Mandayen achieves equal stud record price for an Angus bull at Keith sale

The Gommers family set an equal stud record price for an Angus bull at their Mandayen sale at Keith on Wednesday, attracting attention from industry-leading studs from across Australia.

In 2022, Damian and Mandy Gommers sold the highest price bull during SA Angus Week for $40,000.

They backed it up this year by achieving the same highest price for Mandayen Quartz V331.

The 18-month-old bull was sired by Millah Murrah Quartz Q29 and out of Mandayen Wilcoola N481.

It was bought by the Branson family's Banquet Angus stud in Mortlake, Vic, with a semen share going to Alastair Murray's Tullibardine Angus stud in Green Valley, WA.

Mandayen is also retaining semen as well.

V331 attracted a lot of attention at Stock Journal Beef Week, weighed 810 kilograms with a scrotal circumference of 44 centimetres.

The deep-bodied bull had growth figures in the top 10 per cent of indexes, with moderate birth weight.

Its EBVs included +4.7 for birth weight, +65 for 200 day weight, +119 for 400 day weight and +150 for 600 day weight

Hamish Branson, who is the stud manager at Banquet alongside his parents Stephen and Noeleen, visited several SA Angus studs looking for an outcross.

But the $40,000 Mandayen bull was the only one he ended up taking home.

"I was attracted to its pedigree, phenotype, style and thickness," he said.

"It's a very balanced bull and what we were looking for with our program."

Mr Branson said the bull would be going into stud duties at Banquet for autumn and spring joining.

It was the first time Banquet had bought from the Mandayen stud.

Overall, in the Angus part of the auction, there were 55 bulls sold from 59 offered, with an average of $10,836, $1050 up on last year's $9786.

Two of the volume Angus buyers were return clients - Swiss Australia Farm Holdings, with nine bulls to $15,000, averaging $9444; and McCarthy Livestock, Lucindale, taking nine bulls to $17,000, averaging $11,000.

In the Limousin sale, 17 bulls were sold from 18 offered, to a top of $28,000, and an average of $11,470, a whopping $2550 higher than last year.

The top price Limousin - Mandayen Carhartt V12 - was a homozygous polled son of B-Bar Carhartt 71H and out of Mandayen Jill M157.

The 18-month-old bull weighed 850kg with scrotal circumference of 30cm.

It was bought by Innisfail Investments, Nareen, Vic, who regularly sell near the top of the market in the Hamilton, Vic, weaner sales, including making 532c/kg with Limousin steers at this year's January auction.

The volume buyer on Limousin bulls was Rockalen Pastoral Co, Willalooka, with five bulls to $14,000, averaging $11,000.

The sale was conducted jointly by Spence Dix & Co and Elders, with Jono Spence and Ross Milne auctioneering respectively.

Mr Milne said it was a good, solid sale.

"People still got good value throughout the draft, which was very even," he said.

"A lot of bulls stayed local and there were a lot of return clients here again."

Mr Spence said Mandayen presented a strong line-up.

"It was a very strong group of bulls, you'd have to travel far and wide to find any better," he said.

"There were good opportunities, and good value, for buyers while still maintaining an average over $10,000."

Principal Damian Gommers said it was pleasing to see plenty of repeat buyers at the sale, along with some new faces.

"The sale went very well," he said.

"We sold to a lot of repeat clients. Some of them have been buying bulls here for at least 25 years and getting great results with our genetics."

Mr Gommers said it was also pleasing to see the stud interest buying at the top of the catalogue.