Official Simmental Society Sales in the Year Gross £2,167,231, up by £75,825 Pedigree Registrations up for the Third Consecutive Year Record pedigree sale averages, a strong performance in UK wide commercial sales, and for the third year in a row increases in both...
7 Simmental bulls make £7000 and over 14 Simmental bulls average £6586 The Working Genes production sale from the McGowan family at Incheoch, Perthshire met a keen trade for an entire clearance, and with a strong demand and average for the Simmental bulls offered....
Five animals make 5000gns and over Ranfurly maiden heifers average £4646 Joint sale grosses £128, 416 There was a strong demand for Simmental females with prices reaching a top of 8,000gns at the fourth joint production sale from the noted Ballinalare Farm herd of Joe...
The Male and Female of the Year Awards sponsored by Danske Bank is one of the most prestigious competitions in the Northern Ireland Simmental Club’s annual calendar.
The competition has been running since 1997, and in keeping with its long-standing tradition, the winners were announced recently at Fermanagh County Show in Enniskillen. The crystal awards and rosettes were presented by Danske Bank’s head of agricultural relations John Henning, who was accompanied by Rodney Brown and Matthew Johnston.
Club chairman Nigel Glasgow thanked Danske Bank for its continued commitment to the competition. “This is a strongly contested competition amongst breeders annually, and the club is indebted to Danske Bank for its generous sponsorship.
“Prizes mean points, as the winners are determined using a scoring system which is collated at nominated shows throughout the season. Points are awarded to individual animals, and the higher the animal’s accolade in the show ring the bigger the points it earns.”
Claiming the 2013 Female of the Year title was the October 2011 born heifer Slieveroe Caroline, owned by Leslie Weatherup, and son Christopher, from Ballyclare, County Antrim. Sired by the popular Kilbride Farm Newry, and out of Clonagh Willow, she was bred by County Cork-based breeder Adrian Bateman, and joined the 40-cow Lisglass herd in November last year following a sale in Roscommon.
This much-admired heifer claimed the Weatherup famiy’s first-ever Balmoral Show championship in May, and went on to lift the supreme breed honours at Lurgan, Antrim and Enniskillen. She also scooped the female championship title at Armagh Show.
The reserve Female of the Year award went to Magheracrigan Clare 2nd, a home-bred Omorga Volvo daughter exhibited by Wesley Abraham from Irvinestown, County Fermanagh. This March 2011 born heifer was female champion at Omagh, and reserve female champion at Ballymena and Clogher. She stood first in her class at Lurgan, Armagh and Enniskillen, and was placed second at Balmoral Show.
Raymond and Joan Porter from Omagh, County Tyrone, secured the Male of the Year Award with their home-bred junior bull Killynure Darwin. Born in January 2012, this Omorga Murray son was bred from Killynure Twinkle – one of eight cows in the herd founded in 1983.
He notched up a string of accolades throughout the show season, including supreme champion at Ballymena, Armagh and Omagh, reserve champion at Lurgan and Enniskillen, and male champion at Balmoral Show.
Another home-bred junior bull, Ranfurly Dominator, secured the reserve Male of the Year Award for David and Jonny Hazelton from Dungannon, County Tyrone. Also by Omorga Murray, this April 2012 born entry was supreme breed champion at Saintfield, Castlewellan and Clogher, and reserve champion at Omagh and Antrim.
