Kelso – Crossing Type – 12th September 2025

Kelso – Friday 12th September 2025

Pre Sale Show Kindly Sponsored by Davidsons Animal Feeds & NFU Mutual

The annual curtain raiser for the autumn ram sales certainly didn’t disappoint, with 419 tups entered for the sale through the two rings. Trade was fast and furious, with no let-up in the bidding or the pace that the auctioneers rattled through the lots. By the fall of the final gavel early in the afternoon nearly £690,000 had changed hands, with the average well up over both rings to level at £1985 for the 350 forward.

Topping the Crossing side of things was a stonker of a tup shearling from Finlay Robertson. He is full of top-quality bloodlines, sired by S1 Mistyburn, which was by Finlays own tup, Beeches Wingman, which has been doing the business over the water in Northern Ireland and out of a homebred ewe by the Sealhouses and out of a Blarnavaid bred ewe. He was knocked down for £11,000, selling to Messrs Campbells, Millglen. Finlays second shearling also sold well. This one was by the S9 Carry House, a Bruno son and out of a ewe by the Midlock L25, and again out of the Blarnavaid ewe, which is proving to be behind some great lines. This powerful tup was sold for £5200 with Auld Tinnis & Hartside getting a leg apiece. The Beeches pen levelled out at £4180 for their 5 shearlings.

Jimmy Bell from the Cottage flock enjoyed a fine trade with his old tup, which took the Reserve Champion ticket in the pre-sale show. His offering, Holmview Riverdance has proved to be a great breeder, with tup lambs selling to a top of £8000 and a string of red tickets and championships for his females in the showring. Jimmy bought him as a lamb out of Ballymena, after he had judged him and placed him first at the Irish Progeny show. He is by Starbog P1, a son of Dawyck Frank the Tank and his mother is the much-admired Holmview Show ewe by J1 Carry House. He was coming back over to his own gimmers, so the executive decision was taken to offer him on the market, an offer which was taken up by the MacGregors, Allanfauld and McDougalls, The Steel, forking out £7000 for him.

Kelso has been a happy hunting ground for the Shitlington flock over the past few years, and this year didn’t disappoint either. They topped their pen at £6200 for a strong, powerful shearling, full of colour. He is full of great crossing lines too, by Cottage M25 and out of a homebred ewe by the Highberries M20. They used him successfully as a lamb and a brace of lambs in their Champion pen of 25 which sold at Hexham for £350 were by him. He sold for £6200 to Messrs Thornborrow, Dawyck, where he should get a good chance to carry on breeding some quality sheep.

The Happrew flock swept the board again in the show, taking unprecedented Hat Trick of Championships at the Kelso sale. He was placed at the top of the line by the Judge, Paul Fairburn, and went on to sell for £5800. He was by the Midlock P7, a son of Zeus, sire of last year’s Champion too, and out of a homebred ewe by Midlock L37. Taking this Champion home was Messrs Paton, Craig.

The first tups into the ring started the trade off with a bang, with the Macqueston flock having the dubious honour of leading the way, but fresh off a cracking trade at the Castle Douglas mule gimmer sales, their tups were very much in demand. The first into the ring was by the £15,000 R2 Hewgill and out of a ewe by M1 Farden. They used him as a lamb and he had gimmer lambs in their top pen of 40 which sold for £280 and went on to average £242 for the run. He sold for £5000 to Messrs Dunlop, Pinvalley. Their second tup into the ring, this time by the £9000 S6 Carry House, went a step further and landed at £5500. He was out of a Hewgill sired ewe which Anders says is one of the best ewes he has ever bred. He put four in the top pen at Castle Douglas and sold to the Guild Family, Ashmark, New Cumnock.

We can’t have a sale report without mentioning the Midlock crew, and once again, they enjoyed a fine day in the BFL ring, selling to a top of £5500 with a powerful shearling. Midlock were the last into the ring, but this didn’t harm their trade. Their pen leader was by the homebred Midlock R26, a son of the P2 Riddings and out of a West Biggins ewe that they bought, by the H2 Highberries, which has done so well at the West Biggins flock. Derek Hall, Firth landed this one. Another of the Midlock pen reached £5200, this time by Firth Superted. A son of the noted Smearsett G11 Ted, and out of a homebred ewe by the Marriforth K4. This one went south of the border, with Will & Gillian Sedgley purchasing him.