Sam was taught the cornet at age ten in 1985 by Bob Walker when he set up the Sharlston Colliery Band, where she stayed until 1992. During this time she also played the flugel for the West Yorkshire Motors Youth Band. She joined Rothwell Temperance on flugel, before also spending time on the 2nd man and Repiano seats. The band had a great run of success, winning the Yorkshire areas 3 years in a row, qualifying for the national finals and achieving promotion from 3rd section to the 1st section in a short space of time. There was also the opportunity to play abroad, with a tour to Norway. 

In 1997 Sam took a back seat due to the birth of her second 2nd son, still playing but just helping out when needed back at Sharlston for contests and then at Stanley Newmarket for the National Finals in 1998. 2000 led to a full time return to banding when she was asked to help with the setting up of the Lofthouse 2000 band. During this time, Sam also signed by up for the third and final time with Sharlston, playing Repiano cornet until the band folded in 2002, after promotion to the 1st section. She then sat on the principal cornet seat with Lofthouse when they became a contesting band, also enjoying a visit to Germany with them.

In 2003 Sam joined Knottingley Silver for their short stint in the Championship Section, followed by a spell on 2nd man at Strata under MD David Hirst. 2005 saw her move to the Rockingham Band on flugel, which had by now firmly become her preferred instrument, and in 2007, despite offers to play cornet at higher level, she answered Kippax's advertisement for a flugel player and was welcomed on board.