THE Prentice family’s Kurralea Poll Dorset & White Suffolk studs continue to lead the way in a buoyant prime lamb industry, with 312 rams sold for a magnificent $1454 average at Ariah Park, NSW, on Tuesday last week.
Kurralea is renowned for its bigger-frame, structurally correct & high-performance rams supported by excellent Lambplan ASBVs. The Kurralea stud offering of 26 Poll Dorsets & 17 White Suffolks attracted buyers from four states, while the large flock ram drafts of 134 Poll Dorsets & 135 White Suffolk rams drew competition from local NSW and Vic buyers.
Sale agents GTSM & Elders congratulated Ben, Lucy & Kim Prentice & family on the quality of the offering.
The 70 prospective buyers bid strongly from the first lot, Kurralea 130053, a 140-kilogram Poll Dorset sired by Kurralea 110011, that sold for $11,000 to repeat buyer Leigh Clifford, Gowan Brae stud, Furner.
Ian Kyle, Ashley Park stud, Bairnsdale, Vic, jumped in & grabbed the next 110011 son at $6500. Then followed an intense bidding duel on Kurralea 130291, the pre-sale pick ram of many pundits. Sired by Ulandi Park 080185 & having figures of post-weaning weight 15.0, Pfat -0.7, eye muscle depth 1.3 and a Carcase Plus index of 194, it sold to Andrew Hiscock, Brurob stud, Kilmore, Vic, at the sale top of $18,000.
Richard Maas, Gilmour Station, Lake Bathurst, purchased the next UP 080185 son at $9000.
The draft of 26 Poll Dorset stud rams averaged a solid $3385.
The 17 White Suffolk stud rams followed, with Kurralea 130284 -the senior champion at the recent Bendigo Elite Show – opening the draft & ultimately being top price.
It was purchased for $12,000 by Ian Kyle, operating via phone connection to Laurie Fairclough, York, WA, who had commitments at the Perth Royal Show. Sired by Detpa Grove 110522 & with superb figures of Pwwt 15.3, Pfat -0.5, Pemd of 1.4 and a Carcase Plus index of 196, this wonderfully balanced ram looked every bit a top stud sire.
Courtesy of Ian Turner, STOCK JOURNAL
