British champions
Major milestone as Inveraray and District Pipe Band wins
INVERARAY and District Pipe Band has reached another milestone by winning its first Grade One British title in Paisley last weekend.
STUART Liddell led his Inveraray and District Pipe Band to victory last weekend in the opening major of the 2016 season.
In front of thousands of spectators, the band won its first Grade 1 British title on Saturday May 21.
Field Marshal Montgomery took the runners-up spot, finishing four points behind Inveraray and District. St Laurence O’Toole (Eire) came third, with Scottish Power Pipe Band in fourth place.
Almost 4,000 pipers, drummers and drum majors from 147 bands made the trip to Paisley for the championships and the weather was kind.
The Grade 1 drum- ming title also went to Inveraray and District, under leading drummer Steven McWhirter.
Inveraray and District Pipe Band manager Jim McMillan said: We were very happy with the performance at the British Championships and hopefully this good start can be maintained for the rest of the season.’
Mid Argyll Pipe Band, competing in Grade 4B, reached the final after a qualifying round. In the final itself, the band finished sixth out of 12 bands with one of the piping judges placing them first.
‘I’m really pleased with the way we played,’ said Mid Argyll Pipe Major Craig Lang. ‘Now it’s on to the next championships in Belfast and I hope we can carry on where we left off in Paisley.’
In the Novice B grade, Kintyre Schools came second to Lochgelly High School, with Oban High ninth of the 14 competing bands.
Oban High School’s Novice A band was placed seventh, with Dunoon Grammar School tenth in the same competition.
In the Grade 3A competition, Kintyre Schools came a creditable sixth.
Argyll had Oban and Isle of Islay competing in the Grade 2 contest. The islanders came 14th of 18 bands, while Oban was placed seventh in the second-tier contest.