SPRING Lambs - An excellent entry of 85 New Season lambs sold to a top of 293p/kg (43kg- £126) from RT Watkins. DA Evans and Partners sold to £119 (45.8kg) and £115 (40.3kg-285p/kg). S Price sold to £114 (41kg).

Overall New Season SQQ 264.55p/kg.

Hoggets - An excellent entry of 1030 hoggets which included many heavier sheep which understandably lowered the averages. Top selling per head of £98.90 for smart 52kg sheep from AH Rosser. R Llewellyn sold 69kg sheep at £97, with AH Rosser at £96.50 (49.5kg) and G Sevenoaks £96 (69kg). Several pens at £95, including WJ Francis, HP Griffiths and G Sevenoaks.

In terms of p/kg G Sevenoaks sold to 202p/kg (43kg-£87), MR Smith 201p/kg (42.8kg-£86.20). JJ Greenow and Sons 201p/kg (44.5kg-£89.50). AH Rosser 200p/kg (45kg-£90) and RM and ME Edwards (42.1kg-£84), PW Bevan 41kg-£82 and G Sevenoaks 43.6kg -£87.20.

Cull sheep - 129 culls to a tremendous trade on all meated, strong ewes and rams. Top price of the day, a Texel ram from Dudley Bros at £130 with the same vendor selling a Beltex at £105. JH Davies sold a Texel at £115 and C Burns another at £114. Top price ewes £115 again Texels from J Williams and £109.50 for Charollais from JP and AM Greenland. All heavy ewes receiving keen interest and spirited bidding and many more could have been sold to meet demand.

PIGS - A good entry of 69 pigs to a brighter trade with sows to £80 from S Turley. Gilts to the same price from C Tindall. Boars to £70 from TP and AA Beavan and Sons. Stronger weaners to £26 from J Morris, Swansea. Small weaners to £16 from D Cooksey.

April 6

Hoggets - 980 tegs on a day all buyers put the brakes on with the exception of lightweights and a few well finished pens of medium weights which also benefitted from Farm Assurance. With lights in short supply these averaged 82.73p/kg. Stronger hogs saw the biggest drop with one third of the entry over 46kg. Best selling on the day, 199p/kg and 198p/kg for well bred Texels from AJ Jones and Son and JJ Greenow and Sons respectively.

Topspots:

Lights to 195p/kg (£61-31.3kgs) J Watkins.

Standards to 199p/kg (£67.50-34kgs) AJ Jones and Son.

Mediums to 195p/kg (£86-43.5kgs) OJ and KE Harris.

Heavies to 198p/kg (£93.80-47.4kgs) JJ Greenow and Sons.

Cull sheep - A superb entry of 529 cull sheep sold to a terrific trade, ewes to average a fantastic £70.80. The best ewes were easily sold, Suffolks to £114 from DJ Baker; £113.50 EA Jones; £111.50 JV and RJ Williams. Texel cross to £109 from JJ Greenow and £108 G Whittington. Top ten all in excess of £100. Quite a few Mules on offer to a fantastic £96 from JV and RJ Williams and £95 WN Waters. The hill bred ewes were a super trade, Welsh to £70 from KS and J Davies; Speckles to £68.50 OJ and KE Harris. The best in excess of £60, plenty £50 plus. Rams were also a buoyant trade, the best to £115 from J Tamplin and Son; £111 EA Jones and £105 JJ Greenow. "Toothers" to £70 from LJ Remnant. Goats to £44 from AM Jones.

Store sheep - 206 store tegs with less strength on offer, most being "clear up" jobs. The best sold to £74.50 for Dorsets from SS Savidge and Son; Texel cross to £71 V Goodman; Charollais cross to £67.50 DJ Banes and Suffolk cross to £67 from GJ and PA Robins. Mediums £55 plus; Welsh to £51 from RJ Davies. Very small between £31 and £46.

A small entry of couples mostly aged ewes and plainer types. The best to £118 for aged Suffolk cross ewes with twins from P and LK Phillips (£40/life). Singles from the same home to £95 (£47.50/life). Aged Cheviots with 1.3 lambs to £90 (£39/life) from D Bufton. Orphan lambs sold to £12.

Calves - Another excellent entry of 68 young calves found a packed ringside with several men in buying mood and a cracking trade ensued. Nine Continental bulls mostly Blues made from £340 up to the days' top price of £405, for a 5 week old calf from AR Edwards and Son. Some strong Limousins also sold well at up to £365 for a calf from JCR and CM Vaughan. Several best heifers also around the £300 mark, but AR Edwards and Son again had the top price of £380 for another strong Blue. A string of middling blue heifers found plenty of takers at £220-£270. Small Continental bulls and heifers £100-£150. Angus bulls to £300, Welsh Black heifers to £200, Strong Dairy bulls £60-£84 from Price and Co Farming, average Dairy bulls £45-£55.

Strong calves - A good show of 19 of all sorts and ages.

4-6mth Blue Steers – £495, £475, £450 from JM and BS Jones; 6mth Charolais steers £450 from IP David; 11-12mth Angus Steers £420 and £385 from AJ Curtis, 11-12mth Angus Heifers £370 also from AJ Curtis.

Breeding cattle - Another short entry of breeding cattle which also lacked quality. Top selling from JC Carver, a 2nd calving Simmental cross cow and young bull calf at £1010.

Stirks/young stores - A grand entry of 50 young stores with all but the best harder selling than of late. A quality run from P Thomas included a 10mth old Limousin steer at £880 and another at £825. ES and JS Huntley sold to £760 (Simmental 11mths); E and J Price and Son sold to £735 Simmental 7mths. Heifers peaked at £755 for a very smart 7mth old Charolais from DG Guy; with P Thomas selling to £700 (Limousin 11mths) as did Messrs Trigg Bros with 10mth Charolais at £700.

Feeding bulls - A short entry of 12 topped at £820 for a 9mth British Blue from P Thomas, with a 9mth old Hereford from WJ Liscombe and Son at £670 and 9-13mth old Charolais from JA and EJ Wyatt at £640.

Store cattle - A much larger entry of 361 store cattle forward including 53 organically reared. The quality of the cattle at the top end was outstanding with some exceptional forward heifers present which sold extremely well exceeding vendors expectations.

The organic cattle were mainly yearlings from three vendors and topped at £935 for Devon crosses. Outlying Charolais crosses from HO Vicary sold £900 older Aberdeen Angus crosses also from HO Vicary sold to £1035 and £985. Yearling Charolais heifers from HO Vicary topped at £950, with several bunches £800 plus.-

The conventional stores included some very well bred bunches which found favour with buyer, with feeding stores selling to £1265 (700kg-25mth) for a Limousin crosses from GE Phillips and Son. Charolais crosses from MA and SF Shukman

sold to £1230 (715kg-28mth); WR Moran sold Charolais crosses to £1230 (715kg-29mth). Grazing steers sold to £1085 (19mth) for Charolais crosses from Mrs OB Williams; JH Davies sold Charolais crosses to £1070 (18mth).

A wonderful show of heifers sold to £1175 (620kg-28mth) for Limousin crosses from IG Watkins and Co; closely followed by £1140 (545kg-22mth). Limousin crosses to £1125 (575kg-2mth) from JT Ford; closely followed by £1115 (655kg-30mth) and £1100 (657kg-28mth). Grazing heifers to £1075 (495kg-25mth) for Charolais crosses from JH Davies; T Jenkins and Sons sold to £1045 (510kg-19mth).

Cull cattle - 31 culls to a sharper trade on all grades and keen competition throughout. Top selling £1155 for a Hereford bull from DB and RM Edwards. Top cow at £1090 for a British Blue from RR Thomas. Limousins to £925 from T Jenkins and Sons. Simmentals to £880 from RT Watkins and £870 from G Williams. Continental heifers to £945 for a Limousin from AF Robinson. Black and Whites to £945 from Penylan Farms. Farm assurance again an important selling point.