The band held its first Northcote Invitational Solo Contest at the Northcote Tavern on the 30th of December. The idea of this was to catch a number of quality players likely to be on their way up to the Waipu Highland Games. There was good prize money on offer thanks to sponsorship from a number of band members and supporters. The idea was spawned only a few months ago and so organisation of the venue and so forth was fairly tight for this first one.
Six quality players were invited to compete in a double MSR and freestyle medley competition with a prize up for grabs for the overall winner also. We were fortunate to have Brian Switalla judging this for us. In future the Northcote Champion will judge the following year if at all possible.
Former PM Martin Frewen won the Northcote Championship title this year with a couple of outstanding performances. Indeed all of the performances were of very high quality and provided a very enjoyable afternoon’s entertainment for all that attended.
With a bit more time we’re hoping we can find a sponsor for this event to lighten the financial burden on members and supporters. If anyone has any ideas or can help in this regard then we’d be very happy to hear from you.
The results were as follows.
| Place | Double MSR | Freestyle Medley |
|---|---|---|
| Congratulations to all competitors | ||
| 1st | Martin Frewan | Martin Frewan |
| 2nd | Ben McLaughlin | Willie Rowe |
| 3rd | Jamie Hawke | Ben McLaughlin |