Older scanned in-lamb Merino ewes topped at $124 and the best of the Merino-Border Leicester ewes made an impressive $150.

A big crowd of buyers from the South East, Mallee and western Victoria and as far afield as Kangaroo Island scrambled to secure some of the years of quality breeding by the Craig family.

Agents said prices were $10 to $20 above expectation, but buyers were willing to up the ante for March shorn, scanned in-lamb Merino and first-cross ewes with a tight lambing from mid-July.

It may be a sign of prices to come in the spring feature sales.

Topping the sale at $150 were 60 November shorn, 1.5-year-old Merino-Border Leicesters scanned in-lamb at 150 per cent to White Suffolks, knocked down to Henriks Rural Agencies Bordertown.

The next pen of 118 ewes 2.5 to 5.5-year-olds scanned in-lamb to Poll Dorsets at 155pc, was snapped-up by Pinkerton Palm Hamlyn & Steen Naracoorte for $136.

A pen of 246 composites, 3.5-year-olds scanned in-lamb to Cashmore Park-blood at 157pc, topped the Merino offering at $124 to Southern Australian Livestock Naracoorte.

The biggest-frame sheep, 4.5-year-olds scanned in-lamb to composite rams also sold to SAL Naracoorte, at $114.

The best of the August 2008-drop Merino ewe lambs made $72.

Merinos 1.5 years old scanned in-lamb at 100pc to White Suffolks or Dorsets made $100 and $84 respectively.

Nalda Park has been breeding fine-wool Merinos for the past 16 years using Demondrille and Mullana bloodlines, and has a flock average of 19.5 microns.

Selling agent Kevin Forster Livestock's Kevin Forster, Edenhope, Vic, said that in his 35 years as a livestock agent he could not remember selling sheep at such buoyant levels - with buyers recognising their good wool quality.

"Under the circumstances with the season still not being really good, the vendors have done a very good job presenting the sheep in the way they have," he said.

* Nalda Park clearing sale results in Stock Journal, June 18 issue.