cross breeding dogs with bird dogs.

I am in agreeance with female being very important, however you have to consider what the genetics throwing back to grandparents and great grandparents from either dog involved in the breeding.
I used the EP female in my breeding, and a Ugly Chuppacabra UglyDog as the sire.
Because my dogs are ugly and the EP a very pretty dog, it was easy to see that some pups took on physical charistics of ugly parent and the temperment/personality and hustle of the birdog. Some of those same pups in the litter were way uglier than the father, or grandfather.
Some of the pups came out slick haired with both Charistic combinations of temperments, and some were slick and more calm relaxed like the father, took some of his hunting style too.
So I don't think you can look at the pups and decide which will be your "hustling banchi" or which ones will better trailing dogs, physical appearance won't tell you squat when you are mixing the "Types" of dogs (cur vs. pointing). I have kept up with the entire litter, all 7 and know what each is doing to this day, only 3 left out of 7,