This line of 171 first-cross Border Leicester x Poll Merino hoggets, milk and two-tooth, SIL to Poll Dorset rams, February shorn made $476 yesterday – well up on the previous AuctionsPlus record of $446 set towards the end of May.

SHEEP price records continue to fall like ten pins on AuctionsPlus, with the latest being a new Australian record-high for crossbred ewes in lamb set during yesterday’s weekly sale.

Driven by unparalleled demand for scanned in-lamb ewe replacements, a line of 171 February shorn first cross ewe hoggets scanned in-lamb to Poll Dorset rams, made $476 – well up on the previous record of $446 set in late May.

Prior history of good performance among sheep purchased from the same flock was a motivating factor for the buyer.

The 82.1kg hoggets attracted strong bidding during yesterday’s sale, before being secured by Elders Bordertown agent Brenton Henriks, buying for his clients, Steve and Roz, and Greg and Selena Funke, Bundara Downs, near Bordertown.

“Averaging more than 82kg, they were right up there for sheep of that age,” Mr Henriks said.

“We’ve brought the same sheep before, privately, for the Funkes and other clients, and their outstanding past performance gave us the encouragement to bid up,” Mr he said.

“The big thing for us is that these sheep were known to the purchasers, and they like quality.

“And it’s not common to be able to access these sort of sheep at this time of year,” he said.

“We’ve probably seen the top of the tree now for a little while, price wise, especially if the COVID relapse has a bearing in the near future,” Mr Henricks said.

The ewes will be used as partial replenishment of the Bundara Downs commercial flock breeding ewes.

“Due to the phenomenal prices that have been paid for lambs and cast-for-age ewes this past year, it provides a good start, financially, when looking for replacements.

“Selling CFA ewes for $160, as they have been, means their replacements do not owe the buyer as much,” Mr Henriks said.

Most of the record-priced  pen were bred by the vendor, Rob Mumford from Koolwurtie, near Minlayton on South Australia’s York Peninsula, with a few bought from other nearby breeders who share similar breeding values, out of large-framed mid north Merino ewes, mated to top quality Glencorrie BL rams.

AuctionsPlus operations manager Tom Rookyard said buyers were obviously confident with the current market. Just last week, ewes and lambs also set a new AuctionsPlus record above $500.