Premier Murray Greys Sale at Albury features bulls and heifers

The Albury Showgrounds sale recorded a clearance of four of 15 bulls to a top price of $7000 to average $5500, nine of 13 heifers to $3500 to average $2527 and seven of 21 cow and calf units to $7000 to average $4713 at the 34^th multi-vendor sale.

The sale attracted 16 buyers from across Victoria, NSW, South Australia and Western Australia, with the top-price bull bought and sold by graziers in South Australia.

Ballyvaughan Murray Grey stud principals Katrina and Steven Sanders, Clare Valley, SA, sold the top-priced $7000 bull to a buyer just 200 kilometres away at Jervois, SA.

This is despite the bull travelling a round trip of 1800 kilometres to Albury for the auction.

"We are excited to sell two of the three animals we sent over because it was a pretty tough sale overall," Ms Sanders said.

"It was a great opportunity for us from South Australia to send our genetics over to those on the east coast so those at the sale could access the genetics more easily.

The Sanders family, one of 15 vendors in the sale, established the stud in 2001 and said it was their second year in the multi-vendor sale and first time topping such an auction.

"We thought really highly of the grey top-priced bull because his paternal sister was the supreme Murray Grey exhibit at the Royal Adelaide Show this year," Ms Sanders said.

"His sire, Wallawong Yippee, was an AI sire that we've used extensively in the stud with great results.

"We also sold a pregnancy-tested-in-calf heifer and she was one of the best from her drop, so we were willing to give someone else an opportunity."

Greg Samuel, Glenellen Cattle Co, Jervois, SA, bought the top-priced bull because of his dataset which stood out from the moment he inspected the line-up of cattle.

"We bought Touch Down as his numbers were very good and he looks like a nice balanced bull," he said.

"We focus on the breeder replacement index and supermarket index and both of these were in the top 1 per cent of breed or marginally outside top 1pc.

"He has excellent growth traits and moderate birth weight and calving ease traits."

Mr Samuel said the bull also featured excellent milk traits which was important for females who were retained in the herd.

"We are taking a long-term view of the market and expect it to bounce back in the next 12 to 18 months, so we're happy to continue to invest in quality genetics while prices are down," he said.

Murray Grey Sale chair Geoff Buick, Western Flat, SA, said it was a "beautiful" presentation of cattle

"We were able to get 66 per cent of the cattle on display at Albury Showgrounds and the event was run in conjunction with an educational youth weekend," he said.

"It was a very positive thing for the breed because there were really good numbers across the weekend.

"The sale reflected the condition of the industry and where cattle prices are at."

Elders Stud Stock agent for Victoria and Riverina Jenni O'Sullivan said the buying gallery was spread from WA through southern Australia and up to Orange, NSW.

"We had some long-term clients at the sale, along with a few new faces," she said.

Monterey Murray Greys, Karridale, sold the top-priced cow and calf units, Lot 2 and 13, for $7000 respectively to buyers at Lake Muir, WA, and Bega, NSW.