| 2020-03-17 |    |
Hexham YFC Calf Wintering Competition
Hexham & Northern Marts held the culmination of their Eleventh Annual YFC Calf Wintering Competition over two days and once again the event proved a resounding success.
A total of Thirty-Two calves were purchased during October of last year by members of Young Farmers Clubs from the Northumberland, County Durham and Cumbrian Federations and these were overwintered at home before being brought back for sale through the same Hexham sale ring.
Overall Champion lot 16 shown by Adam Haughton with judge and sponsors
The company are once again extremely grateful for the support of mainline sponsors I’Anson Bros Ltd, Feed Merchants, Masham, North Yorkshire and for the continued commitment of local businesses David Carr Haulage and JS Hubbuck Agricultural Merchants to the show and sale aspects of this competition. New for this year The British Limousin Cattle Society also generously offered sponsorship in the form of prize money for the top three Limousin sired cattle with the greatest profit margin.
The prize show was held on the Thursday evening and twenty of the thirty-two competitors chose to show their cattle and all presented were a credit to their owners. The company were delighted to invite Jonathan Lyon to preside as master judge and the well-known Lincolnshire based cattle showman and landscaper executed his task with an exceptionally high degree of professionalism throughout the evening.
As is the order of such events preliminary breed classes gave way to the Overall Championship and with well in excess of two hundred onlookers gathered to cheer on their friends, relations and associated YFC clubs tension was palpable as the judge was faced with a line-up of five class winners. Having given full commentary of his reasons at the conclusion of each class Mr Lyon briskly considered those red-ticketed cattle in front of him before declaring an extremely sweet and correct red Limousin cross bred heifer exhibited by Adam Haughton of Haltwhistle Young Farmers that had been bred by Benedict Bates of Nilston Rigg as the Overall Champion on the night – a decision which obviously proved very popular by the cheers of delight from the crowd. Adam was thrilled to receive the handsome Silver trophy from show sponsor David Carr Senior, renowned local farmer and haulier and benefactor to this event since its inception.
The second prize Limousin cross heifer was brought forward for consideration and it was this; a sleek black lady from Jack Moralee, also a Haltwhistle member that had been purchased from Messrs Lee, Agars Hill that was tapped out as Reserve Champion.
With a female heavy entry in both the show and the sale it was a thoroughly well-deserved decision to award the Dalkin Trophy for the best turned out calf and the John Gibb Trophy for the best calf of opposite sex to the champion to a tremendous black Limousin cross bullock from Ben Cowton of Butsfield YFC, County Durham which he had purchased from Gordon & Julie Sedgewick, Ricknall Grange in October. One of the heaviest and most well-grown calves shown on the night it was obvious that Ben had indeed taken a great deal of time in preparing the animal for show and his hard work carried all the hallmarks of animal turned out by a lifelong expert rather than by one just beginning his career in the industry.
The company would like to thank all involved with the show aspect of the competition which is now firmly cemented as the highlight of the prize show calendar at Hexham Auction Mart.
Prize List:
Class 1 – Newton Rigg College Students Confined
1st – Katie Willey (Whitley Chapel YFC)
Class 2 – Any Other Breed Steer or Heifer
1st – Grant Cummings (Coquetdale) with a Beef Shorthorn Steer
2nd – Ryan Fletcher (Bellingham) with a Blonde cross Heifer
Class 3 – Charolais cross Steer or Heifer
1st – Matthew Walton (Coquetdale) with a Heifer
Class 4 – British Blue cross Heifer
1st – Carl Baxter (Shaftoe)
2nd – Aaron Younger (Cambo)
3rd – Harry Willey (Whitley Chapel)
Class 5 – Limousin cross Steer
1st – Ben Cowton (Butsfield)
2nd – Sam Willey (Whitley Chapel)
3rd – Craig Bertram (Cambo)
Class 6 – Limousin cross Heifer
1st – Adam Haughton (Halwhistle)
2nd – Jack Moralee (Haltwhistle)
3rd – Ben Moralee (Haltwhistle)
Overall Champion – Adam Haughton
Reserve Champion – Jack Moralee
Best Turned Out – Ben Cowton
Best Calf Opposite Sex to The Champion – Ben Cowton
With the ceremony of the prize show dispensed with the next day dawned and the Young Farmers calves featured centrally within the strong catalogue for the weekly sale of store cattle that is the mainstay of the business at Hexham & Northern Marts.
A sale order had been pre-determined prior to the prize show so as not to benefit any of the prize winners for the profit margin aspect which was and remains the main focus of the competition since its inception by the company eleven years ago.
With trade seemingly sharper than the previous weeks sale and a steadfast crowd of committed, weekly buyers packed round the ringside expectations were high down the alley of YFC cattle. With purchase prices ranging from as little as £605 to as much as £1160 (all financed by Hexham & Northern Marts) today would be the day on which all such purchases and overwintering practices would be judged by those wishing to acquire top quality suckler bred store cattle.
With the outcome of the competition and the recipient of the impressive JS Hubbuck Ltd Trophy never established until the hammer falls on the final beast the crowd in auditorium swells with the sale of each beast as competitors, family, friends and breeders file forward to watch their connections.
With interest from Aberdeen in the North to as far South as Mid Wales and from almost every county in-between trade was nothing short of exceptional for all the YFC cattle due largely to the generosity of the many regular buyers that the company is delighted to do business with on a weekly basis. Showmen, suckler herd masters and commercial finishers were all keen to encourage the young enthusiasts and the outcome was that the Hubbuck trophy went home with a ‘double’ winning Adam Haughton as his earlier show champion scooped the top price on the day of £1850 and the greatest profit margin of £970 selling to previous judges at this centre Messrs Edwards Bros, Betws Gwefil Goch, Corwen, Wales.
The inter-club competition for the club achieving the highest average profit margin was won by Haltwhistle YFC and the Limousin Cattle Society prizes were taken home by three members of the same club as follows;
1st – Adam Haughton (£970)
2nd – Will Storey (£670)
3rd – Kate Ogle (£460)
The company would once again like to thank all that have been involved with this highly successful event; exhibitors, prize winners, judge, sponsors, purchasers, breeders, keen onlookers and all market staff. We look forward to October when the competition will begin again, anyone wishing to compete for the first time should contact our auctioneers for details.
