Sacred Paws' album Strike a Match was announced as the winner of 2017's Scottish Album of the Year at a ceremony at Paisley Abbey. An outstanding achievement in another strong year for Scottish music, beating stiff competition from the final shortlist of Konx-om-Pax Caramel, C Duncan The Midnight Sun, Ela Orleans Circles of Upper and Lower Hell, Honeyblood Babes Never Die, Meursault I Will Kill Again, Rachel Newton Here's My Heart Come Take It, Mogwai Atomic, Pictish Trail Future Echoes and RM Hubbert Telling The Trees (and a longlist that also included TeenCanteen, The Jesus & Mary Chain, Frightened Rabbit, Teenage Fanclub, King Creosote, Fatherson, Adam Holmes & The Embers, Vukovi, Modern Studies and Starless).

The SAY Award celebrates music of all genres; any artist born in Scotland (or band where at least 50% of the members were born in Scotland) or any musician of any nationality who has 'made their creative base in Scotland for the past three years' is eligible. One hundred people from across music, culture and the arts nominate their favourite Scottish albums of the last year. The results are ranked, the longlist features the highest scoring top 20, and these are whittled down to a shortlist of ten by a panel of judges, with a guaranteed space reserved for the winner of the public vote (this year picked up by Pictish Trail) before the judges choose the final winner.

After receiving the award, Eilidh Rodgers of Sacred Paws said 'I feel like there were so many people nominated and on the shortlist who are all friends, so it felt like, no matter whether Ela, or Mogwai, or Hubby had won, we'd've all agreed it was amazing. Cos we're all friends.' Rachel Aggs, who is moving to Scotland soon, commented 'We're going to try to write more songs and do another record. Do some shows. Mogwai have been great, they're going to take us on tour in Europe, so that'll be terrifying, but amazing.'

Sacred Paws will receive £20,000 from organisers the Scottish Music Industry Association while runners up will receive £1,000 each.

They join previous winners Bill Wells & Aiden Moffat who won the first SAY in 2012, RM Hubbert (2013), Young Fathers (2014), Kathryn Joseph (2015) and last year's champ, Anna Meredith.