Reilly’s choice of champion tops Athenry Limousin sale at €9,100

€9,100 Drumline S 1185 – bred by James Hannon, Bunratty, County Clare – swept the boards at the Irish Limousin Cattle Society’s premier show and sale in Athenry Mart on Thursday, April 13th, 2023, writes farming journalist, Catherina Cunnane.

Snapped up by Dovea Genetics, pre-sale judge, Elanor Reilly, Co Cavan, tapped out the Tomschoice Lexicon son, out of Sympa dam, Wood Road Jasmine ET, as supreme male champion earlier that morning.

Born in October 2021, the bull boasts a five-star rating on both his replacement and terminal index, along with five stars for carcass weight, carcass conformation and docility.

On his heels at €5,400 was Keltic Sam Tan, property of Longwood, Co Meath breeder, Teleri Thomas, a bull also by the aforementioned Tomschoice Lexicon, which featured as part of last week’s AI bull quiz.

The bull, which was born in September 2021, is out of Keltic Nest, going back to Keltic Handsome, Ampertaine Foreman and Ampertaine Commander on his maternal side, while he has Kaprico Eravelle, Wilodge Tonka and Haltcliffe Vermount on his paternal lineage.

Third on the price table was Reilly’s choice of reserve champion, in the form of Carrickmore Scoobydoo ET, from the Connell brothers in Co Meath.

September-2021-born Scoobydoo is by Ampertaine Foreman and Baileys’ Iceprincess, which makes him a full brother to €38,000 Carrickmore Maximus, semen of which is available to purchase through Seamus Nagle’s Bull Bank.

He is also a half-brother to the €30,000 Carrickmore Schumacher ET, which sold privately in Carrick-on-Shannon in October of last year, as reported by That’s Farming.

Scoobydoo has a replacement index value of €105 (4-stars), a terminal index value of €155 (5-stars) and 5-stars for carcass weight and conformation.

€5,100 and under

The Keltic Limousin herd returned to the ring to offer September-2021-born Keltic Septembergold for sale, where Thomas secured €5,100 for the Lexicon son out of Keltic Fieldsofgold, a Wilodge Vantastic daughter.

According to his latest ICBF genetic evaluation, he has 5-stars on both the replacement and terminal index while also carrying 5-stars for carcass weight, carcass conformation and 4-stars for daughters’ milk.

Also reaching the €5,000 mark was Ruan Sudo, a May 2021 son of Milan Marciano, himself by Wilodge Tonka, out of Roan Marcella, a Liscarn Johnny daughter, from the herd of Sean Lyons, Ruan, Co Clare.

He carries two copies of the profit gene, four stars within the breeds on the replacement index (value of €115), three stars within the breed for terminal (value of €133), five stars for carcass weight and four stars for carcass conformation.

€4,600

Fellow Clare-based breeder, John Moroney, secured the next highest price of €4,600 with Ballykinncurra Showman, an October-2021-born son of Fest Noz, out of home-bred dam, Ballykinncurra Madonna, herself a Wilodge Cerberus daughter.

Showman carries two copies of the profit gene and boasts a five-star replacement index within and across the breed, with a value of €132, a five-star terminal index within and across the breed, with a value of €151, five-stars within and across the breed for carcass weight and five stars within the breed for daughters’ milk and three stars’ across the breed for this trait.

Frank Philbin from Pontoon Road, in Castlebar Co Mayo, put his October 2021-born Lodge Hamlet son, Clydagh Soney, under the hammer at €4,600.

Soney, out of Clydagh Gabby, herself a Sympa daughter and going back to Ronick Hawk, has a replacement index of €101, with a three-star rating within the breed and four-stars across the breed, a terminal index of €153, with five-star rankings within and across the breed, four-stars within the breed for carcass weight and five-stars across, and a five-star rating for carcass conformation.

Other bull prices

Summary:

• 88% clearance rate;
• €4,000: Ave. bull price;
• €9,100: Top-priced bull;
• 4 bulls: €5,000-5,999;
• 9 bulls €4,000-4,999;
• 19 bulls: €3,000-3,999;
• 2 bulls:  €2,000-2,999.