Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 5th November 2026. Forward were 204 cattle and 1384 sheep.
74 Prime Bulls sold to 411ppk or £3422
30 Prime Steers sold to 435ppk or £3024
100 Prime Heifers sold to 478ppk or £3134
1320 Prime Lambs sold to 435ppk or £224
64 Cast Ewes/Rams sold to £160
Prime Bulls (74) – Despite the Halloween horror stories from elsewhere in the region this week the bull trade looked healthy enough here as the averages rose to 346ppk and £2409 per head. The top dozen traded at 400ppk or more and a super sixteen sailed to £3000 and beyond. Best per kilo at 411 pence was a superb 689kg Limousin from GK, KN & GJ Hird, Meadow View, Richmond; following at 408ppk was the pick from Roxburghshire raiders WM Fleming, Moss Tower ahead of two vendors at 407ppk, K & A Harker, Worsall and M & G Chantrell Ltd, Leicestershire. Top of the gross values at £3422 was a hefty 915kg bull from JA Matten & Sons, Avenue Grange; next in line at £3400 was a cracking 881kg homebred Limousin from TW Clark & Son, Frankland Park Farm with more Matten magic next at £3376. Friesian bulls this week topped at 300ppk from J Mawer, Broomfield Farm and also GW Dobson & Son, Wood Close; the Wood Close bull also led the gross values at £2082.
Leading Bull averages Per Kilo
WM Fleming sold 5 (784kg) averaged 397ppk
Robert Neill & Partners sold 3 (713kg) averaged 394ppk
GK, KN & GJ Hird sold 3 (688kg) averaged 391ppk
JA Matten & Sons sold 3 (843kg) averaged 390ppk
JC Thwaite & Son sold 2 (717kg) averaged 389ppk
Leading Bull Averages Gross Value
JA Matten & Sons sold 3 (843kg) averaged £3292
WM Fleming sold 5 (784kg) averaged £3120
F & JS Gargett sold 3 (893kg) averaged £3111
TW Clark & Son sold 3 (836kg) averaged £3094
K & A Harker sold 3 (760kg) averaged £2949
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 411 386 378 GK KN & GJ Hird. 408 403×2 400 376 WM Fleming. 407 380 378 K&A Harker. 407 406 388 387 385 380 373 368 358 M&G Chantrell Ltd. 400×2 374 JA Matten & Sons. 400 377 JC Thwaite & Son. 400 395 388 R Neill & Partners. 399 355 F&JS Gargett. 397 386 TW Clark & Son. 376 357 348 LR Welsh & Co. 373 P&I Harker. 360 341 SH Watson & Son.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £3422 £3376 £3080 JA Matten & Sons. £3400 £3033 £2851 TW Clark & Son. £3280 £3140 £3108 £3062 £3008 WM Fleming. £3243 £3163 £2928 F&JS Gargett. £3181 PI Harker. £3108 £2897 £2842 K&A Harker. £3008 £2836 R Neill & Partners. £3004 JC Thwaite & Son. £2952 SH Watson & Son. £2831 £2655 GK KN & GJ Hird. £2827 A&MJ Henshaw. £2659 £2656 LR Welsh & Co.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 322 317 314 HM&JS Hutchinson. 300 292 C&M Atkinson & Sons.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £2154 £2037 £1984 HM&JS Hutchinson. £1602 £1439 C&M Atkinson & Sons.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 300 299 J Mawer. 300 296 GW Dobson & Son. 299 291 260 HM&JS Hutchinson.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £2082 £1992 GW Dobson & Son. £2007 £1743 £1547 HM&JS Hutchinson. £1737 £1689 J Mawer.
Clean Cattle (130) – In similar fashion to the bulls the DfAM clean beef bucked the trend as prices rose on the week, sizeable increases in averages saw the steers check in at 386ppk and £2569 with the heifers a marvellous 414ppk and £2485. Some bonfire night delight at the top end with a best of 478ppk and no less than thirty-four beasts sold over 430ppk. Top of the pile was a terrific 531kg Limousin heifer from JV & JA Hodgson, The Grange, Summerhouse; second spot went to stunning 605kg Limousin from Messrs WM Fleming, Moss Tower who also placed third at 465ppk ahead of R Hirst, Neasham Grange at 464ppk. Leicestershire based M & G Chantrell Ltd, Flash Farm ran away with the top three steer prices per kilo, the charging Chantrell’s topped at 435ppk with others at 430ppk and 420ppk. Four heifers and a steer joined the £3000 club this week, despite a valiant effort from Ponteland based PJ & MP Gilhespy, Low House the plaudits went to Cumbrian crusaders Messrs Lawson & Son, Hundith House. The Gilhespy run saw a super steer at £3024, heifers at £3096 and £3100 however the thumping Hundith heifers led the way with a 701kg OTM at £3119 and a 724kg stunner at £3134.
A few of today’s top grossing clean cattle averages:
PJ&MP Gilhespy sold 6 (691kg) average £2887
Lawson & Son sold 6 (666kg) average £2834
Askwiths sold 4 (681kg) average £2778
WM Fleming sold 5 (605kg) average £2744
K Trotter sold 4 (635kg) average £2708
Today’s top clean cattle averages ppk:
WM Fleming sold 5 (605kg) average 453ppk
HW&J Birkbeck sold 3 (553kg) average 437ppk
JV&JA Hodgson sold 6 (578kg) average 429ppk
Cole Hill Farm Ltd sold 10 (594kg) average 427ppk
K Trotter sold 4 (635kg) average 426ppk
Steers – Top prices ppk 435 430 420 419 413 409 400 392 M&G Chantrell Ltd. 418×2 397×2 Askwiths. 412 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 400 398 MF Hall. 399 388 Taylor Bros. 387 378 375 360×2 358 RA&BA Ridley & Son Ltd. 385 Lawson & Son. 382 P&JH Davison. 380 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 364 DL&D Lovegreen.
Lead Grossing Steers £3024 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £2944 A&MJ Henshaw. £2917 £2871 £2731 £2592 Askwiths. £2862 £2763 £2692 £2656 £2585 RA&BA Ridley & Son. £2785 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £2752 Lawson & Son. £2679 £2396 £2370 £2350 M&G Chantrell. £2584 £2332 MF Hall. £2451 P Langstaff. £2409 Taylor Bros.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 478 441 433 JV&JA Hodgson. 470 465 454 441 438 WM Fleming. 464 435 R Hirst. 457 438 436 434 428 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 446 431 K Trotter. 446 438 HW&J Birkbeck. 445 439 438 Lawson & Son. 444 443 W Swinbank & Sons. 442 MF Hall. 441 430×2 428 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 437 434 M&G Chantrell. 434×2 JE Suddes & Son. 430 Taylor Bros.
Lead Grossing Heifers £3134 £3119 £2874 £2692 Lawson & Son. £3100 £3096 £2743 £2741 £2619 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £2989 £2724 £2581 K Trotter. £2881 £2686 W Swinbank & Sons. £2860 £2843 £2686 £2618 W Swinbank & Sons. £2860 £2682 £2678 JE Suddes. £2824 £2602 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £2803 WM Fleming. £2668 R Hirst. £2650 JV&JA Hodgson. £2584 C Binks & Son.
Prime Lambs (1320) – The super heavies remain in incredible form, £200 and beyond was achieved by eight separate vendors as the bounty on the big ones was certainly high. The hard fed lambs of all weights kept pace with recent weeks however a fair proportion of leaner types were notably harder to place; all included the weighed straight average returned at 331ppk and £159 per head. Top per kilo at 435 pence was a smart pen of 45kg clipped Texel’s from R Atkinson, High Greenbury Farm; a trio at the same weight from PM Hill, Old Hall Farm followed at 420ppk before another twenty-five at 46kg and 48kg from High Greenbury sold at 410ppk. Some powerful lambs led the gross values, three at 62kg from D & PH Brown, Cordilleras sold for £224 and three at 63kg from FT Gibbon & Son, Westfield sold for £219. The colossal Cordilleras consignment followed at £216 with the gargantuan Gibbon lambs next at £215 and then came nine great 55kg lambs from C Moralee & Sons, Blackburn Farm at £210 and six heavies from JE & E Dobson, White Kirkley at £209.
A few of today’s lead grossing lamb averages:
D&PH Brown sold 18 (57kg) average £198
R Atkinson sold 45 (46kg) average £192
J&E Dobson sold 30 (53kg) average £191
K Hall sold 43 (52kg) average £188
Cole Hill Farm Ltd sold 27 (54kg) average £186
Lambs – Top prices ppk 435 410×2 393 R Atkinson. 420 368 PM Hill. 400 360 353 R Errington & Son. 397 LD Laws. 395 A&PA Jopling. 383 G Thompson & Sons. 382 370 364 346 C Moralee & Sons. 381 S&S Davies. 378 371 K Hall. 370 WA Wardman Ltd. 365 HT Davies & Partners. 363 358 356 351 AWSM Farms. 362 359 357×2 356 J&E Dobson. 361 352 D&PH Brown. 360 Cole Hill Farm Ltd.
Lead Grossing lambs £224 £216 £205 £194 D&PH Brown. £219 £215 £192 £186×2 FT Gibbon & Son. £210 £189 C Moralee & Sons. £209 £196 £194 £193 £186 J&E Dobson. £202 £183 £182 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £200 R Wood & Son. £200 EJ&D Braithwaite. £200 J Layfield. £197 £196 £189×2 R Atkinson. £197 £193 K Hall. £191 WA Stephenson. £190 £188 £182 WA Wardman Ltd. £189 PM Hill. £187 LW Martin.
Cast Sheep (64) – Such is the significance now of our thriving Monday ewe ring that the Thursday numbers remain low. Top of those forward at £160 was a smart continental from Winsbury Farm Partners. Twelve other lots sold between £140 and £150.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £160 Winsbury Farm Partnership. £150 LD Laws. £150 £110×2 £80 Elemore Hall. £150 £140 £125 W.K M.M Lamb. £150×2 £110 PM Hill. £150 J Layfield. £140 £110×3 JW Richardson. £140 JA&A Herbert. £140×2 JK&CE Farming. £140 M Whorlton. £124 J Burns. £120 JM&S Walton.
