Disappointing Return to Contest Field for Tweedvale Pipe Band.

Tweedvale Pipe Band resumed their competition schedule last weekend when the band travelled to Battery Park Greenock to take part in the European Pipe Band Championships, the third of five major championships in the pipe band contest calendar. The weather was good with dry sunny conditions and a gentle breeze blowing in from the sea. Battery Park, set on the banks of the River Clyde, is an ideal venue for a pipe band contest with plenty of space. Playing in the Grade 3B event which required the performance of a medley set, the band put in a disappointing performance which showed a fair degree of ring-rustiness coming as it did exactly six weeks to the day after the band’s last competitive performance. When the results were announced the band found that they were placed 13th out of fifteen bands, one of its poorest performances at a major championship in some time. Breaking the results down, Tweedvale were placed 14th and 11th by the two piping judges, 11th by the drumming judge and 9th by the ensemble judge leading to the overall placing of 13th. The Grade 3B contest was won by Black Bottle Isle of Islay Pipe Band.

Tweedvale Pipe Major Bruce Gillie, speaking after the European Championships, said "Our break from competition, even though we’ve been playing a lot as a band, came back to haunt us today. The closer we got to the starting line the worse the playing got, and there was some pretty bad playing in the contest performance itself. I’m at a loss to explain it. It doesn’t help that the band is also short of personnel. We will need to put in several hard practices to get the band back in shape for the next contest performance at North Berwick. I’m hopeful we can do this”

Tweedvale Pipe Band now has a week’s break from the competition circuit before the contest at North Berwick on Saturday 8 August. The North Berwick event is a “contest within a contest” as the RSPBA Lothian & Borders Branch championships are held at the same time. Tweedvale Pipe Band has entered both the Grade 3 and Grade 2 events at North Berwick. North Berwick is one of the 6 local events that count towards the RSPBA Lothian & Borders branch Champion of Champions title. Currently Tweedvale Pipe Band is in first place in the overall band table and joint first in the drumming table, with three more local events to be played. Following on from the North Berwick contest is a run of three other competitions, including the World Pipe Band Championships in Glasgow on Saturday 15 August.