Northern Stars set to sparkle

Approximately 100 gimmers from five well-known Texel breeders are on offer with an opportunity for breeders to get Christmas presents in and purchase top quality females from consignments provided by Richard Henderson (Ballynahone), Victor and David Chestnutt, (Clougher and Bushmills), Paul and Baillie O’Connor (Drumgooland), Alastair Gault (Forkins and Cherryvale), and Roger Strawbridge (Tamnamoney).

Collecting Champion and Reserve Champion rosettes across Northern Ireland, including Volac Texel Show Flock awards and RUAS success, Ballynahone Texels have followed their success through to sales with prices reaching four figures for Ballynahone Top Gun and Ballynahone Trademark. Ballynahone Yorkie, who stood in the third Prize Group of Three selling for 7500gns at Lanark 2016, and Ballynahone Adonis sold for 3500gns, fourth Prize Open Ram Lamb and third prize Group of Three Lanark 2017.

The flock claimed first and third place with ewe lambs and took reserve champion and Volac Ewe Lamb Champion at Antrim Show 2016. 2017 saw the flock claiming first, second and third prize ewe lamb; first prize ram and overall champion.

Regularly in the spotlight at the NI Flock competition, Ballynahone claimed first place Large Pen of Ewe Lambs; second place Junior Stock Ram with homebred Ballynahone Wildchild; third place Senior Stock Ram with joint owned Teiglium Vigilante and third place overall Medium Flock in 2015. The flock then claimed first Prize Pen Ewe Lambs and second Prize Junior Stock Ram with joint owned Tophill Yankee Boy in 2016.

Ballynahone Texels is offering the majority of their gimmer crop. Included in this year’s sale is a full sister to 7500gns Yorkie, who bred two of the top three lamb prices at Kelso this year. Also included are daughters of HBR1300530 who was first at Balmoral as a young lamb with her dam Balmoral Champion in 2012.

The Clougher Flock is rarely out of the Northern Ireland Flock Competition awards, taking the Championship from 1999 – 2002, as well as first place in the large section in 2004, 2005 and 2008 and lifting the second place prize in this class in 2010, 2011, 2014, 2015 and 2016 and Overall Reserve Champion 2016.

2012 saw the flock win best pen of six ewe lambs. Clougher was awarded first place for the Best Senior Stock Ram, Braehead The Real McCoy in 2013, claimed third place in the Junior Stock Ram 2014 with Kiltariff Vagabond and 2015 Junior Stock Ram with Corskie Whopper.

Show ring accomplishments include lifting the Female Texel Championship in 2009 at the RUAS.

Clougher has sold ram lambs to 18,000gns, but it is the sound commercial attributes within the flock that allow it to return good averages for commercial sheep throughout Northern Ireland, in Lanark and Carlisle.

Clougher ewes have sold to 2,600gns with many producing lambs which have left a positive mark within the breed. All ewes in lamb to two new exciting sires, Bushmills Arnos retained as considered the best and most exciting ram bred by the Bushmills Flock, with a great pedigree and Ballynahone Aftershock purchased jointly in Lanark 2017, out of Richards’s best breeding ewe, with sisters winning Antrim show two years running.

It has been a hat trick at RUAS Balmoral for Drumgooland Texels winning the Ewe Lamb class in 2015, 2016 and 2017. Sales success in 2017 also saw the Drumgooland flock achieving 9000gns for their Lanark pen leader Drumgooland Aga Khan.

If you are looking for something extra special this year, Drumgooland Gimmers will be presented in lamb to highly admired Milnbank American Sniper. Purchased for 10,000gns at Carlisle, he is by £60K Strathbogie Yes Sir and his dam is a super ewe by 48K Untouchable. This lamb has it all Pedigree, Skin, Carcass and Eye Appeal.

Scotsman Avicii top price Lanark Second Sale purchased for 5,200gns son of 60K Terminator (UK Sire of the year 2013) he is out of a superb dam by UK Sire of the year 2014 Bolt and Scotsman Ace ET Brother to Avicii purchased for 3200gns.

Drumgooland are pleased to offer a selection of 20 in lamb gimmers from some of the best bloodlines within the flock. Amongst these girls there will be daughters of Duncryne Uber Cool, Teilgum Vigilante, Oberstown Usain Bolt and Uskvale Warlord.

Included in their consignment is OCP1600576, first place interbreed pairs RUAS Balmoral 2017. She is an ET sister to the 2016 first Place RUAS Balmoral Ewe Lamb and maternal sister to the 2017 first Place RUAS Balmoral Ewe Lamb. Drumgooland Aga Khan is also her maternal brother and sold for 9000gns at Lanark.

Forkins and Cherryvale Flocks have had another successful year in 2017.​

Starting with RUAS Champion Texel and Reserve Interbreed, Champion Texel Ballymena and Castlewellan, Reserve Champion Texel at Ballymoney and Antrim, Interbreed Champion Ewe lamb​ Ballymoney, Interbreed pair of Ewe lambs at Castlewellan. Sales in 2017 included ram lambs selling up to 5,500gns in Lanark and gimmers selling up to 4,200 in Worcester.

Females sold previously have gone on to perform and breed well for new owners. For the second year in succession the top price in Blessington was bred from a Forkins female. Indeed the Green Family achieved €17,000, €5,700 and €2,400, out of a Forkins Female. Also the top price from this sale 2016 a Cherryvale gimmer went on to be first​ prize ewe at Great Yorkshire Show 2017. Flock Competition, the Forkins Flock have been champion three times and Reserve two times, winning the group of ewe lambs five times.

The Cherryvale Flock was winner of the small flock 2016 and ewe lambs 2015 and 2016.

Tamnamoney Texels, another Flock of the Year winner, has consistently bred Texels for commercial and pedigree markets. Previous sales have peaked at 22,000gns for Tamnamoney Lynbrook, with consistent year on year sales reaching four figures.

Tamnamoney bloodlines from “Ned”, “Rob Roy”, “Tuborg Gold” and “Ultimate” are renowned sires of Lanark top prices and champions while a Tamnamoney ewe produced the top price ram lamb in 2011 selling at 46,000gns.

2016 saw Tamnamoney taking the show champion at Ballymena Premier with Tamnamoney Yankee and selling Tamnamoney Young Willie McBride to Hullhouse Flock at Lanark for 9,000gns and Tamnamoney Yetti to Caron Texels Wales for 5,500gns.

Championships continued in 2017 with rosettes picked up at three of the local club sales both in ram lamb and shearling classes. Tamnamoney females have sold well in recent years reaching four figure prices, with sales in 2011 originally breaking the NI female record price at the Northern Stars Sale at 11,000gns.

At Northern Stars 2013 gimmers sold to a top of 5,000gns with 2014 Northern Stars sales reaching a top of 3700gns and 3300gns in 2015, followed by 3800gns and 2500gns in 2016. This year’s gimmers are in lamb to Millar’s Windbrook, an already proven sire, Scotsman Avicii and Scotsman Ace.

Tamnamoney offers the opportunity to purchase from the majority of his select in-lamb gimmers from top breeding families in the flock including a full sister to Tamnamoney Yankee.

The Northern Stars sale is an excellent opportunity to upgrade or start a flock, with Saturday 16th December promising availability to invest in progeny from some of the top breeding lines in Northern Ireland. Images of some of the ewes on offer, sires and service sires can be viewed on line on the Northern Stars FB page.

The sale commences in Ballymena Livestock Market at 12.30pm. Contact the Mart office for catalogues and enquiries Tel: 028 2563 3470.