PRICES were pushed to a sale top of $258 twice at the second Elders Ewe and Lamb Sale for the season at Moora last Friday.
Overcast skies threatened rain but luckily held off for the duration of the sale.
Elders auctioneer Patrick Hannagan was willing to dwell on the lines as they were offered, allowing for bids to come in over the phone and encourage higher prices.
All 22 lots were cleared for a gross of $1,556,177 and an average of $192.
There was a total of 8087 ewes and lambs offered, being broken down into 7340 ewes and 747 wether lambs.
The majority of the ewe offering were 1.5-year-old-ewes, with the remaining ewes ranging in age from 2.5-5.5yo.
Elders agents once again interfaced the sale with AuctionsPlus and buyers on this platform dominated the sale, securing 11 lines, grossing $813,590 at an average of $183.
There were 51 registered bidders logged in to the sale on AuctionsPlus from New South Wales, South Australia, Victoria and WA which placed 306 online bids.
By the end of the sale 11 lines had been secured through the AuctionsPlus platform.
There was also 21 guest viewers logged in to watch the sale and the catalogue received 2228 views.
Achieving the $258 top price in the sale were two identical lines from Yargalain Holdings, Calingiri.
Both lines were made up of 556 Boorabbin blood, March shorn, 2.5-year-old ewes.
Paying the top price for the two consecutive lots was a New South Wales buyer operating on the AuctionsPlus platform.
Derek & B Mondello purchased just the one line in the sale, but he paid the sale's second top price of $244 for the first lot of the sale.
The line consisted of 243 Mocardy blood, August shorn, 1 .5yo ewes offered by Kondut.
Elders Moora agent Rhys Fleay was an active buyer, bidding on behalf of a Victorian buyer and by the end of the sale he had secured five lines averaging $195 a head for the Victorian operation.
The top price bid by Mr Fleay was $210 for a line of 190 Ejanding blood, April shorn, 1.5yo ewes from the Jones family, JS Jones & Sons, Ejanding stud, Dowerin.
Other pens on Mr Fleay's list were 226 Eungai blood, July shorn 1.5yo ewes from the Eungai stud, Miling at $201 and 206 Cranmore blood, October shorn 1.5yo ewes from Tristan at $200.
Elders Mt Barker secured two lines of 3.5yo ewes on behalf of clients averaging $223.
Both lines were from Yargalain Holdings with the first including 612 Boorabbin blood, May shorn 3.5yo ewes at $223
The second line, same description, made $224 for a draft of $611.
AWN representative Greg Wooton bid $195 for a line of 180 Nepowie blood, October shorn 1.5yo ewes offered by S & P Connaughton.
Victorian based operation FX Cough, Bendigo, also bought two lines averaging $180.
It purchased 376 Glendemar blood, November shorn, 1.5yo ewes offered by PF Nixon, Moora, at $190 and a line of 434 Misty Hills blood, October shorn, 1.5yo ewes for $171.
Moora operation PF Nixon not only sold a line of 1.5yo ewes in the sale it also offered up other age groups as part of a flock reduction.
It offered 2404 Glendemar blood, November shorn ewes in the sale ranging from 1.5yo through to 5.5yo.
A South Australian buyer operating through AuctionsPlus secured three of its lines paying $192 for a line of 420 3.5yo ewes, $175 for a run of 568 4.5yo ewes and $156 for a draft of 670 5.5yo ewes.
Along with securing the Nixon ewes, the South Australian buyer also purchased at $207 a draft of 231 Sandhurst blood, April shorn, 2.5yo ewes from Ninan Farms Pty Ltd, Yerecoin and 563 Northwich blood, September shorn, 4.5-5.5yo ewes offered by D & WD Kelly, Wongan Hills at $162.
It finished the sale by also picking up all three lines of wether lambs offered.
The buyer bid to a high of $113 twice for the wether lambs.
Achieving the $113 price tag were 260 Cranmore blood woolly lambs offered by Tristan Lefroy and 212 Colvin blood, October shorn lambs from FS & JR Eaton.
The final pen of wether lambs consisting of 275 Cranmore blood, October shorn lambs from IE Hudson & Co Pty Ltd made $103.