1946📍 Salisbury
In 1946, the Southampton Albion Silver Band resumed its contesting activities following the disruption of the Second World War.
The Band travelled to Salisbury, where it was among the prize winners. Bill Barnes recalled that Albion was beaten on this occasion by Woodfalls Band, which had returned strongly to contesting after having dropped into the lower sections in the years before the war.
This was an important step in the rebuilding of the Albion. The following year the Band began competing in the National Contests organised by the Daily Herald, starting in the Fourth Section and beginning a gradual climb through the sections that would eventually lead to winning the Second Section in 1965.