Verge continues record-breaking spree, selling for a breed-high price

A 21-month-old bull has continued a streak of breaking records in a "whirlwind year" for a Riverina breeder, this time achieving the highest breed price at auction.

Tennysonvale Verge made headlines earlier this year after he became the first Fleckvieh animal to claim the supreme exhibit title in the Simmental-Fleckvieh ring at the Sydney Royal.

This was then followed up by becoming the first Fleckvieh to win the Royal's interbreed champion, sashed interbreed junior champion bull, and then overall interbreed champion bull - just tipped in the Urquhart Trophy win by a standout Angus cow and calf.

Now the young bull has claimed another record, achieving a record price of $72,500 at the Tennysonvale on-property sale at Illabo.

The bull was out of Rivulet Marge Q013 and by Koopa Creek Red Dog, a sire the stud had borrowed from a friend.

Tennysonvale Simmental Fleckviehs co-principal Carl Baldry, alongside his father Ian, said they were reluctant to part with Tennysonvale Verge.

"I think Dad and I both didn't really want to sell the bull at all in the end," Mr Baldry said.

"But when they're paying that sort of money, it happens quite naturally. You just say, yes, don't you?

"Dad and I kind of said, 'We might retire, we might not ever get as good results as we've had this year!'"

Tennysonvale Verge was bought by Max Dench, Wondenia-Denmire, Gilgandra, a longtime friend of the Baldry family.

Mr Dench said only his 95-year-old mother knew about the plan to buy the esteemed bull, who he had first seen at the Canberra Show, and would now be heading to an AI centre.

The new genetics would first go over his breeding herd, which had been cut back with the dry conditions in the Central West.

There was little not to love about the bull, Mr Dench said.

"He's not small, but he's not extreme in any way... he's just well-balanced, well put-together," he said.

"I tell everybody, stay away from the extremes in everything... stick middle-of-the-road, stay away from the extremes, and he is that to a tee."

The dark red bull weighed 860 kilograms with a 136 square centimetre eye muscle area, and 37cm scrotal circumference with rib and rump fat scores of 9 millimetres and 11mm respectively as well as an intramuscular fat score of 5.6 per cent.

Tennysonvale Verge also claimed supreme Simmental-Fleckvieh exhibit at the Royal Canberra Show in February, where the stud was also named most successful exhibitor.

All up, 29 of 30 bulls offered were sold for an average of $11,069.

The sale also offered 42 females, some pregnancy-tested in-calf and some unjoined, with all 42 selling to a top of $16,000 and an average of $5915.

Tennysonvale Volvo, a PTIC Simmental heifer, claimed the top price on the back of reserve junior champion sashes at the Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne Royals.

The 704kg heifer, described by the stud as a "stylish, deep-bodied female with plenty of capacity", sold to Alan Robinson, Tiaro Park, Tiaro, Qld, who also purchased the second top-priced bull of the day, Tennysonvale Valiant, a Simmental bull by Tennysonvale Sow out of Tennysonvale Skipado, for $24,000.

Mr Robinson said he had been purchasing cattle from Tennysonvale for the last six years, appreciating their quietness and easy handling.

The new cows would join the around 200-strong breeding herd of Santa Gertrudis and Simmental females on the Mary River, where Mr Robinson also crossed the two breeds.

"They seem to grow out pretty well," he said. "It's sort of quietened them all down a little bit."

Nearly half of the cattle sold were headed to Queensland, with the sale supported by plenty of return buyers as well as new faces in the gallery.

Mr Baldry said he felt Simmental Fleckvieh cattle were eating in to the market share of other Euro breeds, such as Limousin and Charolais.

"We've had a lot of phone calls over the last few weeks from Queenslanders particularly that are putting them back over Brahmans," Mr Baldry said.

"Just to get some weight for age and whatever else, some growth."

Average prices for both bulls and females were up more than $1000 on last year's on-property sale, even excluding the breed record top price.

The sale was conducted by AWN Wilks McKean with StockLive and AuctionsPlus providing the online interface.