Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 20th August 2026. Forward were 149 cattle and 1346 sheep.
57 Prime Bulls sold to 405ppk or £3657
34 Prime Steers sold to 419ppk or £2837
58 Prime Heifers sold to 479ppk or £2857
1207 Prime Lambs sold to 450ppk or £225
139 Cast Ewes/Rams sold to £165
Prime Bulls (57) – More bounce in the bull trade as all classes look probably ten pence dearer on the week, the sale averaged 348ppk and £2450. The top three sold over 400ppk, all homebred Limousin’s, a cracker at 679kg from AC Simpson & Son, McNeil Farm at 403ppk and then a couple of stunners from the Renton’s of High Highlaws, Morpeth 775kg at 403ppk and the leader 702kg at 405ppk. A super heavy sort from the Simpson’s at McNeil Farm headed the gross value list, a thumping 965kg he sold for £3657; behind the leader the others over £3000 all hailed from either McNeil Farm or the on song High Highlaws. Native breeds sold to a top of 342ppk or £2342 for a dairy crossed Aberdeen Angus from JC & P Tallentire, Carlton Grange whilst the Friesian feeders were all chasing GW Dobson & Son, Wood Close Farm who sold to tops of 308ppk and £2109.
Bulls Top Grossing Top Averages-
AC Simpson & Son sold 3 (825kg) Average £3178
Renton Highlaws Ltd sold 7 (755kg) Average £2948
PJ&ES Rogerson sold 4 (761kg) Average £2738
LR Welsh & Co sold 4 (747kg) Average £2734
Bulls PPK Top Averages-
Renton Highlaws Ltd sold 7 (755kg) Average 390ppk
AC Simpson & Son sold 3 (825kg) Average 385ppk
LR Welsh & Co sold 4 (747kg) Average 365ppk
WA Wardman Ltd sold 4 (724kg) Average 359ppk
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 405 403 399 392×2 376 365 Renton Highlaws Ltd. 403 379 378 AC Simpson & Son. 390 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 389 361 359 355 LR Welsh & Co. 385 361 350 340 WA Wardman Ltd. 368 367 356 350 PJ&ES Rogerson. 368 JC&P Tallentire. 346×2 FW Hodgson. 346 342 CH&SE Armstrong. 340 337 JA&A Herbert. 338 336 WE&CA Anderson.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £3657 £3141 32736 AC Simpson & Son. £3190 £3123 £3108 £2895 £2861 £2843 Renton Highlaws Ltd. £2880 £2715 £2705 £2653 PJ&ES Rogerson. £2833 £2628 £2512 WA Wardman Ltd. £2796 £2739 £2733 £2667 LR Welsh & Co. £2648 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £2546 FW Hodgson & Son. £2443 JC&P Tallentire. £2425 £2423 CH&SE Armstrong.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 342 JC&P Tallentire. 335 330 CH&SE Armstrong. 328 GS Dowson.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £2342 JC&P Tallentire. £2197 £2138 CH&SE Armstrong. £1659 GS Dowson.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 308 304 GW Dobson & Son. 302 GS Dowson. 291 R Hall & Son.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £2109 £1774 GW Dobson & Son. £1859 R Hall & Son. £1582 GS Dowson.
Clean Cattle (92) – Less forward, trade much sharper for all classes, in particular the in-spec butchers shop carcasses took a ten to fifteen pence jump; all in, a tidy show of heifers averaged 412ppk and £2530 with a variable offering of steers at 352ppk and £2494. Thirty-five cattle passed 400ppk, the top nine heifers passed 460ppk with two of them over 470ppk. A pair of beauties from R Hirst, Neasham Grange led the way; Limousin heifers at 566ppk and 575kg sold for 479ppk and 474ppk respectively. The hot Hirst run also provided four of the seven selling in the 460’s, joining them were a couple of Cole Hill Farm crackers and a smart sort from JE Suddes & Son, Rowley Farm. Steers sold twice to 419ppk, the two firms at the summit were the aforementioned Cole Hill Farm Ltd, Elwick and Taylor Bros of Belle Isle Farm. A tightly packed gross value leader board saw some twenty-four sell over £2700, five of these passed £2800. Top of the day at £2857 were the high-flying Hirst’s of Neasham Grange with a 666kg Limousin heifer; JE Suddes & Son, Rowley Farm followed at £2854 with a heifer ahead of the top steer at £2837, a 687kg Limousin from I Marshall & Sons, Hope House Farm. The final two to foray beyond £2800 were another fine heifer from the excellent Hirst pen and a terrific British Blue steer from P & SA Nelson, Rosegill Head.
Clean Cattle Lead Grossing Top Averages-
JE Suddes & Son sold 4 (632kg) Average £2711
I Marshall & Sons sold 6 (660kg) Average £2645
R Hirst sold 14 (582kg) Average £2640
JD Forsyth & Son sold 7 (768kg) Average £2633
Clean Cattle PPK Top Averages-
R Hirst sold 14 (582kg) Average 453ppk
Cole Hill Farm Ltd sold 14 (588kg) Average 439ppk
JE Suddes & Son sold 4 (632kg) Average 428ppk
Taylor Bros Ltd sold 4 (568kg) Average 409ppk
Steers – Top prices ppk 419 412 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 419 418 417 382 Taylor Bros. 413 409 406 404 386 382 I Marshall & Sons. 405 352 329 325 311 P&SA Nelson. 385 WF Hustwit. 384 370 355 342 333 JD Forsyth & Son. 375 JE Suddes & Son.
Lead Grossing Steers £2837 £2779 £2777 £2760 £2709 I Marshall & Sons. £2806 £2703 £2635 £2506 £2484 £2421 P&SA Nelson. £2756 £2745 £2666 £2636 £2597 £2592 £2437 JD Forsyth & Son. £2614 £2517 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £2580 JE Suddes & Son. £2406 £2405 Taylor Bros. £2383 WF Hustwit.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 479 474 469 466×2 461 457×2 449 442 441 438 429 426 R Hirst. 469 466 454 452 448 446×2 439 436 429 414 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 463 456 429 JE Suddes & Son. 447 381 TW Clark & Son. 439 414 412 410 396 394 388×2 Lawson & Son. 409 A Swinbank. 397 390 389 385 380 WF Hustwit. 386 376 JB Bell.
Lead Grossing Heifers £2857 £2824 £2738×2 £2725 £2712 £2711 £2632 £2600 R Hirst. £2854 £2708 £2702 JE Suddes & Son. £2754 £2513 TW Clark & Son. £2748 £2742 £2715 £2692 £2642 £2638 £2637 £2598 £2595 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £2680 £2634 £2587 £2579 £2557 Lawson & Son. £2572 £2546 WF Hustwit. £2543 A Swinbank & Son.
Prime Lambs (1207) – One glaring observation from the lambs, big is beautiful at the moment, of the top twenty prices per head today only one lamb weighed under 50kg. The export market is seemingly flat however plenty of trade surrounds the super heavies. All in the sale averaged a weighed straight 308.67ppk and £144.60 per head, this is unusually bolstered by the heavies as the SQQ sat some 10ppk lower than the all in average. Top of the day at 450ppk and £225 was a wonderful 50kg Texel lamb from J Hird, Thorney Close Farm, challenging the closest was a peach of a Beltex from Malton based TA Robson & Son, Newstead Grange at 45kg, 446ppk and £201. Pet lamb news next, an incredible pen of ten 58kg Berrichon bottle fed beauties from ABP Wilsons, West Highwood sold for an incredible £199 apiece
Lambs Top Grossing Top Averages-
ABP Wilsons sold 14 (54kg) Average £183
IR Appleton sold 11 (55kg) Average £177
D&PH Brown sold 13 (52kg) Average £174
JJ Horn sold 43 (52kg) Average £172
Lambs – Top prices ppk 450 360 342 J Hird. 446 365 354×2 TA Robson & Son. 363 S&S Davies. 361 337 J Hill. 353 351 HT Davies & Partners. 347 J&S Barnes. 347 335×2 JJ Horn. 346 340 333 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 344×2 343 Wytherstone Farm. 343 ABP Wilsons. 337 C&V Harrison. 336 334 M Pickering. 335 D&PH Brown. 334 DR&RL Burns. 334 333 331 330 JE Suddes & Son. 333 GF Whitfield. 332 331 SC Brown. 332 JR&J Crowe.
Lead Grossing Lambs £225 £180 J Hird. £201 £170×2 TA Robson & Son. £199 ABP Wilsons. £198 £168 T Lawson & Son. £188 D&PH Brown. £186 £181 £180 IR Appleton. £185 £171 J Hill. £184 M Pickering. £184 £178 £176×2 £171 JJ Horn. £180 JW&GP Furness. £179 J&MJ Walton. £178 DR&RL Burns. £176 JR&J Crowe. £172 JE Suddes & Son. £171 £169×2 £168 Wytherstone Farm. £170 £168 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £170 R Mould.
Cast Ewes & Rams (139) – Despite the fever in the feeding ewe ring on a Monday the wholesalers continue with caution at our Thursday sales; trade down to average £108.63. Top at £165 was a smart single Texel from G Thompson & Sons, Softley Farm; the same home followed at £160 with a strong pen of sixteen. The majority of the big fit ewes traded £130 to £160 thereafter.
Lead Grossing Cast Ewes- £165 £160 x2 £130 x2 £128 G Thompson & Sons. £150 £124 R Lawson & Son. £140 £130 C Wise. £140 R Wade. £140 £135 £120 Ali Inan. £140 £130 IR Appleton. £130 Harry Askwith. £130 D Barron. £120 AW Sanderson. £120 S Sanderson.
