Band of The Year Winners
The band of the year contest is over for another season and this years winners are as follows.
Championship Section - Whitburn
1st Section - Johnstone Silver
2nd Section - Granite City Brass
3rd Section - Shotts St. Patricks Brass
4th Section - Coalburn Silver
With the exception of the 3rd section all of the sectional contests were keenly fought this year with many of them going down to the last one or two qualifying contests. Although they finished second in the Scottish Championships, Whitburn maintained a consistent record in every other contest they appeared in and their placing as top Scottish band at the Royal Albert Hall ensured victory.
In the 1st section Johnstone seemed to be cruising it after their Scottish Championship victory until a late run by a resurgent Dalmellington started to put the pressure on. Unfortunately for Dalmellington they ran out of contests, and qualifying points, leaving Johnstone in pole position.
The 2nd section contest went right to the wire with Granite City and Lochgelly fighting it out. Granite City took an early lead by winning the 1st section at Whitburn. They then won the Scottish Championship title but then only attended the Northern Counties contest. Lochgelly amassed points by taking second at the Scottish and attending virtually every contest thereafter. A poor showing at Brass in the Park left them trailing Granite City going into the Nationals. Granite City finished sixth in Harrogate assuring them the band of the year title.
The 3rd section contest was a runaway victory for Shotts St. Patricks Brass. This was due to fantastic performances in every contest outing they undertook. Under Alan Duguid the band took the sectional title at virtually every contest they attended and crowned that with victory at Dundee in March to become 3rd Section Scottish Champions. The only blips on that record were Brass in the Park and the National Finals where the band played below its usual high standard. They were still good enough to finish almost 26 points ahead of their nearest rivals.
The 4th section contest was another close one with Coalburn Silver and Broxburn Silver fighting it out. Broxburn Silver took the Scottish title but Coalburn attended more contests and amassed enough points to ensure that they finished top come the end of October.
The SBBA congratulates all the band of the year winners. Representatives from each of the winning bands are invited to the Scottish Open Championships where they will be presented with their commemorative banners during the prize ceremony.
Final Standings 2004/2005
Championship Section
| Whitburn | 41 |
| Scottish Co-op | 37 |
| Newtongrange Silver | 30 |
| Unison Kinneil | 27 |
| Kingdom Brass | 26.5 |
| Kirkintilloch | 25 |
| Bo'ness & Carriden | 13.5 |
| Bon Accord Silver | 10 |
| Newmilns & Galston | 7 |
| Bathgate | 5 |
First Section
| Johnstone Silver | 32 |
| Dalmellington | 26.5 |
| Kirkintilloch Kelvin | 22 |
| Clackmannan District | 19 |
| Dunaskin Doon | 14 |
| Broxburn & Livingston | 13.5 |
| Arbroath Instrumental | 12 |
| Kilmarnock Concert | 6 |
| Barrhead Burgh | 5 |
Second Section
| Granite City Brass | 39 |
| Lochgelly | 35 |
| Clydebank Burgh | 28 |
| Jedforest Instrumental | 26 |
| City of Discovery | 20 |
| Croy | 16 |
| Annan Town | 15 |
| St. Ronan's Silver | 13 |
| Dalkeith & Monktonhall | 13 |
| Tayport Instrumental | 12 |
| St. David's Brass | 4 |
| Renfrew Burgh | 3 |
Third Section
| Shotts St. Patrick's Brass | 52 |
| Tullis Russell Mills | 26.5 |
| Campbeltown Brass | 26.5 |
| Selkirk Silver | 26 |
| Newland Concert | 21 |
| Peebles Burgh | 17 |
| Perthshire Brass | 16 |
| MacTaggart Scott Loanhead | 16 |
| Buckhaven & Methil | 10 |
| Dunfermline Town | 9 |
| Irvine & Dreghorn | 5 |
| Dumfries Town | 1 |
Fourth Section
| Coalburn Silver | 27 |
| Broxburn Silver | 21 |
| Queensferry Community Brass | 18 |
| Brass Sounds Inverclyde | 17 |
| Bon Accord Silver 'B' | 17 |
| Penicuik Silver | 15 |
| Dundee Instrumental (St. Margaret's) | 12 |
| Stranraer Brass | 8 |
| Abbey Brass (Jedforest) | 5 |
| Dysart Colliery | 3 |
| Hawick Saxhorn | 1 |
