HATHERLEIGH Silver Band was crowned champions for the second time at the West of England Regional Championships recently.

The fourth section contest was full of stiff competition from 20 bands bringing a splendid sense of musical enthusiasm to bear in entertaining a large and warmly supportive audience.

For the second year in a row it was Hatherleigh Silver Band that deservedly claimed the title, thanks to an outstanding performance of ‘St Andrew’s Variations’ from the number one draw under musical director Matt Green.

Following their win, the band will head to Cheltenham in the up-coming weeks to compete at nationals. Hatherleigh Silver Band musical director Matt Green said: ‘I had a sneaky feeling that we were going to be drawn early, so we had the red hymn book ready.

‘But to play like that was amazing. The players make my life easy — they really do. They are such lovely people who all want to work hard and enjoy their music making. We haven’t come out of the top three since I joined, and we have some great plans for the future too, so it’s a real pleasure for me!’