Members of Barrhead and District Pipe Band are celebrating after finishing their first full competitive season on a high.

The group, which was formed in 2013, secured fourth place in Grade 4B and third spot in the Grade 4 open competition at the Bute Highland Games.

Their success followed victory in the Grade 4 category at the Ardrossan Highland Games in June, which was only their sixth competition.

That triumph led to East Renfrewshire MP Kirsten Oswald presenting Pipe Major Iain Grant with a copy of an Early Day Motion (EDM) lodged in the House of Commons to praise the band.

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Iain told the Barrhead News: “To finish the season off with a fourth and third was also pretty good. It shows you there are keen players in the band who want to improve. I’m very proud of them all.

“It’s about getting our Barrhead name out there and showing people that there is a Barrhead band who can compete – because not a lot of people know it.”

The band’s success in Rothesay was also music to Iain’s ears as two of the youngest members played in the open competition.

Nine-year-old Gregor Morrow, who joined around 12 months ago, and Karine Allan, 13, who has been a member for about two-and-a-half years, played the drums.

“It was their first taste of competition and look what happened, they got third place,” said Iain. “It was the right time to give them the opportunity.

“This gave them a wee buzz and that’s what it’s about, trying to bring the youngsters through so they can enjoy all of that going forward.”

As he looks ahead to next season, Iain is hoping to bolster the band’s ranks with more pipers and drummers, particularly those who are experienced on the pipes.

“I’m hoping to pick up new members with playing experience who want to compete because we are quite thin that way and only have eight playing pipers,” he added. “That will help to build up our collective sound, which is important in competitions.

“Rome wasn’t built in a day, so I don’t expect to be winning the World Championships next year, but I expect to do a wee bit better than we did this year.

“We understand expectations now, so we will just work hard to make sure we get it.”

Anyone interested in joining can call Iain on 0775 118 0684 or email barrheadpipeband@gmail.com.