The last feature weaner sale at Hamilton saleyards was held in hot and sticky conditions on Friday, but that was a side issue for many in the gallery as good bidding competition showed a keenness for a good quality, albeit lighter, heifers.
Agents yarded under 2500 cattle at the Hamilton Regional Livestock Exchange's (HRLX) Independent Agents feature heifer weaner sale with only a few pens going past 350 kilograms in average weight.
The sale had several quality pens of Angus heifers in the higher weight range passing 500 cents per kilogram, most notably a pen of Angus-cross weaner heifers from Camp Creek, 330kg, which sold for 596c/kg or $1965.
On the slightly heavier scale of things, Coffey Partnership sold 15 Angus weaner heifers, 355kg, for 542c/kg or $1936, and Roo Park sold
Ian and Helen Brown, Coleraine, also did well, having sold 20 Angus heifers, 347kg, for 500c/kg or $1732.
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Southern Grampians Livestock & Real Estate Hamilton director Dylan Dylan Praolini said the quality of cattle was good across the whole yarding on Friday.
"Considering the season and how wet it was, it was very good to see the weights were only 20 kilograms behind previous years," he said.
"There was very good support for the top-end breeding stock yarded by vendors, which Mr Praolini said ranged "from 500c/kg to 550c/kg - or just under - for your top end 360-380kg heifers to breed on".
"It stayed true the whole way through the sale, and the lighter 300kg cattle [which was better bred] were really sought after to go back to breeders."
The sale also rounded out a huge week of feature sales at HRLX, which sold just under 14,000 cattle throughout their feature weaner sale week.
Local buyers were very much at the forefront of today's sale, and Injimara near Albury and Nampara over in South Australia were looking to build their genetics.
Some South Australian buyers also were looking for cattle for backgrounding through the sale.
Many pens of quality Herefords were also on offer today, with L R Wheeler yarding 100 Hereford heifers and top-pricing that breed with a pen of 24 Hereford weaner heifers, 361kg, selling for 474c/kg or $1710.
Mt Napier was also a feature line, with the vendor yarding 100 Angus heifers 10-11 months, including 18 heifers, 324kg, for 556c/kg or $1802 and another pen of Angus-cross heifers for $1703.
EJC Cameron yarded 100 Angus-cross heifers, with their top pen being a pen of Angus-cross heifers, 355kg sold for $1655.
Vendors also offered small runs of Black Baldys with the top price of that breed going to AA & LM Brown, who sold 15 Black Baldy heifers, 373kg for 434c/kg or $1617.
It was also an emotional day for members of the Rundall family from Breakaway Creek, who attended the sale to see 82 of their Hereford heifers be sold, including a pen of 19 heifers, 298kg, that went for 490c/kg or $1460.
Bob Rundall sadly died on Tuesday and their sons Sam and Robin witnessed the sale of the family's cattle at the yards without him for the first time.
The brothers said Bob "always loved to visit" and sell his beloved Herefords at the Hamilton saleyards.
