An Australian breed record price for a Santa Gertrudis bull, more than $800,000 worth of cattle sold for an average price of $16,687 and an overall 94 per cent clearance rate.
The budding NIOA & RL Pastoral strategic partnership made a spectacular debut on Thursday as the two Santa Gertrudis studs joined forces for their first joint sale.
September 1 ushered in a warm spring day and the bidding was even hotter as more than 130 people converged on NIOA’s Talgai Homestead near Allora on Queensland’s Southern Downs while 70 bidders followed the action online through EliteLivestock and AuctionsPlus.
The sale got off to a lightning start with several stars from the NIOA draft fetching strong prices.
Lot 2 – NIOA Ronaldo R32 (AI) (P) – was secured by RL Pastoral for $55,000, and Lot 3, NIOA Rain Maker R30 (AI) (ET) (PP) sold to Drensmaine Santa Gertrudis for $18,000 while Greenup Eidsvold Station picked up Lot 4, NIOA Romeo R11 (PP), for $28,000.
But it was the ninth bull in the catalogue, RL Pastoral’s Riverina Roland Sanchez R88, that topped the sale and set a new national benchmark when he fell under the hammer for $160,000 to a partnership between Rob and Eliza Nioa and West Australian breeder Clinton Wheatley.
Bred by Rob and Lorraine Sinnamon at “Mayfield”, Kyogle, Roland Sanchez is the first Australian son of former US sale topper Red Doc Never Better which sold in 2019 for A$197,000. He will be used to bolster the NIOA-Wheatley breeding programs as well as offering semen shares.
Mr Sinnamon had previously rated the 21-month-old as one of the best bulls he’d seen in 50 years, but even he admitted to a dose of the jitters as the sale time got close.
“I don’t normally get nervous, but I was today,” he said, after keen buyers cleared out every one of RL’s draft of 17 bulls for an average price of $21,588. “I guess being our first sale together and a new venture.
“What a great result to set a new Australian record for the breed but overall it’s been a great day for both studs and we are absolutely thrilled with the support we have had.”
NIOA Santa Gertrudis manager Shannon Gardner was beaming after 27 of the 30 bulls in his stable sold to an average of $15,037, including NIOA Ronaldo which was a new record for the stud.
“Tremendous crowd, the weather was with us, the vibe was great and we couldn’t be more pleased,” he said. “We had a number of repeat buyers which is a good sign for what we are doing and the direction we are heading in.”
Leading into the sale Elders stud stock auctioneer Anthony Ball described the catalogue as having something for everyone – and it went true to form – but even he was blown away by the sale topper.
“There was some very spirited bidding – you just can’t replicate that excitement – and it has gone to a very worthy bull,” he said.
“Overall a tremendous result and a good spread on the cattle – they’ve gone into NSW, we’ve had buyers from Western Australia, they have gone as far west in Queensland as Charleville, we’ve had bidders from North Queensland and buyers from Central Queensland.
“They were all here: the stud buyers the bullock breeders and the results have spoken for themselves.”
With 14 industry-leading sires in the sale book, demand for the bulls was feverish, with 44 out of 48 sold, pushing up the average to $17,568.
Lot 10, Riverina Remington R044 (PP), another son of US record breaker Red Doc Never Better, knocked down for $35,000 to Tonlena Pty Ltd in partnership with Canowindra Santa Gertrudis, Emerald.
Tim and Alison Kirkwood, “Disney”, Clermont, were the top volume buyers outlaying $70,000 for five bulls along with repeat buyer Tony Schutt, from Arrabury Pastoral Co, also with five bulls, topping at $18,000, to improve the company’s herds at Windorah and Bedourie.
Back for the third time in as many years, Mr Schutt was impressed with the blue-chip genetics on offer.
“We keep coming back because they are consistently soft and fleshy cattle. I just like the way they are put together,” he said.
RL Pastoral’s show heifer, Riverina Sweet Senorita S003 (P), sold for $8000 while the Wheatley family added the three NIOA IVF flushes to their total purchase at an average price of $6666.
Auctioneer Anthony Ball, from left, with Rob and Eliza Nioa who purchased Riverina Roland Sanchez in a partnership with a West Australian breeder from Rob and Lorraine Sinnamon.
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