Buyer so taken with bull he saw at open day, he topped the Melville Park sale
When Tony Holliss saw a Hereford bull during Stock & Land Beef Week, he knew he had to have him.
And he made sure he claimed that bull at the Melville Park Hereford and Poll Hereford sale for the top price of $21,000.
Buyers placed bids from three states at the stud's 43rd on-property sale on March 2, with both new and returning clients bidding on the 37 bulls offered by the Lyons family.
Of the 37 sire-prospects offered at the Vasey sale, three were horned and 34 polled, with 19 selling for a clearance of 51 per cent.
The sale reached an average price of $7684 and a gross of $146,000.
The top-priced bull, Melville Park Vincent V324, was claimed by the Holliss family, Lotus Hereford stud, Glen Innes, NSW.
The 23-month-old horned bull, sired by Mawarra If Only Q264 (H) and out of Warwick Court Dawn P101 (H), was ranked in the top 5 per cent of the breed for intramuscular fat (IMF), with an estimated breeding value (EBV) of +2.1.
He also ranked in the top 7pc of the breed for eye muscle area with an EBV +7.0 square centimetres, an above-average carcase weight EBV of +64 kilograms, and a birth weight of +3.4kg.
Mr Holliss saw the bull when he was visiting Melville Park during Stock & Land Beef Week.
"He is a well-muscled bull with good outlook and length," he said.
"His birth weight and IMF were pretty good, he fitted the bill we were after.
"We went to around 10 or a dozen studs and picked the bulls we wanted."
He said the bull would be used as a commercial and stud sire at Lotus stud.
Melville Park stud principal David Lyons knew the bull would be popular.
"He has good length of body and thickness, and his muscle pattern," Mr Lyons said.
"He had a good balance of EBVs."
Lot 20, Melville Vermouth V524 (P), sold for $16,000, and Lot 30, Melville V-Sam V523 (PP) reached $11,000, both snapped up by Beerik Partnership, Coleraine.
KW and BF Badenoch, Wepar, SA, bought five bulls to a top of $8000 and an average of $6400.
Coorabil Pastoral Company, Coojar, bought three bulls to a top of $7000 and an average of $5700.
Wayne Sealey, Strathdownie, paid $9000 for Lot 1, Melville View-Me V479 (P), while DI and SG Bratt, Dartmoor, paid $8000 for Lot 29, Melville Vern V450 (AI) (PP).
Mr Lyons knew the tough season was going to play a part in the sale result.
"We knew people were short of water, and there had been quite a number of cows sold, so that makes things uncertain," he said.
"Considering the seasonal conditions, cattle have been selling well.
"We knew the seasonal conditions would play a fair part in it, but I'm pleased with how it worked out."
Nutrien south-east stud stock manager Peter Godbolt said the number of return clients, as well as new clients, showed the quality of the Melville Park offering.
"The sale had a strong top, with the bull heading to another stud," he said.
At the stud's 2025 sale, 19 of the 39 bulls offered sold for an average of $7166 and to a top of $19,000.
