Peebles Cornet Kevin Smith was installed outside the Parish Church last night after the 2013 Cornet Daniel Williamson reluctantly returned the Burgh Flag.

Kevin’s partner Sharon Rusnak was installed as Cornet’s Lass in an emotional ceremony watched by hundreds of townsfolk and visitors.

There were speeches, hugs and handshakes before Cornet Smith led his cavalcade to ride the burgh marches in time-honoured tradition.

And that tradition meant a halt at Neidpath Castle, standing gallantly but battle-scarred, high over the River Tweed.

But here there was a break with tradition because the Warden of Neidpath was a woman – the popular headteacher of Kingsland Primary School, Jacqueline Wilson. After she had been installed with her sash of office, she bid a welcome to the Cornet and his entourage.

And it was children and young people that was a dominant theme in her address.

Mrs Wilson, proud to be Hawick-born, has been a teacher in Peebles since 1983 and spoke of how she had come to learn about the traditions and the values behind the Beltane Festival.

From the doorway of the ancient castle, she told the company: “The community of Peebles has always valued children, not least if you look at the history of education in the town – it has always been a priority. But also the unique role children are given in celebrating the town’s festival – not just on the Saturday but at the outset of the week when the various youth organisations parade to the Cross Kirk.

“We want our children and young people to grow up and want to represent their town in a range of different ways – not just in Beltane week.

“They are the town characters of the future, the leaders and organisers of clubs and groups, the fund raisers, the councillors.”

Mrs Wilson said the role of the teacher was changing, with the new curriculum aiming to ensure that all children and young people in Scotland developed the knowledge skills and attributes they would need if they were to flourish in life.

She added: “That is something to embrace in our changing world. But it is our duty to create a context and real-life situations for children to learn. The community can support us to do this. Children need the skills to anticipate problems and be able to contribute to their solutions.”

She stressed that the traditions of the Beltane were important and had to be cherished. She concluded: “They are what makes Peebles, Peebles, and gives us the most unique Borders festival. How we celebrate these events may have to change in the future, as they have in the past, according to how we grow and develop as a community.

“Our resilience will be proved as we maintain the importance and love of our community, by celebrating what is important to us. Beltane is a tradition full of community involvement of which we can be proud.”

Locals are reacting with growing concern to egg giant Glenrath Farms’ application to take down gates set up to reduce traffic on a C road to and from its Blyth Bank Farm, near West Linton.

Scotland’s largest egg producer was asked to erect the gates to its Hamiltonhall steading, Romanno Bridge, to curtail access via the Bogsbank Road when it received the go-ahead in 2007 for nine sheds for free range hens.

Glenrath Farms’ managing director Ian Campbell said the family’s cattle and sheep farm traffic used the C road and, if the poultry business needed to, they rang the council’s enforcement officer for permission. But the gates are “impractical” he said, adding the company was applying “so we can use the farm in a normal agricultural way”.

Opposing, neighbour David Dickson said: “Glenrath has consistently and blatantly breached the condition by using the Bogsbank Road for poultry-related traffic.

“There are more folk using the road. There have been goodness knows how many near-misses. It’s dangerous.”

SBC’s roads planning officials oppose the gates’ removal, saying: “To remove the barrier would remove the inconvenience and lead to increased use of the C road.”

The local community council was to discuss the issue at last night’s meeting.

Chairman Iain Lamb said: “We’ve been approached by people concerned about this. We have always taken the view that safety is paramount.”

The Royal Voluntary Service Scotland baton will be in several venues around the area this weekend, rivalling the Queen’s baton.

The organisation will be using many different means of transport and, with their mascot Reggie the Rabbit, will be packing bags at Asda, Galashiels, on Saturday.

Henry Borthwick will give an updated illustrated talk about Oxton Village to Lauderdale Historical Society on Wednesday (June 25) at 7.30pm in Lauder Youth Trust Hall, Lauder.

Further details from Joan Stevens on 01578 722559.

There have been several vehicles found on fire in the town in recent weeks, with police and fire services attending at least one incident.

At 10pm on the night of June 10, police and firefighters were called to Whinfield Road, where a small van was found to be well alight opposite the offices of Scottish Borders Housing Association.

The Selkirk fire engine attended and two firefighters donned breathing apparatus when dealing with the blaze and used two high pressure hoses to extinguish the flames.

Police Scotland informed us: “Police and fire service responded to reports of a vehicle on fire on Whinfield Road, around 10pm on June 10.

“The incident was treated as suspicious and police are following a positive line of enquiry, but are appealing for anyone who witnessed anything in the area to contact police immediately on 101.”

However, as far as another fire involving a car in Rogers Road, about a week previously, is concerned, neither the fire service nor police were able to confirm any details.

Two in five small businesses say new data could sway their vote in the upcoming referendum, with a majority of Scottish business owners having sought out information to help them decide, new research shows.

The poll of 1,800 Scottish business owners, conducted by the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB), also reveals that the referendum has influenced a business decision in one in five Scottish businesses during the last year.

The survey, conducted in April and May, shows while almost three quarters of businesses have searched for information to help them decide how to cast their vote, 58 per cent of those that had read the Scottish Government’s White Paper and 53 per cent of those that read the UK Government’s analysis papers, reported that they didn’t find them useful.

Almost three fifths (58 per cent) of FSB members categorised the debate so far as poor or very poor – with almost all respondents (97 per cent) highlighting the economic prospects of an independent Scotland as an important issue.

Andy Willox, the FSB’s Scottish policy convenor, said: “Our members are hungry for information, but their appetite is not being sated by the campaigns. We’ll be working with the University of Edinburgh Business School to look at the issues, gather together available information and highlight areas of uncertainty.

“While we’re maintaining our neutral stance, both sides of the debate have a job to do if they’re looking to win over that 40 per cent of the small business vote who could be swayed by new, quality information.”

Professor Brad MacKay, of the University of Edinburgh Business School, said: “Initial results suggest that small businesses are more interested in practical, rather than macro-economic issues. They want clarity about plans for institutions and services important to their business, both in the event of independence and if Scotland stays with the UK.”

The main opportunity associated with independence is the chance to develop policies better suited to Scotland, cited by 41 per cent, while the main risks were a different tax and regulatory regime (59 per cent) and uncertainty during the transition (59 per cent).

While 54 per cent were 
excited about the potential of new opportunities, around 
87 per cent said they were 
concerned about potential risks.

Lisa Archibald, service manager of New Horizons Borders, was presented with a Churchill medallion by Dame Mary Peters DBE, Olympic gold medal winning pentathlete and a 1972 Churchill Fellow herself.

As part of her fellowship, Lisa travelled to Australia and New Zealand to research mental health discrimination with a view to improving the anti-stigma movement and raise awareness of the issues in the local area.

An exclusive opinion poll commissioned for ITV Border’s political programme Representing Border, and conducted by ComRes, suggests a big majority of voters in the South of Scotland still intend to vote no in the independence referendum.

In only the second survey to focus solely on the attitudes of voters in the South of Scotland, the poll found vote share for both Yes and No increased by two per cent compared to the last poll conducted for Representing Border at the start of January this year.

Some 1,001 adults aged 16 and over in the Borders and Dumfries and Galloway council areas were polled, between June 9 and 15.

Asked the question voters will be asked on September 18 – Should Scotland be an independent country? – of those who said they were likely to vote, 26 per cent said Yes (January 24 per cent); 61 per cent said No (January 59 per cent), and 13 per cent said they didn’t know how they’d vote (January 17 per cent).

When Don’t Knows 
were excluded, 30 per cent said Yes and 70 per cent said No. In January 29 per cent said Yes and 71 per cent said No.

Wool producers have the chance to meet members and staff of the UK’s only central marketing board, the British Wool Marketing Board (BWMB), to discuss prices and the BWMB’s work at the Highland Show this week.

The board’s vice-chairman Hugh Blythe, who represents southern Scotland, said: “For many farmers BWMB is simply the organisation that pays them for their wool. But from shearer training to the Campaign for Wool, BWMB is active at every level of the wool industry and through its work is helping improve the quality of fleeces delivered to depots and demand for British wool.”

Local farmers and politicians are backing a national campaign to reduce dog attacks on livestock.

Regional support comes in the wake of attacks earlier this year when sheep were drowned after being chased by a dog into the sea at Craster. Others, worth £900, were mauled to death near Eskdalemuir in March. And in April vets had to euthanise a lamb and patch up others, including a ewe with her ear ripped off, following an attack on Andrew Redpath’s sheep near Sprouston.

Norham sheep farmer and Lib Dem councillor Dougie Watkin, said: “More often than not, people don’t realise their dog is going for sheep until it’s attacked. I encourage people to ensure they have their dog on a lead and are aware of its whereabouts when walking through fields as dogs worrying sheep is an increasing problem in rural Northumberland.”

Police statistics for last year for the Edinburgh, Lothians and Borders show there were 34 incidents of dogs worrying sheep, broken down into three incidents of chasing, 16 of dogs attacking sheep and 15 involving killings.

The National Sheep Association and national farming paper, the Farmers Guardian, launched their ‘Take the Lead’ campaign, urging dog owners to put their pets on leads, earlier this year and have been lobbying vets, dog shows and publications for support.

NFU Scotland Lothian and Borders regional chairman Stuart McNicol supports the campaign, which also urges owners to clean up after their dogs and to be responsible for their own actions.

A Borders business is making the most of Scotland’s great food and drink, by targeting tourists for its cook school enterprise.

Realising that foreign visitors might want to do more than just eat the best of Scotland’s larder, Michael Muir of ‘thecookschool.com’, based near Broughton, is looking across the globe for his next cookery students.

And to help realise his expansion plan, Michael is working with Business Gateway Scottish Borders.

He said: “I approached Business Gateway when I decided to expand the business and my business adviser Wilma and her colleague Chris, a specialist food and drink adviser, both spent some time helping me formulate a plan to take the business forward and identify target markets abroad.”

With a background of working in some of the finest hotels in the country, including Gleneagles and The Balmoral Hotel, Michael established his catering company Cooks and Co 20 years ago, before adding the cookery school to the business in 2008.

Rachael McQuaid, who was a pastry chef at a two-Michelin star London restaurant, works alongside Michael in offering cookery courses which cover a wide selection of culinary themes.

Michael said: “When setting up the cookery school we didn’t want it to feel formal like a home economics classroom, but somewhere where people would feel comfortable.

“We based it on a Tuscan or French Provencal kitchen where we all work around a big island.”

Plans for expansion include targeting ‘food tourists’ in Spain and Italy who are looking for a real Scottish foodie experience. Providing luxury accommodation on their farm base, including a spa experience and in-house restaurant are also part of the longer term strategy.

“We go to Tuscany for Italian cookery schools and I think it would work the other way around,” said Michael.

“Here, we have so much to offer – from beautiful scenery to great produce and, of course, our unique history.

“The plan is to target tourists before they come to Scotland, which I’m working on at the moment, and I’m looking forward to growing the business and seeing what the future holds for us.”

Good news, we’ve had the warmest spring on record in Scotland since at least 1910, and by implication that must also be true for much of the north of England.

Bad news, the wet, mild winter followed by such a warm spring is encouraging record numbers of midges and ticks plus large numbers of bugs and diseases liable to affect crops and livestock.

True, the worst affected areas for midges and ticks are in the West of Scotland and Highlands, but we get our share. Ticks in particular can be a menace to humans and animals so never ignore a tick bite. Infection can lead to severe health problems, including neurological and joint pains and they don’t do sheep or cattle much good.

I’ve always contended that women never get the credit they deserve in farming and rural businesses. Many have off-farm jobs while still responsible for most family activity, meals, book keeping and records, emergency stockperson and go-for at busy times, not to mention nursing male egos and providing consolation for those inevitable farming disasters.

I’d also bet that most farm diversifications such as B&B, farm shops, holiday lets and livery stables originate with women. In spite of that , farming is still seen as a man’s world and with chauvinism remaining prevalent change is slow. But perhaps not as slow as I thought according to a survey of more than 2000 men and women carried out in a joint effort by Farmers Weekly and Barclays Bank. An encouraging two-thirds of women said that they are treated mostly or always as equal to men for pay, benefits and daily work routine – as they should be.

The survey also found that 59% of men and women said that agriculture is the same as, or better than, other industries for equal opportunities, and believe that will continue to improve. Confirming my belief, suggested above, most women think they deal with most of the farm paperwork, administration and domestic chores and usually slot in to a supportive role.

Most feelings of unfair treatment related to the thorny problem of succession. Two thirds of women responding to the survey felt they were rarely or never treated equally when it came to the crunch of who would take over a farming business. Ironically, given the ages-old advice to men trying to get into farming that the three main routes are patrimony, parsimony and matrimony, only 2% of men in the survey said that marriage had got them a start in farming. For women, marriage brought 25% of them into the industry.

Is it possible that genetically modified crops could soon be grown in Britain on a large scale? I think, and have thought for 15 years and more, that would be a good thing and that non-scientific opposition to these crops is nonsense. But whether relaxation of European Union rules to allow individual countries to decide whether GM crops can be grown or not will make any difference I’m not sure.

There will always be events in any life that seem so innocent at first sight, but lead on to interludes of fear, anger, frustration, and at times despair; let me tell you this and no more, starting off a new computer has all these features in great measure and should be avoided at all cost.

To be honest, expense had been the main reason for keeping my increasingly erratic old Packard Bell computer for so long.

In seven years it has done the needful for me in producing reams of written work, storing zillions of pictures and hosted my internet connection – demmit, I have almost grown to like the humming box on my desk, but have refused to admit that before now as anyone who has a love affair with a computer is a sad, sad person.

Thinking back, the Packard Bell computer now about to leave is the same one that featured in a previous Pilgrim when a certain worldwide company specialising in selling that sort of stuff on line sent me a box which purported to contain my new computer, but on opening, it I discovered the computer had been pinched while in transit and a junky looking coffee making machine substituted to make up the weight.

Fair enough, that crime was down to the carrier company, but in the prolonged fight to get my money back both outfits were completely unhelpful and were it not for the excellent advice from our local consumer protection folk, I would still be trying to get that mythical refund.

This time, however, I elected to look nearer to home for my new computer and on recommendation went to a local company in Tweedbank where a nice man called Sam sorted me out with a computer package, described as user friendly, that did not break my bank but had all the gizmos and tricks I need for this writing lark.

After I had carefully carted the new gear home, I realised I had acquired a big box of electronic kit, but I had only a sketchy idea of how I might set it all up without wrecking too much. After much head scratching I took the sensible move and sent for my clever son-in-law who soon had the situation under control.

I would like to tell you it was all plain sailing, but I omitted to consider one minor detail. In the time I had owned my previous computer the world of computing technology has taken a few rather large leaps forward and as ever, I was left well behind.

In basic terms, all I really wanted from my new computer was the same functions as the old one, but no way – everything is different in so many ways, so it’s back to school for me as I struggle to grasp the new ways.

After a certain amount of fiddling about I have got enough of the brute under control to be able to write this column without too many blunders.

For me, one of the worst mistakes I can make is forgetting to save my work as I go, which means that there are a number of simple errors I can commit which will see the words vanish from the screen into the ether, never to be seen again.

I have done this so many times in the past you might think I had learned my lesson several times over, but it still happens now and then, usually setting me off on a major strop followed by a good sulk.

There is still a large sector of the populace who do not join in the IT world, and apart from getting left behind because so much of life is now dealt with “online”, they are losing out big style.

I am somewhere in the middle as I won’t get involved with stuff like online banking etc, and refuse to commit my credit card details to any outfit that has a look about them which flashes dodgy crew warnings in my brain.

That part of computers can be taken or left according to the choice of users, but the really important issue of computers lies with the ability to express yourself without needing pen and paper.

I write all my letters on the computer and have a label writer which saves posties a lot of grief when it comes to reading addresses. As my fingers get stiffer it is increasingly difficult for me to deliver clear legible handwriting; I start off OK but as the letter I am trying to write goes on, my handwriting gets worse; if I were still at school it would surely earn me the belt every time.

The best part of modern computing is to be found in the way it has made writing so much easier. I can automatically check my spelling and grammar, take out the bits I don’t want and piece in more detail where I choose.

Old Wattie Scott would have been well pleased if he had been able to write his Waverley novels using Microsoft Word, although I fear his books would have been a whole lot longer and thus take longer to read, not an entertaining prospect as he did tend to go on a bit at times.

At my level of writing, I enjoy using a few hours of free time writing a short story or a word plan for books I would love to write but never do; maybe some day a book will be good enough to send to an agent, but for now, the products of my imagination are never going to get me star billing at the Borders Book Festival.

There is an old saying that there is a book or story in every one of us, just waiting to get out and be told. In effect, this means computers in the varied ways they are now presented might be the best way to get some into print, liberating personal or family histories, war memoirs, handed down stories, poems, maybe even a raunchy joke book into the public domain.

Buying that computer might well be the first step to the big money.

TWENTY EIGHT years after winning the Youths’ Sprint at Haylodge Park Fifer Jack Beattie returned to take the senior title at the Peebles Beltane Sports.

Competing from a mark of 15.5 metres, Beattie booked himself a place in the final of the event with a heat win in 11.69 seconds, which was followed by a cross tie triumph in 11.52 seconds.

Facing fellow Fifer Billy Martin of Glenrothes (9m), Charlie Carstairs, Lasswade (6m), Craig Bruce, Selkirk (10m) and Edinburgh pair Tom Holligan (scratch) and Graeme Armstrong (17.5m) in the final, Beattie knew he had a real battle on his hands.

It was a battle he was to however win.

In what turned out to be a thrilling race, Beattie gained a dramatic photo finish victory when edging out recent Selkirk Games sprint winner Holligan by a hairsbreadth.

Holligan emerged second and Bruce third.

A time of 11.58 seconds was recorded.

See full Games report and pictures in this week’s Southern Reporter.

YOUTHS’ 90M CONFINED: 1, S. Turnbull (Peebles) 20m; 2, R. Houten (Cardrona) 5.5m; 3, N. Turnbull (Peebles) 18.5m. Winning time: 9.96 seconds.

800M OPEN: 1, C. McWilliams (Giffnock North) 40m; 2, K. Stevens (Moorfoot) 65m; 3, A. Thompson (Jed AC) 65m. 1 minute 54.09 seconds.

110M OPEN: 1, J. Beattie (Rosyth) 15.5m; 2, T. Holligan (Edinburgh) Scr; 3, C. Bruce (Selkirk) 10m. 11.58 seconds.

YOUTHS’ B 90M: 1, D. Lockie (TLJT) 22.5m; 2, K. Womack (Lilliesleaf) 24m; 3, E. McKean (Hawick) 26m. 9.81 seconds.

YOUTHS’ A 90M: 1, G. Goodfellow (TLJT) 18.5m; 2, N. Campbell (Hawick) 17m; 3, R. McKean (Hawick) 14. 9.70 seconds.

1600M OPEN: 1, K. Redpath (East Kilbride) 380m; 2, G. Law (Hawick) 400m; 3, K. Stevens (Moorfoot) 160m. 4 minutes 22.20 seconds.

YOUTHS’ 1600M: 1, M. Smith (Leithenburn) 385m; 2, M. Elliot (Jed AC) 500m; 3, T. Otton (Gala Harriers) 125m. 4 minutes 21.24 seconds.

LAP RACE OPEN: 1, E. Pettigrew (Jed AC) 23m; 2, L. Ali (Hawick) 28m; 3, G. Turnbull (TLJT) 12m. 29.80 seconds.

YOUTHS’ B LAP RACE: 1, C. Clare (Moorfoot) 66m; 2, C. Mackenzie (Berwick) 40m; 3, J. Abbot (Kelso) 37m. 30.78 seconds.

YOUTHS’ A LAP RACE: 1, C. Fisher (Jed AC) 28m; 2, G. Goodfellow (TLJT) 25m; 3, C. McNaughton (Annan) 25m. 31.64 seconds.

3200M OPEN: 1, C. Rendle (Innerleithen) 200m; 2, J. Thomson (Glenrothes) 205m; 3, K. Murray (Hawick) 360m. 10 minutes 11.50 seconds.

Michael Moore MP has welcomed news that more than 400 people have found work in the region over the last year as shown by official figures released last week.

He said: “TheBorders economy is recovering and for every person who is back in work, this is great news for their family, our local community and the wider economy. I am determined to continue to help people return to work and receive the support they need.”

It was an excellent day for the Borders meeting with Edinburgh & Leith at Jedburgh on Saturday.

Both teams knew it was a must win match and the nerves were jingling just a bit when E & L were running late. However they achieved a 2.15pm start and right from the off Borders opened with a lead but within a couple of ends the score was drawn.

After five ends Edinburgh & Leith had a four shot lead and by ten ends it was seven but neither team were giving the other any rope to make a breakaway.

By this time the teams were aware that East Lothian were giving East Stirling a hard time and for either the Borders or Edinburgh & Leith to make the play-offs they were going to need a sizable shots win.

At 15 ends the Borders had taken an eight shot lead but Edinburgh & Lieth came back again and at 18 the score was drawn 107 shots each.

The last three ends were nail biters with the final score Borders 127 Edinburgh & Lieth 117.

However this was not enough for the Borders to qualify but they gave their all and made a fantastic effort to move into the latter stages of the competition.

Euan Thorburn will be looking to tighten his grip on the 2014 ARR Craib MSA Scottish Rally Championship with a second successive win in Dumfries on Saturday.

The Duns-based driver, who won his first RSAC Scottish Rally 12 months ago in his Ford Focus WRC, starts the second half of his championship campaign with an eight-point lead in the overall standings.

He has chalked up two victories so far this year alongside co-driver Paul Beaton from Inverness - the season-opening Snowman Rally, and the Granite City Rally in April.

On Saturday, he will resume his duel with defending champions David Bogie and co-driver Kevin Rae from Hawick, as the Scottish Rally Championship returns to the gravel following the cancellation of the Berwickshire-based Jim Clark Reivers tarmac round in tragic circumstances.

For Bogie, his home event will open a new chapter in a stellar rallying career, as he lines up his newly-acquired M-Sport Ford Fiesta R5+, which replaces the Focus WRC of the past 18 months.

The five-time title-holder has one aim in mind as he gets to grips with the new car: “The second half of the season is all about getting it set up correctly to my liking and giving ourselves the best chance possible for a crack at the final round of the world championship, Wales Rally GB, in November.

“The R5 is a lot simpler in every respect, compared to the Focus, but with new technology, it should be quicker”. Jane Nicol from Duns will be back on the notes for Wigtownshire driver Fraser Wilson, as the pair target a second successive maximum points haul in the Group N category in their Mitsubishi EVO 9.

Yorkshireman Steve Bannister, with Louise Rae from Hawick on the notes, will be the man to beat for overall two-wheel drive honours on the day in his Ford Escort Mk2.

Colin Aitchison from Duns currently leads the way in Class 9 in his Vauxhall Chevette HSR and will be co-driven by Dave O’Brien, while in Class 7, Callum Atkinson from Lauder sits in second spot, three points adrift, in his Ford Fiesta R2. In Class 3, RSAC Motorsport New Talent Scholarship driver Blair Brown, with Richard Simmonds of Duns navigating, has a slender two-point lead in the Class 3 championship.

Other Borders crews competing include Garry and Hollie Wilson from Duns in their EVO 5 and Leitholm’s Kieran Renton in a Ford Fiesta R200.

Throughout the Border Games season, sprint handicaps are normally the main event on the card.

There is a change to the agenda, however, this Sunday at Kelso Games.

For as has been the case for a few years now, the Poynder Park meeting stages a 200m handicap as its top attraction.

Back marker for the event is Hawick’s Dylan Ali. New Year Sprint victor Ali has been placed on a mark of 10m by handicapper Don Campbell.

Getting down on his marks in the same heat as Ali is Kelso’s own Euan Pettigrew (11m) who, representing Jed AC, produced some tip-top running when winning the handicap at Peebles Beltane Sports last weekend.

Other Borders runners who are set to bid for the biggest purse of the afternoon include last year’s winner Kevin Amos (38m), Craig Bruce (25m), Andrew Hogarth (34m), Craig Grieve (17m), Jenna Gillan (52m), Jasmin Tomlinson (41m), James Parker (11m), David Rae (25m) and Matthew Fleming (23m).

Besides a bumper card of senior running, there is a full programme of youths’ events on an attractive-looking Kelso bill. For more information, visit www.thesouthern
reporter.co.uk.

Borders beef and sheep producers brought home a haul of trophies from last week’s Highland Show but the region’s horsemen and women and others did the Borders proud too.

For Andrew Tennant from Gilmanscleuch Farm, Ettrick is the country’s Apprentice Champion, a title he won a the Scottish Open Farriery Championships at the four-day event at Ingliston.

Among the horse lovers, the Jed Hart Stud, The Cottage, Hartrigge, Jedburgh won the reserve male championship with their young stallion Kerloch Rupert.

In the mountain and moorland classes, Mr and Mrs I Graham, Cleughside, Bailey, Newcastleton won the Best Fell, Dales or New Forest pony in hand with their Dales mare, Rookby Laura

In a repeat of last year, Dianna Staveley of the Eastlands Stud, Davington, Eskdalemuir, Langholm won the Connemara in hand championship with her six-year-old grey mare, Eastlands Rashiebrae and the reserve went to Iain Somervail, Oxnam Neuk, Oxnam, Jedburgh with his dun yearling Bellindene Hugo.

The female donkey reserve champion’s rosette went to Jools, a four-year-old grey mare, from Claire Armet, The Old Coach House, Borthwick Hall, Heriot.

In the poultry tent, Rory Innes from Duns took the Best Large Fowl Soft Feather Light Breed with a Scots Grey

And Standhill Cheesery, near Denholm, scooped several prizes in the Scotland small cheese producers classes, winning the soft and blue cheese classes and taking bronze in the hard cheese section.

Riders head off to take part in the Lindean Chases on Monday evening.

The event attracted a good turnout of spectators, before the participants returned to the town for the Riders’ Social at Quins restaurant.

See this week’s Southern for a report and pictures and watch this space for more video.