Not for the first time, I completely forgot to make any entries for the fifty-first annual Greenlaw and District Horticultural Society Show, staged in the Primary School Hall.

Held annually on the second Sunday in September, entries for most classes cost 10p each with prizes of £1.00, 80p, and 50p for the first three in each class. Despite harbouring an aspiration to clinch the coveted R & J Brotherstone Cup for the best exhibit in the Rose section, I have to be honest – recent rain in the build up to Kelso’s first raceday scuppered any chances. By last weekend, rain-stained petals were stuck together on all remaining blooms and I’d have struggled to produce even the nine spikes of Sweet Peas required for the cut flower classes, never mind five individual cut flowers of any different variety.

It’s fortunate, then, that I can boast of my association with Kelso’s groundstaff instead: proud winners of the Jump Track Groundstaff of the Year Award, sponsored by Agrovista, DLF Seeds & Science, and Duralock. Coordinated by the Racecourse Association, the competition is open to all racecourses and includes three categories: Jump tracks, Flat, and Dual Purpose. Having gained the award for the Jump category, the Kelso team will now be pitched into a final against Newmarket (Flat) and Newbury (Dual Purpose).

You might call it a case of “David vs Goliath and Goliath’s big brother”.

Newbury Racecourse has an annual turnover of around £22m; The Jockey Club (owners of Newmarket) about £243m. Compared to Kelso’s miniature £3.8m turnover, it’s hard to imagine that the teams at those larger racecourses won’t have access to much bigger budgets and all the herbicides, pesticides and fertilisers that they could wish for. But I’ve mentioned before, in this space, that our gang’s attention to detail has succeeded in reducing weed growth and pest problems in the past year, resulting in a reduced need for chemicals, helping the environment, and saving money too.

And that’s not the only reason that I’m backing Kelso to be Racecourse Groundstaff Champions for 2025. In addition to prioritising resources to achieve the best results, the range of work completed by the team is limitless – they’ll never demur from any job that is required; they’re switched constantly to “can do”. While acknowledging that there are plenty of other hard-working groundstaff out there, I wouldn’t swap ours for any other racecourse team in Britain. They are the rock on which Kelso’s racing reputation is built.

Having witnessed success for other small Jump tracks in past years, including Plumpton where our selection on Sunday is Aucunrisque, I’m confident that the award judges will be able to spot the blooming marvellous bunch here at Kelso.

And next year, maybe they’ll even grow a few roses – so that we can lift that Brotherstone Cup at the fifty-second Greenlaw & District Horticultural Society Show.