ON Tuesday Hexham and Northern Marts held their weekly sale of cast cows and clean cattle. There was a small show of handy weight heifers forward to maintain recent rates which topped at £1347 and 227.5ppk for Limousin x heifers consigned by M/s VS Allgood, Nunwick, Hexham.

Prime Cattle: Limousin heifers: 227.5p, 224.5p & 221.5p Nunwick. Charolais heifers: 203.5p & 196.5p Tone Hall. British Blue heifers: 196.5p Nunwick. Limousin heifers: £1347 & £1274 Nunwick, £1210.15 Hard Riding, £1182.81 Nunwick.

OTM: A similar show of cows easily maintained recent high rates. Limousin: 164.5p Dykehead, 146.5p Carry House, 133.5p The Steel, 129.5p The Raw, 124.5p Dykehead, 123.5p The Raw. Angus: 123.5p The Raw. Charolais: 123.5p High Staward. Limousin: £1375.22 Dykehead, £1063.59 Carry House, £921.15 The Steel, £864.43 Hard Riding. Charolais: £927.47 & £890.44 High Staward. Angus: £879.75 The Raw.

Prime lambs: A good show of lambs forward with the average weight being 46.5kilo. Top price per head £90 for Texel x from Geoff Ogle, Blackburn and M/s Reed & Hill, Lingey Field. Top price per kilo 209.2p for Beltex x from M/s T Nixon & Sons, Longlea.

Texel x: £90 Blackburn & Lingey Field, £89.50 East Matfen, £89 Old Town, High Baulk & Armond Carr, £88 Lingey Field, £86 Great Chesters, £85.50 Armond Carr, £85 Aydonshields, Nackshivan, Great Chesters, Sunniside & Lingey Field, £84 West Shields, Lingey Field & Low Ardley, £83.50 High Baulk (x2), £83 Matfen High House & Lingey Field 203.7p High Baulk, 202.2p Lingey Field, 200p Low Ardley, 195.4p Lingey Field, 195.1p Low Ardley, 193.2p Aydonshields & Great Chesters, 192.9p Nackshivan, 191.5p Thockrington, 190.5p High Eshells & Lingey Field, 190.2p Longlea, 189.4p High Baulk, 189.3p High Warden, 187.8p Nackshivan & Low Ardley, 186.4p High Warden, 184.4p Lingey Field, 183.3p Lingey Field, 181.1p High Warden, 180.7p Great Chesters. Suffolk x: £89.50 Berwick Hill, £87.50 Sunniside, £84 Low Eshells & Thockrington, £83.50 Thockrington, £83 Berwick Hill, £81.50 Thockrington, £80 Low Eshells, £79.50 Baal Hill, £78.50 West Shields 177.5p Steel Hall, 175p & 167.4p Thockrington, 167.1p Steel Hall, 166.7p Thockrington, 165.6p Baal Hill, 163p Low Eshells & Thockrington, 162.7p Whitechapel, 162p Sunniside, 160.2p West Shields. Charollais x: £89.50, £88.50, £86 (x2), £84.50, £84, £83 & £82 Sunniside 165.4p, 164.7p, 160.9p & 160.8p Sunniside. Beltex x: £79.50 & £76.50 Longlea 209.2p & 201.3p Longlea. Mule: £74.20 Longlea, £70 Baal Hill, £69.50 Sweethope, £67 Hamburn Hall, £61.80 Longlea 161.6p Sweethope, 159.1p Baal Hill, 157.9p Longlea, 152.3p Hamburn Hall, 150.7p Longlea. Cheviot x: £85 & £72 Steel Hall 163.6p Steel Hall. Blackface: £64 & 148.8p Sweethope. Swaledale: £43.50 & 120.8p Longlea.

Cast ewes and rams: Texel x: £89, £88 & £84 East Matfen.

HEXHAM Auction Mart offered 308 head of store cattle and suckled calves at their penultimate weekly sale of 2016 last Friday. The catalogued entry sold well from start to finish with a good company of buyers present round the ringside for all classes which included a mixed entry of native breed cattle for the special monthly sale of such types.

The sale was topped by two separate bullocks, both Limousin cross at £1370 per head. With a good spread of breeds, ages and types the entire sale returned a highly satisfactory average of £1002 per head for all cattle sold which ranged from £1370 to £530 for Spring born Angus heifer calves.

Cattle 23-30 months: Limousin x steers: £1170, £1145 & £1080 Heatheridge. Angus x steers: £1270 & £1200 Hallington New Houses. Cattle 17-22 months: Charolais x steers: £1330, £1320, £1300 & £1260 Satley, £1215 & £1155 High Trewhitt, £1130 Park Farm. Charolais x heifers: £1170, £1165, £1140, £1085 & £1080 Newlands Haugh, £1060 & £1045 High Trewhitt. Limousin x steers: £1370 Lough Green & Satley, £1330 Miller Hill, £1300 & £1290 (x2) Lough Green, £1280 Armond Carr, £1270 Blackburn, £1260 Shitlington Hall, £1245 Lough Green, £1240 Lough Green, High Trewhitt & Miller Hill, £1235 Blackburn, £1215 Wingates Wholme, £1210 Hallington New Houses, £1205 Shitlington Hall, £1180 Lough Green. Limousin x heifers: £1200 & £1195 Airy Holm, £1180 Armond Carr, £1100 & £1090 Shitlington Hall, £1065 & £1055 Airy Holm, £1045 Lee Hall, £1005 Armond Carr, £1000 Airy Holm (x2) & Cheviot. British Blue x steers: £1150 Park Farm, £1080 Stotsfold, £1030 Park Farm. Simmental x steers: £1080 Park Farm, £1060 & £1040 Allendale Farm. Angus x steers:£1330 High Trewhitt, £1290 Hallington New Houses, £1260 High Trewitt, £1230 Aydonshields, £1200 Aydonshields & High Trewhitt. Angus x heifers: £1150 Aydonshields, £1050 Lee Hall. Hereford x steers: £1350 Satley. Luing steers: £990 & £955 The Lampert. Luing heifers: £850 The Lampert. Stabiliser x steers: £1090 Wingates Wholme.

Cattle 11-16 months: Charolais x heifers: £1060 & £1055 Newlands Haugh, £940 East Fourstones. Limousin x steers: £1090 Rogerley Hall, £1080 Comb Hills & Rogerley Hall (x2), £1065 (x2) Stotsfold, £1060 Rogerley Hall, £1050 Comb Hills, £1045 Rogerley Hall, £1005 Stotsfold, £1000 & £985 High Alderheads, £970 Rogerley Hall. Limousin x heifers: £1165, £1125 & £1075 Miller Hill, £1030 Old Ravensworth, £1005 Lee Hall, £9902 Old Ravensworth, £975 High Alderheads, £970 Old Ravensworth, £905 Lee Hall. Blonde x steers: £1070 & £1000 Houselope Grange. Angus x steers: £905 Houselope Grange. Angus x heifers: £905 Lee Hall. Hereford steers: £960 Chattlehope.

Cattle 10 months and under: Limousin x steers: £890 Rogerley Hall, £800 West End Town & Low Bishopton (x3).

Store Sheep. Hexham and Northern Marts held their weekly sale of 2738 cast ewes and store sheep.

Cast ewes, heavy ewes and cast tups were in big demand. Texel: £123 Willimoteswick, £116 Chapel House, £110 Flotterton, £100 Errington Red House, £92 Elsdon Burn. Texel x: £91 & £87 High Baulk, £82 Low Ardley, £81 Willimoteswick, £79 Low Ardley & Bavington Hill Head, £77 & £76 High Baulk, £74 Bavington Hill Head, Lough Green, Agars Hill & Bensons Fell. Dutch Texel: £99 Willimoteswick. Suffolk x: £94 Lee Hall, £84 Flotterton, £79 Thornton Tower. Beltex x: £100 Bavington Hill Head. Hampshire: £84 Willimoteswick. Leicester: £98 Hackford, £86 Hackford & Ottercops, £76 Ottercops. Cheviot x: £76 Flotterton, £72 Bavington Hill Head, £70 Flotterton, £69 Barrasford Green. NC Cheviot: £84 Flotterton. Mule: £73 Rare Dean, £70 Willimoteswick, £68 Bensons Fell, £66 Low Ardley, £64 Rare Dean. Blackface: £44 Thornton Tower, £41 Lonbrough. Swaledale: £40 High Town, £31 Dale House, £30 Hackford & Whitelees. Jacob: £39 & £38 Pens Close. Crossbred: £44 Thompsons Walls.

Store lambs. A decent entry of lambs forward to an increased ring of purchasers ensuring all classes maintained recent high rates with export type lambs in big demand. Topping at £90 for a penful of Texel x tup lambs consigned by M/s WH Davison & Sons, Lough Green, Langley with a further seven pens breaking the £80 barrier.

Texel x: £90 Lough Green, £84 & £83 Bensons Fell, £82 Butterknowes, £80 Chapel House, Low Ardley & Flotterton, £79 Coatyards, Blackburn, Butterknowes & Bensons Fell, £78.50 Chapel House, £78 Butterknowes, Newham Hagg & New Rift, £77 Butterknowes & Middle Dukesfield. Suffolk x: £79 Coatyards, £73 Cheviot, £70.50 Lowes Fell & Black Hedley, £66.50 Coatyards, £64.50 North Farm Esh, £60 Coatyards & Flotterton. Charollais x: £62 Middleheugh. Beltex x: £72.50 Stanton Town Head. Zwartbles: £75 Blackburn. Ryeland: £51 Peel Flatt. Cheviot x: £80 Barrasford Green. NC Cheviot: £71 Flotterton. Mule: £70.50 Winnows Hill, £63.50 Lowes Fell, £62 Harwood Shield. Blackface: £69 Flotterton, £61 Chapel House, £58.50 Ridsdale. Swaledale: £33.50 Rattenraw, £31 Whitelees. Jacob: £66.50 & £62 Pens Close, £61.50 Mill Lane House. Herdwick: £34 Middle Dukesfield.

LAST Wednesday, Scots Gap Mart at their weekly sale sold prime lambs to a top of £90 for heavyweight Texels from Jonta Walton, Grangemoor, and the entire sale averaged £79.89 per head. Cast sheep sold to a top of £116 for a Texel ram from Matty Fenwick, Angerto.n and £87 for a Texel cross from Adam Thompson, The Fawns.

Other prices. Prime lambs. Texel x: £90 Grangemoor, £85 (x2) High Baulk & Chesters, £84, £83 Grangemoor, £82 Grangemoor & Chesters, £81 Grangemoor & Chesters, £80 High Baulk Grangemoor & Chesters, £79.50 (x2) Grangemoor & Chesters, 185.4p Dykehead, 184.9p Grangemoor, 183.3p (x2) Dykehead. Suffolk x: £83.50, £80 Chesters.

Cast ewes and rams. Texel x: £116 Angerton Steads, £112 Coldwell, £102 The Fawns, £97 Coldwell, £90 The Fawns, £87 The Fawns, £80 High Baulk. Suffolk: £112 Angerton Steads £87 High Baulk & £69 Fallowlee. Mule: £67 Coldwell. Blackface: £55 Coldwell, £39 Longwitton.