An Afternoon with the President – of the RNZPBA!

Pipe Bands Queensland (PBQ) and Brisbane Boys College are thrilled to welcome Liam Kernaghan, President of the RNZPBA, to adjudicate at the Queensland State Championships.

Liam, Richard Hawke and Graeme Bryce, together with 3 interstate adjudicators, will join our highly accomplished Adjudication Panels for this year’s Championships, which sees a number of interstate Bands making the trip to the Sunshine State.

This year, Liam has kindly “volunteered” to chat with us about the evolution of the RNZPBA  over the last 10 years and the plans for the next 10!

This is our opportunity to hear Liam discuss such wide-ranging topics as:

Reshaping the RNZPBA

• The NZ Summer School
• The NZ Piping and Drumming Mentoring program
• The National Youth Pipe Band
• Assisting Bands to thrive in NZ
• Attracting and keeping players engaged
• Alignment and differences with Scotland
• Big Bets!

Open to all who wish to attend an enjoyable afternoon, challenging our local paradigm!

When:               2.30pm, 6 June 2026

Where:             Brisbane Boys College

Cost:                Free

Registration:     All attendees must register in advance – HERE

Liam Kernaghan

Liam has been the President of the Royal New Zealand Pipe Bands’ Association since 2025, having served on the Management Board prior to this. He is a National piping and ensemble adjudicator, and currently plays with the Canterbury Caledonian Society Pipe Band.

Liam is one of New Zealand’s top solo competitors, having been crowned New Zealand Open Solo Champion in 2019 and runner-up New Zealand Open Solo Champion in 2020, 2021 and 2025. He has also won the Commun Na Piobaireachd Gold Medal, The Silver Chanter, Four Former Winner Clasps to the Silver Chanter, two Lindisfarne Double MSR wins at the Hastings Highland Games, over 20 individual New Zealand titles, and the New Zealand Claidmhor Invitational on three occasions. He has competed in the United Kingdom and France, having won major prizes at the Argyllshire Gathering, the Northern Meetings, Lochaber, Lonach, Skye, and Cowal. He also finished second at Lorient in 2024.

In his spare time, Liam is Head of Government and Community Affairs at Chorus – New Zealand’s largest telecommunications infrastructure company.