Milnmark (3) 3800 2333.32
The Glen (3) 1400 790.00
Glenstrathy (3) 800 450.00
Pole (4) 6000 2625.00
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