St. Laurence O’Toole out with a bang at British Championships

Paisley, Scotland – May 18, 2019 – St. Laurence O’Toole of Ireland were announced 2019 British Champions, competing against 11 other bands in an MSR event in cool and intermittently rainy weather at St. James Playing Field on the western edge of the city of Glasgow. The event was the first of five major championships on the RSPBA circuit. The 12-band contest was one of the smallest Grade 1 entries in several decades.

2018 British Champions ScottishPower were runners-up, and 2018 World Champions Field Marshal Montgomery sank to fifth place. Peoples Ford-Boghall & Bathgate Caledonia demonstrated significant progress with a fourth. Johnstone narrowly missed its first Grade 1 major prize list with a seventh, while Shotts & Dykehead Caledonia, under new Pipe-Major Emmett Conway, finished eighth on ensemble preference against Lomond & Clyde, also with a new pipe-major in Don Bradford.

In Grade 2, 2018 Champion of Champions Closkelt picked up where they left off with a win, while MacKenzie Caledonian’s assumed surge didn’t transpire, as the band placed ninth after being threatened with an upgrade to Grade 1 by the RSPBA. The two Grade 2 piping judges were in significant disagreement. For example, Closkelt won with a thirteenth and a first – a disparity of 12 places, and other splits were similarly bizarre.

Testament to the rich teaching environment currently in Scotland, the Novice Juvenile grade continues to be split into A and B sections.

Grade 1 (MSR, 12 competed)

1st St. Laurence O’Toole (Ireland) (2,2,1,2)

2nd ScottishPower (Scotland) (1,1,3,3)

3rd Inveraray & District (Scotland) (5,4,2,1)

4th Peoples Ford-Boghall & Bathgate Caledonia (Scotland) (3,3,4,5)

5th Field Marshal Montgomery (Northern Ireland) (4,5,7,4)

6th Police Scotland Fife (Scotland) (6,9,5,7)

Drumming: St. Laurence O’Toole

Judges: Maurice Rhodes, Bob Worrall (piping); Paul Brown (drumming); Cameron Edgar (ensemble)

Grade 2 (medley, 18 competed)

1st Closkelt (Northern Ireland) (13,1,2,2)

2nd Buchan Peterson (11,6,1,1)

3rd Manorcunnigham (Ireland) (4,13,4,4)

4th Ravara (Northern Ireland) (10,3,6,6)

5th Royal Burgh of Annan (Scotland) (2,2,14,7)

6th Portlethen & District (Scotland) (5,10,11,3)

Drumming: Buchan Peterson

Judges: John Connor, Jim Wark (piping); Brian Martin (drumming); Ciaran Mordaunt (ensemble)

Grade 3A

1st St. Mary’s Derrytrasna

2nd The Highlanders (4 Scots)

3rd City of Inverness

4th Stockbridge

5th MacKenzie Caledonian

6th St. Joseph’s

Drumming: St. Joseph’s

Grade 3B

1st Turriff & District

2nd Dunbar RBL

3rd Milngavie

4th Oban High School

5th Scottish Borders

6th Arbroath

Drumming: Milngavie

Juvenile

1st Dollar Academy

2nd George Watson’s College

3rd George Heriot’s School

4th Preston Lodge High School

5th Peoples Ford-Boghall & Bathgate Caledonia

Drumming: George Watson’s College

Grade 4A

1st Glenrothes & District

2nd Lower Clyde

3rd Augharan

4th Rothesay & District

5th Royal Burgh of Stirling

6th Stockbridge

Drumming: Glenrothes & District

Grade 4B

1st Edradour Pitlochry & Blair Atholl

2nd Culter & District

3rd Camelon & District

4th Strathendrick

5th Kilbarchan

6th Granite City

Drumming: Culter & District

Novice Juvenile A

1st North Lanarkshire Schools

2nd West Lothian Schools

3rd Dollar Academy

4th George Watson’s College

5th George Heriot’s School

6th Stirling & District Schools

Novice Juvenile B

1st Lochgelly High School

2nd Columba’s School Kilmalcolm

3rd Renfrewshire Schools

4th Kintyre Schools

5th Oban High School

6th North Lanarkshire Schools 2

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