The Irish Texel Premier Sale kicked off on Friday, 14th August, with the Premier show with our trio of judges who have the accolade of being the three remaining foundation flocks as we celebrate our 50th anniversary. With a record number of sheep entered, our three judges certainly had their work cut out.
The Shearling Ewe class was judged by Padraic Niland, the only remaining original member of the Irish Texel Sheep Society, who has remained an active member and breeder for 50 years.
His champion came from John Greene, a daughter of Drumcon His Royal Highness. She was a true standout for Padraic and went on to take the Female Championship.
She impressed again in the Overall Championship, where Donal Mee — whose father was one of the Society’s founding members and whose family flock has remained in existence for 50 years — tapped her out as Overall Supreme Champion of the Show.
Later that evening, she made history, selling for a new 50-year record of €16,000, smashing the previous record by €6,000. She was purchased by Glen Devlin, Co. Monaghan.
The same Shearling Ewe class produced the Reserve Female Champion, a daughter of Drumcon His Royal Highness from John Neville, Co. Wexford. She went on to sell for €3,800 to Edward Buckley, Co. Cork.
The Ewe Lamb class was won by John Redmond, Co. Carlow, with a daughter of his Blessington purchase from last year, Conamara Invincible. She sold later that evening for €2,000 to Tom Kenny and Brian Connelly.
Next we headed straight into the Ram classes
The ram section was judged by Johnny Donohoe, another son of a Society founding member who continues to run the family flock 50 years on.
The Shearling Ram class was won by Arthur and Patrick O’Keeffe with a son of Forkins Havana, selling for €2,000.
The Open Ram Lamb class went to Roger Doherty, Co. Donegal, with a son of the aforementioned Drumcon His Royal Highness. This lamb was the last lamb into the ring and sold for €2,000.
The Lamb Plus class produced one of the biggest highlights of the sale. Neville Myles took the top spot with a son of Hillcrest Ironman, a private purchase for €10,000 last year.
That investment certainly paid dividends.
The lamb went on to claim the Overall Male Championship and later sold for a new flock record of €33,000 to Eugene and Malachy Hand for their Brideswell flock.
The Reserve Male Champion also came from this class — a son of Duncryne Hakuna Matata, shown by Irene Donnelly and bred from the famous Gucci ewe. He sold for €9,500 to Martin McConville of Glenhoe and Derek McDowell of Tamary.
Neville Myles’ €10,000 investment struck again in the Irish Sired class, where another son of Hillcrest Ironman took first place. This lamb attracted plenty of attention before being purchased by Percy O’Callaghan, Patrick and James Murphy, Robbie and James Walker, and Dermot Behan for €12,000.
The New Breeders class was won by Aoife Harty, with a naturally born son of Haymount Fandabadozi. This March-born lamb was later selected by the McHugh flocks and sold for €10,000.
There was exceptional demand throughout the breeders’ ram lamb section, with 23 rams breaking the €3,000 barrier.
Strong Commercial Demand
The Shearling Rams were met with exceptional demand from commercial farmers, with every ram finding a new home.
The top-priced Shearling Ram came from John Canty, a son of Drumderg Fancy Pants, selling for €3,500 to Graham Sutton.
Ronan Gallagher also reached €2,500 with a son of Silverhill He’s A Cracker — another previous Blessington purchase.
Overall, commercial farmers were paying between €900 and €2,000 for fit, active Shearling Rams, showing the continued confidence in the Texel as a commercial terminal sire.
The Ram Lambs were also met with exceptional demand.
The first lamb forward from the McHugh family of Greenhill, a son of current Sire of the Year Silverhill Helpful, was selected by Edward Buckley, Co. Cork for €16,000
James Dunne was also in the money with a son of Largy I Show Speed, which caught the eye of Adam Heffernan and headed home with him for €9,000.
Peter McLaughlin reached €8,500 for a son of Haymount Fandabadozi, selling to Aaron Cox, Co. Donegal.
The females seen very strong demand throughout particular the shearling ewes with here are some of the leading prices.
Pat and Barry Farrell sold their shealing ewe by Drumderg Haribo to Adam Braken for €4,800.
Neville Myles was hitting the high notes with a daughter of Glenside Gaurdsman selling for €4,500 to Dan Bonner
Fergal O Se topped the ewe lamb trade with Coniston Equinox daughter who was National Female Champion earlier in the year selling to Paul and Arron Murphy.
Overall, there was strong demand from pedigree breeders, with commercial farmers also picking up some exceptional value. Ideal rams for commercial flocks were making in the region of €800 to €1,200.
The averages were the best the sale has seen, with the Hogget Ewes averaging €1,892, up from €1766, 86% clearance; Hogget Rams €1538, up from €1461, 100% clearance; Ram Lambs €2,069, up from €2005, 80% clearance; Ewe Lambs €1,297, up from €1,062, 66% clearance.
Showing Results
Shearling Ewe
1st – Lot 5 – John Greene
2nd – Lot 15 – John Neville
3rd – Lot 35 – Pat & Barry Farrell
4th – Lot 6 – John Greene
5th – Lot 54 – Ryan Doherty
6th – Lot 28 – Ronan Gallagher
Ewe Lamb
1st – Lot 61 – John Redmond
2nd – Lot 94 – John Neville
3rd – Lot 73 – Pat & Barry Farrell
4th – Lot 85 – A & L Rowland
5th – Lot 102 – F O Se
6th – Lot 96 – A & P O’Keeffe
Shearling Ram
1st – Lot 168 – Arthur O’Keeffe
2nd – Lot 164 – John Canty
3rd – Lot 154 – Liam Dillon
4th – Lot 130 – Mark Noble
5th – Lot 152 – Michael Haverty
6th – Lot 140 – Patrick Leonard
Ram Lamb
1st – Lot 399 – Roger Doherty
2nd – Lot 243 – John Neville
3rd – Lot 334 – Patrick & James Murphy
4th – Lot 198 – John Greene
5th – Lot 291 – Anthony Donnelly
6th – Lot 181 – Patrick & Arthur O’Keeffe
Lamb Plus Ram Lamb
1st – Lot 362 – Neville Myles
2nd – Lot 345 – Irene Donnelly
3rd – Lot 241 – John Neville
4th – Lot 197 – John Greene
5th – Lot 264 – Ryan Doherty
6th – Lot 188 – Shane McHugh
Irish Sired Ram
1st – Lot 363 – Neville Myles
2nd – Lot 392 – Shane McHugh
3rd – Lot 232 – J, C & M McHugh
4th – Lot 207 – David Craig
5th – Lot 353 – Brian Divilly
6th – Lot 242 – John Neville
New Flock Class
1st – Lot 350 – Aoife Harty
2nd – Lot 208 – Daniel Heraghty
3rd – Lot 273 – Josh Browne
4th – Lot 355 – Cathal McCauley
5th – Lot 261 – Tomas Kenny Jnr
6th – Lot 287 – Peter McDonnell
Championship Results
Female Champion
Lot 5 – John Greene
Reserve Female Champion
Lot 15 – John Neville
Male Champion
Lot 362 – Neville Myles
Reserve Male Champion
Lot 345 – Irene Donnelly
Supreme Champion
Lot 5 – John Greene
Reserve Supreme Champion
Lot 362 – Neville Myles
From the opening show ring to the final hammer falling, the 2026 Irish Texel Premier Sale was a truly historic occasion — celebrating 50 years of the Irish Texel Sheep Society with record prices, exceptional demand and tremendous confidence in the breed.
The future of the Texel in Ireland is looking very strong.
