SELKIRK Silver Band competed in the Scottish Brass Band Championships in Perth recently.

Competing in the third section, Selkirk were drawn to play seventh out of nine bands, under the conducting baton of Stuart Black.

The band travelled up to Perth in the morning then stopped off for a rehearsal and lunch at the Congregational Church Hall in Perth.

After many weeks of rehearsing, the band took to the stage playing A Cambrian Suite by Michael Ball.

A short while later the adjudicators had made their decision, Selkirk Silver Band came in second place, lifting the trophy, along with £100 and gaining promotion to the second section and the opportunity to compete at the National Brass Band Championships in Cheltenham, which takes place in September.

A spokeswoman for Selkirk Silver Band told us: "The band are absolutely delighted with this achievement, having been in the third section since 2011.

"A huge achievement for a small band, who have struggled in recent months to get a band together for this competition.

"Special thanks must go to Colin Kemp for rehearsing the band, to Stuart Black for all his hard work, to the committee members for getting the band together, and to each member of the band who makes the commitment to come to band twice a week. The hard work has well and truly paid off.

"And thanks to Mr and Mrs McKerracher for a lovely lunch."

The next step for the band is to start looking at costing the trip to Cheltenham, estimated at around £5,000.

The band will now concentrate on fundraising and are on the lookout for potential sponsorship.

The spokeswoman added: "This could be in many forms, such as sponsoring a player, helping with bus hire or contributing to accommodation costs. All help, no matter how small will make a difference to our reaching our target."

If you would like to help contact Sara Jamieson on 01750 725171 or email sara.jam@hotmail.co.uk