THE Walker farming family from Brennand Farm, Dunsop Bridge, stole the show on Craven Champions Day at Skipton Auction Mart, winning all but one of the main championship classes.

The supreme championship – the Walkers’ fifth at the annual highlight for commercial store cattle with future show potential - was awarded to their first prize British Blue-cross heifer and female champion.

Jeff Walker proudly accepted the Jack Walker Trophy, which he had donated for the first time in 2014 in memory of his late father, who was a familiar and popular face around Skipton’s store cattle ring.

The title winner sold for £1,800 when finding a new home with Michael Wynne, of Barnside Farm, Midhopestones, near Sheffield, who was buying on behalf of his 12-year-old daughter Ellie.

However, it was the Walkers’ reserve female champion and overall reserve champion – winner of the young handlers’ show class in the hands of Rob Walker - that caused the greatest stir on the day when selling for £3,000, a recent record price for a store animal sold at Skipton.

The buyer of the top price performer was George Rice, from Church Garth, Carlton, Yeadon. The Rice family show their cattle as an interest only, raising just a handful each year.

Mr Rice said they had big plans for their new acquisition on the Yorkshire’s regional show circuit this year, hopefully culminating at the Great Yorkshire. After that, the heifer will be used for breeding.

Show judge David Wilson of Harome, said both his principals had fantastic potential. “I picked the supreme champion over the reserve on the day because it was the more finished animal, though the reserve has excellent potential for another day,” he said.

The Walker family brought five youngsters to the fixture. They were also responsible for the first prize British Blue-cross bullock and male champion, which sold for a class-topping £1,450 to Matthew Keel, of Thirsk, and the third prize unhaltered heifer, which sold for £1,500 to Lincolnshire buyer E Swindells, of Broughton.

However it was their remaining entry, another British Blue-cross heifer, that secured the day’s second top price of £2,000, falling to Sheila and Robin Williamson, of Littleburn Farm, Hamsterley, Bishop Auckland.

The Williamsons also paid £1,600 for the second prize unhaltered heifer, a British Blue-cross from Sheila Mason’s Keasden herd in Clapham.

Every single prize winner sold in the 11 show classes achieved four figures at an overall selling average of £1,439.50 per head, compared to last year’s £1,406.81.

Reserve male champion was the first prize Limousin-sired bullock from Pendle’s Mark and Elaine Hartley, and their 17-year-old daughter Izzy, of Pendle View Farm, Roughlee. It sold for £1,260 to Thompson Bros in Pickering, who also acquired several other prize winners, among them and again at £1,260 the first prize Charolais-sired heifer from Thor Atkinson, of Ulverston.

Sheila Mason was responsible for several other prize winners, including the first prize any breed unhaltered heifer, another British Blue-cross, which became a further acquisition at £1,290 by the Swindells family.

Also catching the eye at £1,720 was the first prize any other breed halter-led heifer, a Blonde-cross from Edward and John Parkinson, of Dunsop Bridge, which joined John Stephenson in Bordley.

Other red rosette winners, selling prices and buyers were: unhaltered bullock, any breed – Limousin-cross from R Gray, Langbar, £1,340 to Ian Swales, Goole. Limousin-sired heifer – Turner Farms, Holmfirth, £1,300, to JL & HD Marks, Stockton-on-Tees. Full show results and details are at www.ccmauctions.com