Local Poll Merino sale moves annual auction closer to home

Father and daughter duo Lily and Stephen Higgins, Woodpark Poll Merinos “Eurolie” with Michael Elmes, from SmartStock, Narrandera. Image: Supplied.

By Krista Schade

Hay Poll Merino sheep stud Woodpark Poll Merinos will hold its annual ram sale at Conargo Sportsground on September 23 this year, edging closer to its home base after almost two decades at the Jerilderie Racecourse.

The stud places about 600 rams a year with flocks from Longreach, Wilcannia and Mossgiel, through to local producers, and across southern New South Wales and Victoria.

The Woodpark Poll auction offers 150 rams a year with grade ram selections on-property at “Eurolie” Hay, securing most rams for clients.

The final ram selections of the 2023-24 selections were taken to the Monaro after being selected in March this year.

Woodpark Poll benchmarks its sheep through saleyards, wether trials and sheep breeding values as well as constant visual assessment in the paddocks and sheep yards at home, according to stud principal Stephen Huggins.

The stud sheep average 7.5kg of 18 micron wool on a meaty carcase, figures replicated in client flocks in varying regions, such as the “Murtee” Wilcannia flock which this year averaged about seven kilograms of 17.4-18.5 micron wool from 20,000 ewes at shearing this year.

Mr Huggins said the Murtee sheep reflected a focus on profit drivers of wool cut and micron on a sheep type that would deliver growth and fertility and suit tight conditions.

He said Woodpark Poll Merinos’ own ram offering had responded well to recent better feed availability after a tight start. He is also positive about future wool and sheep returns with industry analysts pointing to tight wool supplies as producers battling with low animal protein prices last year pushed stored wool onto the market in the past 12 months.

At the recent Bendigo and Hamilton Sheep Shows, wool traders highlighted further wool supply tightening.

“There were reports of an expected drop in the national clip of at least 10 per cent due to dry conditions in the high rainfall zones, sell offs and reduction of sheep numbers in some cropping zones”, Mr Huggins said.

“The people we spoke with expected this to combine with limited in-store volumes to aid price triggers in the new selling season when the northern hemisphere winter kicks off.”