Elders auctioneer Tom Dennis and the Naracoorte team sell the Coolawang ewes for $650 yesterday.

FIRST cross ewes sold for a national record of $650 at Naracoorte yesterday afternoon, hot on the trail of the Edenhope AWN sale setting a state record of $625 for 1.5 year-olds in the morning.

Both sales yielded several lines selling for more than $600, but most 1.5 year-olds made $400-$550, with more at $550-$600 at Naracoorte, but still offering opportunities for ewe restockers to replace breeders under the changeover gross of $250-plus for a cast for age ewe and for a sale lamb.

However, several analysts remarked that the Naracoorte ewes offered opportunities to buy more weight for the money, with some Edenhope purchasers expressing ‘buyer’s regret’ after seeing the lineup and prices in the afternoon.

The top pen of Coolawang Pastoral’s draft of 1.5 year-olds, 105 June-July drop ewes estimated at 80kg liveweight — the best presented pen award winners — sold in the Elders run to repeat buyers Guthrie Farms at Dean through Elders agent Alan Thomson.

They were among six pens at Naracoorte that sold for $600 or more as the total yarding of 10,133 1.5 year-olds only averaged $519.35, with several lines over 200 ewes.

AWN sold 6661 1.5 year-old ewes for an average $527 to a top price of $625 for 201 April drop Wimmera Downs ewes to a SGL client. Four lines made $600 or more.

The 2800 ewe lambs offered at Edenhope sold for an average of $329, up to $472 for Potter Farms draft of 180 April-May 2026 drop lambs to Beverly and Alison Bell, Kilmorey Partners, Woolsthorpe, through Kieran Johnstone, Nutrien Warrnambool.

First cross ewe lamb buyer at Edenhope Beverly Bell with Nutrien agent Kieran Johnstone.

First cross ewe confidence

Elders agent Alan Thomson, left, with Coolawang co-principal Lachie James and Elders agent Nick Livingston.

Coolawang Pastoral co-principal Lachie James said it was humbling to think that someone had enough faith in the industry to pay $650 for ewes. He said the Guthrie family had probably bought the Coolawang ewes about ten times to produce heavy export lambs.

Despite the growth of composite ewe flocks, Mr James said his family still had a lot of confidence in breeding first cross ewes.

“We really believe, particularly with the way feedlotting is heading, and when processors are paying $11/kg for lambs, they need some quality and consistency.

“We’ve been under threat by the composites, but I think as time goes on and feedlotters and processors probably demand heavier lambs, I think this is where these girls come into their own,” he said.

“They can produce an export weight lamb on grass if they need to, whereas the composites have all got to go into intensive feeding.

“The first cross ewe can do both, she can raise an export weight lamb or they can go into a feedlot system with minimal casualties because they’ve got frame and they’ve got bone and depth, and we’re getting a wool cut (up to 6kg).”

Elders Naracoorte manager Tom Dennis said there was an anticipation that the Naracoorte sale would be very strong and there might have been some pre-emptive buying, especially at Edenhope.

“And when they got here they saw that they could buy very very good sheep for $540 there was probably some ‘buyer’s regret’.”

Mr Dennis said when the ewe sale are very strong restockers tend to buy in the paddock before the fixtures to mitigate and hedge their bets.

“So it might take the edge off the sale a little, but we still set a national record and that lead run of $550-$650 is probably as strong as anywhere.”

Reflecting on the restriction of ewe buying to repeat buyers restocking compared to previous years, Mr Dennis said the echoes of 2-3 years ago are still in producers’ minds when ewes were selling for $30 and lambs for $130. Mr Dennis said lambs are selling well this year, but turn-off weights are 10-15kg lighter than last year, with most going off as store or trade lambs. But producers this year have been able to sell an old ewe for $260 and a lamb for $220, and averaging perhaps 1.5 lambs per ewe, bringing the gross to over $500, he said.

AWN Wimmera area manager Wayne Driscoll said the company was rapt with the result at Edenhope. He said the third and fourth draft ewes offered good value changeover opportunities.

“Some of those ewes looked reasonable value at $420-$460 – it sounds like a lot of dough – but once again blokes have sold ewes for $250-$300, lambs for $280-$340, so the sums still stack up very very much in favour.

“So I think there is value there in that area.”

He said the value is helped when considering a previous Heard ewe buyer whose ewes canned 158 percent last year and sold the lambs over two drafts with 95pc this going as suckers for $348.

“That bloke replaced yesterday and he would be half-giggling.

“Heards are really happy, but he’s happy with knowing what they can do.”

Mr Driscoll said there were some new buyers at Edenhope, but the rest were repeat buyers.

He said the sale was good right through, with no 1.5 year-old ewe line selling for less than $400.

LMB Linke agent Jack Behncke said he didn’t spend over $600 at Naracoorte for his clients, targetting three score second or third run ewes able to be joined by Christmas that still had frame, but probably a condition score less than the top run ewes.

He bought 600 ewes to average $578 at Naracoorte and 100 ewes at Edenhope for $550.

“The bloke I had with me (after Edenhope) at Naracoorte had buyer’s regret because they were better sheep at Naracoorte, but you had to pay less.”