Chris Gardner

Young Antony Stubbs used to fear invasion.

His father, 2nd Lieutenant Trevor Stubbs of the King Country Home Guard, and his mates were left without rifles to defend New Zealand after they were handed in to help with the war effort.

This left Stubbs and his Home Guard mates to substitute rifles with broom handles and manuka poles for parades.

“They would parade at Marakopa and Dad would come home and tell us that Marakopa was ‘Home Guarded’,” the 86-year-old remembers.

“They were dead scared about the Japanese coming,” adds his younger brother Alister, 84.

The Stubbs hill country farm, Awatiro, off Te Anga Road, formerly occupied by Trevor’s parents Hugh and Harriet was a perfect base of operations, with views out to the potential enemy landing sites on the West Coast and around the North Island.

The pair can remember their father positioning their old Ford V8 pick-up truck to use the headlights for sending messages in Morse code to his Home Guard brothers in arms. It was a Kiwi version of the warning beacons that had served Britain so well down the centuries.

Tank traps were also installed to halt, or at least slow, an invading force and 2nd Lieutenant Stubbs was trained in their deployment. There was one on the road leading to the farm, and more around the district.

If the enemy ever landed, the Home Guard would rely on Awatiro Farm as a base of operations, packing out a remote cave with provisions packed in tins lined with foil.

The Home Guard was formed in August 1940 under the Emergency Corps Regulations when New Zealanders feared an invasion of the Japanese Empire in the Second World War.

The British version was popularised by the long running situation comedy Dad’s Army which replaced the local militias of old.

The brothers remember huddling daily around the radio with their father and mother Madge.

“They would walk in at the end of the day and turn the radio on and at six o’clock we would hear Big Ben striking,”

They would hear news of how the war was going for the allies in Europe and other parts of the world.

“We did not know was going to happen,” Alister said.

He also listened in to the nightly news with his twin brother Graeme and their whanau from their old hill country farmhouse.

Their parents are long gone now, and the farmhouse was later destroyed in a fire, taking many mementos with them. But the fifth generation of Stubbs continues to work and live off the land.

Nearly 80 years after the war ended, Trevor has been recognised by the New Zealand Defence with a posthumous New Zealand War Service Medal for his service.

Antony applied for the medal after Hangitiki military history expert Ross O’Halloran asked Antony’s nephew, Angus Stubbs, whether his grandfather had ever been decorated.

“Many people who did Home Service didn’t realise that if they had completed a certain amount of time, they were eligible for the NZ 1939-45 war service medal,” O’Halloran said.

O’Halloran has also supplied the family with the appropriate military pins to replace the ones lost in the fire late last century.

So, how would Trevor have reacted to the award?

“He would be overwhelmed, really thrilled,” Antony said.

“He was pretty interested when I did my compulsory military training in 1957.”

“He would be really humbled,” Alister said.

Belated honour for Trevor

Retailers and tourism operators are hoping for a busier than normal summer as the two-month closure of the Desert Road may push more traffic into the King Country and Waipā.

Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency closed State Highway 1 between Tūrangi and Waiouru on Monday (January 13) for road reconstruction and replacement of the wooden deck of the Mangatoetoenui Bridge.

This means between 3000 and nearly 6000 vehicles will need to find alternative routes from north to south and back again over the next two months.

“It will probably push more traffic through our district,” said Waitomo mayor John Robertson.

He hoped established stops like Piopio to be busier as a result of the road closure – it’s not on the direct route around the west side of National Park, but could draw re traffic if visitors decide to add Taranaki to their travels.

“Holy smoke,” said Piopio’s Fat Owl Bar and Eatery and Fat Pigeon Café owner Melanie Simpson when considering traffic heading her way instead of following the NZTA detours.

“I had not even thought of that. That’s going to be very good for us. We are going to have to put extra staff on.”

The timing is excellent for Mini India Takeaway in Rora Street, Te Kūiti, said operator Rajesh Bahunguna. By happy coincidence Bahunguna is opening an Indian restaurant further down the street later this month and he said both businesses would probably benefit.

Te Kūiti New World checkout supervisor Bubz Ruki expected the already busy supermarket to have a couple of busier months as a result.

“We do get a lot of traffic go through… a lot of motorhomes stocking up.”

Bosco Café director Sarb Gill said the Te Kūiti business on State Highway 3 would be putting on extra staff to cope with the demand.

“While road closures can be frustrating for drivers, as a business owner in the King Country, we see it as an opportunity to welcome more travellers to our region,” Gill said.

“We’re eager to share our warm hospitality and stunning scenery with visitors. We’ll be adjusting our staffing to accommodate the influx, and fingers crossed, it will be a great experience for everyone.”

Tourism Holdings Ltd chief executive Grant Webster, whose business operates the Waitomo Glowworm Caves and Waitomo Homestead at the Big Apple, was excited.

“That would certainly be an opportunity for us. We would be very open to welcoming more customers through,” he said.

Spellbound Glowworm and Cave Tours owner-operator Peter Chandler expected the closure to be good for the King Country but with many people booking three to six months ahead he did not have much capacity for extra tourists for his nine tours per day.

“Our tours are full every day,” he said.

Michelle Boddie of Down to Earth Tours had a similar story.

“We are pretty booked until late March.”

Cancellations would create last minute vacancies, she said.

Waitomo Adventures owner-operator Nick Andreef said while the road closure should result in more vehicles travelling through the Waitomo District and stopping, the most likely result would be more congested roads.

“It may not be positive because the roads are not up to it,” Andreef said.

A regional tourism organisation would have made the most of the opportunity, promoting the district.

“We are still in dismay at our councils dropping support for a regional tourism operation,” he said.

Murray Hunt furnishers manager Bev Cooper thought the road closure could bring more people through Ōtorohanga and into the branch there.

“It will be interesting to see,” she said. “Mostly we get people stopping off who are driving Auckland to Wellington.”

She didn’t expect any extra traffic through the Te Awamutu branches which generally attracted Cambridge and Hamilton shoppers.

Waipā mayor Susan O’Regan also didn’t expect Waipā to benefit from the closure.

“We are not expecting too much of an influx,” she said.

Bonus for summer

Staff Reporter

New columnists

Welcome to 2025 and your first edition of the King Country News for the year. Today we unveil two new regular columnists - volcanologist Janine Krippner, and history writer Meghan Hawkes who have been extremely popular in our sister papers the Te Awamutu News and Cambridge News.

New kiwis

A dozen new New Zealanders were  welcomed at a Waitomo District Council citizenship event before Christmas. People from Samoa, England, Fiji and Hong Kong met Waitomo mayor John Robertson at the ceremony. The new citizens are Sulusi Ailoi, Meka Ailoi, Vaai Konesetasia Sulusi, Pafelio Sulusi, Petesa Josephine Sulusi Ailoi, Mandy Sulusi, and Virginia Sulusi, Vavega Lifa, Fogaa Lifa and Theresa Vavega Lifa, Tina Anne Knox, Josaia Sauliga Korosaya and Tsz Wah Fani Ng.

Lifejacket swap

Old4New, an initiative where people can exchange their old, worn-out lifejackets for discounted new lifejackets, is on Saturday at K’aute Pasifika in Hamilton. Over the past decade, more than 22,000 old lifejackets have been traded in through Old4New.

Waste submissions

The Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) received 478 written submissions on behalf of the Board of Inquiry on the Te Awamutu-waste-to-energy plant resource consent application from Global Contracting Solutions Limited. A pre-hearing meeting for submitters and the applicant to discuss procedural matters will be held at FMG Stadium in Hamilton next month. The hearing is expected in June.

Council reform

The Government has agreed to reforms that refocus local councils on delivering essential services and core infrastructure, spending responsibly, and operating under greater scrutiny, Local Government Minister Simeon Brown says.

News in brief

Roy Pilott

A come-and-go lake near Raglan has been declared the oldest in New Zealand.

Lake Disappear – Mokaikaraka – is in a valley near Bridal Veil Falls dammed by lava flow 2.33 million years ago. It can be two kilometres long and 15 metres deep at one time of the year – and the drain to present as  just a small stream

And nearby, timber which is older than Karioi itself and with bark attached is regularly found  on the maunga.

The nuggets of information came out in an engaging  presentation at Te Awamutu Library last month.

Oliver McLeod, from the Waikato Regional Council, was joined by  Janine Krippner, who writes On Shaky Ground for the King Country News, to discuss the geology of Karioi volcano – the title of his new book – and the field extending from it including Pirongia, Kakepuku and Te Kawa.

The pair are rock stars of a different type. McLeod explained that studying rocks enabled  geologist to trace the history. Karioi as Ankaramite, Olivine basalt, Plagioclase-basalt, Andesite and Peridotite.

Ankaramite is McLeod’s favourite.

“My life’s mission is to share Ankaramite. My mum says it looks like concrete, but  think it’s just beautiful,  full of crystals and growth rings.”

McLeod’s four-year work, which was helped by sponsorship and crowd funding - follows the geological mapping of Karioi to show how it  evolved – eruption by eruption - and changed in shape over millions of years. It follows a similar work on the younger Mt Pirongia.

His map of Karioi shows in different colours flows from each of a series of eruptions and the book’s illustrations include rock profiles where he identified layers which predate the maunga.

Another nugget was  that Whale Bay – Te Marae o Mōkī - at Raglan is a lagoon – an unusual feature on the west coast - formed by a significant landslide.

Mt Taranaki today looks like Karioi and Pirongia would have 2.5 million years ago. Pirongia is the youngest of the four maunga – Te Kawa and Kakepuku are dated back 2.3 to 2.7 million years – but more work is required to determine the accuracy of that estimate.

Karioi had also gone through collapses similar to the Mount St Helens, south of Seattle, eruption in the US in 1980. Mt St Helens, not unlike Taranaki in profile, literally blew its top.

The work carried out by McLeod has also underlined similarities between what the Waipā maunga were like millions of year ago and what Auckland had with Rangitoto and its own field of volcanoes.

Krippner, who did the introduction by explaining she liked her volcanoes hot, said understanding those that were not enabled volcanologists to better understand active fields and how they might change.

At any one time 40 to 60 volcanoes would be erupting around the world, and 90 per cent are in the Pacific’s ring of fire – which includes New Zealand.

The gathering attracted about 30 people – including one The News reader who arrived with a selection of Krippner’s weekly columns in a folder.

Rock stars reveal Karioi facts

Mary Anne Gill

King Country landscapes by three of New Zealand’s most revered artists are part of the Timeline: Waikato Art 1850 to 2000 in the reopened Te Whare Taonga o Waikato Museum and Gallery.

Paintings by Peter McIntyre and John Weeks are on display in the exhibition, which opened last week.

Weeks who was born in England in 1886 and emigrated to a farm at Mangapiko near Te Awamutu in 1892, was an influential figure for many of New Zealand and Waikato’s regionalist paintings.

His King Country landscape shows many of the characteristics of Week’s painting style and use of colour. In 1958 he was awarded the OBE for services to art and died in 1965.

McIntyre’s oil landscape from 1975 has a surreal element in the style often used by the World War II official artist in his later years when he had a holiday home in Kakahi, south of Taumarunui.

Born in Dunedin in 1910, McIntyre was a prolific artist who was also awarded an OBE for services to art. He died in 1995.

The other with King Country connections is Taharoa Farm 1950 by Violet Watson, who was born in 1906. The rural landscape oil painting by the artist was a particular favourite of Watson’s who died in Hamilton in 1992.

A painting of Hautapu School featuring a school building nestled behind thick bush in 1987 is part of the exhibition.

Dunedin-born Rodney Hamel, 87, who specialises in landscapes and portraits, was a teacher of history and geography at St Paul’s Collegiate in Hamilton from 1963-2000 and often painted the Waikato landscape from the top of Maungakawa.

The Hautapu School painting is part of an extensive Waikato collection.

He used water colours until the 1990s when he began learning to pain with oils and returned to live in Dunedin in 2004.

The exhibition also features an image of Arapuni Dam by photographer Laurence Aberhart and early watercolours of the Waitomo Caves, Pirongia from Mangatama and the Waipā River at Ōtorohanga.

After a six-month closure for extensive renovations, the museum is ready to welcome visitors to their opening weekend’s ‘housewarming’ celebration to experience the improvements as well as the four new exhibitions alongside established favourites including Exscite.

Other highlights include the traditional and contemporary handcrafted weaving works in He Aa I Uta, He Aa I Tai: Weaving the Elements, details from the museum’s own history in Exhibition no. 831 and the prestigious international Astronomy Photographer of the Year exhibition, showcasing award-winning images of the universe.

The primary focus of the renovation was to bring the building up to modern museum standards, including crucial roof repairs and the installation of a new air lock entry for enhanced climate control.

The museum has opened after a six-month closure for renovations.

King Country... as it was

Far from being the stuff of nightmares, the leeches being bred by ex King Country farmers on New Zealand’s only leech farm in the Waikato are highly valued medical miracles. Viv Posselt investigates.

Maria and Robert Lupton have been breeding leeches for about 34 years.

They started out in Northland, then moved to Aranga where they managed a farm for four years before purchasing a farm at Matiere in the King Country in 2000. After selling that in 2007, they moved to their current Te Miro farm, housing their precious leeches in an adapted cowshed.

Millions of the parasitic worms have gone from their care to serving a critical purpose in hospitals around the country (and further afield) where they have become mainstream in aiding wound healing in the aftermath of surgery.

2024 has been a particularly busy one … it’s tracking to be a record year in terms of demand for the little suckers.

The perfectly-designed blood feeders have been used medicinally for thousands of years. In today’s hospitals, they help prevent a post-operative condition called venous congestion, which occurs when the blood pools and stagnates in veins cut during surgery. As the leeches feed on areas of damaged tissue, they reduce the risk of blood clotting, thereby allowing time for new, healthy tissue to grow. Each tiny bite comes with a shot of naturally occurring anaesthetic that helps numb the area.

As the only leech breeders in the country, the Luptons carry a weight of responsibility that they say will drive their next decision.

They want to retire, so are selling the farm and its boutique leech operation. Mindful of how important the leeches are, they want it to go to someone who shares their understanding that what they do is first and foremost a service to the community.

“You have to have a social conscience to do this,” Robert said. “Time off isn’t always guaranteed. On several occasions we’ve been about to head out fishing for a day or so when the call has come in for more leeches. So, we head back in, pack them up and deliver them to the hospital – sometimes with the boat on the back.”

Any call for a delivery of leeches is urgent. Hospitals keep only a few, so when the need arises, more must be swiftly delivered because once a leech has had its fill, it won’t feed again for months. Up to 300 will be dispatched at any time, either couriered to nearby hospitals or flown further afield. Their records relate stories of many re-attached fingers, or lips and ears healed after traumatic injury.

As they move into summer, they know the need will increase – five calls over five days recently attest to that.

“Springtime is when the DIY’ers start doing things like slicing off fingers in skill-saws,” said Maria, “or people are out and about doing more things with tools. Summer is always busier.”

The Luptons currently have around 50,000 leeches in their shed. They sell between 4500 to 5500 of those each year, but the numbers are rising as New Zealand’s population grows.

The couple’s start in leech farming was almost accidental. It began when their children sent leeches they found on their Northland property into a creepy-crawly exhibition at Auckland Zoo. The resultant media interest caught the eye of a Middlemore surgeon who was struggling to get the blood flowing in a post-operative patient. The leeches worked their magic.

Since then, they have melded international care systems with their own ‘trial and error’ learnings on how to raise the leeches. A few years ago, Maria spoke to a gathering of Australian and New Zealand surgeons whose stories of successful outcomes using leeches validated all their efforts.

Now, with retirement looming, they are determined that the operation remains sustainable.

Not much gets in the way

of the production cycle. They have one part-timer who helps them in the shed, and there is a need to constantly monitor the leeches’ living environment.

In recent years, they’ve taken issue with events such as the recent Targa New Zealand rally, held annually on public roads in the area. The route has seen the road closed for a full day, and while organisers pledge to open it when needed for medical-related reasons, they worry that they won’t be able to get leeches to where they’re needed in the event of an urgent call.

“We’re on call 24/7 and have been lucky thus far,” said Robert.

“We haven’t had to test that pledge yet. But that and other similar events where there are road closures worry us.”

Leech breeders eye retirement

Grey Ormsby is buzzing because he did not listen to his father.

A quarter of a century after Waitomo Group founder Desmond Ormsby advised his son Grey to exit the fuel supply industry the company won the supreme award at the Waikato Chamber of Commerce Business Awards.

In an exclusive interview with The News current owner Jimmy Ormsby revealed: “In around 2000 my grandfather said we would be better taking the money and getting out of the business.”

Desmond had founded the company in 1947 in King Street, Te Kūiti employing half a dozen people before moving to Carroll Street in 1953. Exxon Mobil Corporation wanted to exit its joint venture with the Waitomo Group around 2000, leaving the family with the choice to go it alone or close.

“My grandfather said to my dad, ‘I think you should take the opportunity to get out. Dad obviously didn’t listen to his father and said, ‘we’re going to go hard.’”

Today the low-cost company is based in Frankton, Hamilton, and employs nearly 100 full time equivalents and almost as many contractors.

Waitomo Group has gone hard, growing from a business-to-business fuel wholesaler to a business to customer retailer.

It opened its first petrol station in 2012, aiming to be 20 cents a litre below the market rate, and its first South Island station in 2019.

Waitomo Group has five stations planned for Nelson in the coming year busting the 100 fuel stops and diesel stops ceiling nationally.

As well as winning the Supreme Award the company won the Business Growth and Strategy Award and the Sustainability Award at the Waikato Chamber of Commerce event on Friday.

Waitomo Group was also a finalist in the Innovation, People and Culture, and Marketing categories of the awards.

“Dad gave me a phone call the next day,” Jimmy said. “He was buzzing.”

“My grandfather, who passed away 22 years ago in 2001, would be amazed. He would be smiling down on us, and he’d be very happy, very proud,” Jimmy said.

On Monday Jimmy took the business award trophies to his dad, who now lives north of Hamilton, to show them off.

“Fantastic, I am so proud of you.” Grey said to Jimmy. “You must be so proud of the team too.”

He is.

On the option to exit, Grey said he was confident the company would perform better under Ormsby family ownership.

Waitomo Group now considers itself a market disruptor, offering competitive prices at retail as well as bulk fuel supply via commercial mini tankers for commercial and farm trade operators.

Jimmy’s wife Ailsa serves on the board while their oldest daughter, Isla, is helping the group manager of revenue in her gap year.

 * See: Waitomo takes out top spot

Other award winners:

Business Growth & Strategy Award - Waitomo Group, Chief Executive of the Year -  Pam Roa, Longveld, Community Contribution - Hamilton Multicultural Services Trust, Emerging Leader - Ashley Mason, Sentinel Homes, For Purpose -  Wild Bamboo, Innovation -  Waikato Milking Systems, Marketing  - Gallagher Animal Management, Small Business  -  Brainchild, People and Culture – Longveld, Service -   Whites Powersports, Sustainability -  Waitomo Group.

A supreme disruptor

Paul Charman

Paul Charman reflects on the life a popular cop who, in a different time, knew a heavy hand wasn’t the answer.

The funeral of former Te Kūiti-based police and traffic officer Barry Hazelton attracted more than 400 people last week.

Mourners included past and present members of the Te Kūiti Motorcycle Club, which Hazelton helped to establish in the late 1980s.

The police, former traffic officers, and the Fire Service were well represented. Both Barry and his wife Thelma, who predeceased him were active members of the Te Kūiti Volunteer Fire Brigade, with Thelma its first female fire fighter.

The Hazeltons – who had six sons – lived in Te Kūiti from about 1988 till 1998, during which time MOT traffic officers merged with the NZ Police.

Barry Hazelton served about two years as Te Kūiti’s first community constable. His police career lasted 38 years – right up to a medical discharge from active service in 2020, at which point he became a firearms officer.

This was a role the keen hunter enjoyed according to Barry’s son JJ.

JJ said his dad helped establish his town’s motorcycle club and many of the 20-30 bike riders who attended the funeral, received their licences under Barry’s testing.

“Dad used to enjoy riding his Kawasaki ZL 1000, but later his ultimate bike later was a 2010 Harley Softail.”

Eventually the family left Te Kūiti and moved to Whangamatā, where Barry worked in the police for a several years ahead of joining the highway patrol, based out of Paeroa. In this role he covered most of the Hauraki Plains.

The News asked JJ how it was his dad became so popular.

“It’s really hard case isn’t it? The amount of people who liked him. I think it was because he was so fair. He went by the book – if you stepped out of line you’d get in trouble. But most of the time it was a proper warning. I have heard a few good stories. When you are in a small town you don’t come in with a heavy hand; you’ve got to think of the community first.”

JJ also reflected that growing up in the late 1980s and 1990s Te Kuiti it was, “a different style town”.

“There were still the Mob guys and all that, but everyone got on pretty well. We lived on View Rd and had mob guys just near us. A lot of them were there – but pretty harmless back in the day.

“I had friends whose parents were in the Mob and I went to school with them. They used to ask, ‘hey JJ, do you want to join’. And I’d say, ‘oh no thanks I’m alright’, but we still hung out and did things together.

“There was a huge five-a-side social soccer tournament down at Centennial Park. The police, fire brigade and many local businesses had teams. The Mob had a team too – they came along and played social soccer. The Mob versus police games used to be so awesome. Both sides really got stuck in, with a bit of elbow thrown in – but all played in good spirit, with a couple of beers afterwards.

“I guess growing up I was slightly in awe of dad – all of us boys were. We were a little bit mischievous. But I think (when we did wrong) we were more scared of our parents than anything else.”

Another treasured memory was his parents’ involvement in drag racing events held for cars and motorcycles at Centennial Park.

“Mum won one of the drag racing events and dad would sit there in his patrol car and measure the speeds with his radar. The bike club organised it with the local hot rod guys - there was less concern over stuff like health a safety back then.”

 * Changes have been made to the online version of this story.

 

Tributes to a top cop

Andy Campbell

For the Cotter family and descendants coming to Te Kūiti is like coming home, and about 80 descendants of Cotter brothers Richard Joseph and Patrick returned to Te Kūiti on the weekend.

The occasion was celebrating 150 years since Richard and Elizabeth Cotter and six children arrived in New Zealand in 1874 seeking their fortune on the Thames goldfields.

It also saw the unveiling of a plaque commemorating 118 years since settling in Te Kūiti and the gifting of land to Waitete Rugby Club.

Two of Richard and Elizabeth’s children, Richard Joseph and Patrick Cotter married two sisters Frances (Fran) and Emily Kneebone in Thames and moved to Te Kūiti with their young families in 1906 to set up as butchers.

They had 20 children between them. They ran between one house near the saleyards and the other over the other side near where the Waitete clubrooms are today.

Descendant Lee-Anne Daniel said the Cotters forged a good relationship with Māori when they came to Te Kūiti. The Cotter and the Hetet whanau formed a good relationship… through music and rugby.

“There was a story that if you threw a stick in town you would either hit a Hetet or a Cotter or a Wi, something like that,” Mike Daniel said. “My dad had 36 first cousins that’s quite unheard of for a pakeha family.”

Lee-Anne Daniel descends from the Hetet line.

“It was a big family,” she says.

R&P Cotter Family Butchers was established in 1907 where Mini India takeaways are now at 189 Rora St.

They raised their children across the land where the Cotter Street saleyards, Rugby Park and Waitete Rugby Clubrooms now stand.

The grandstand is built over the location of the slaughterhouse, and the meat was transferred from there to the butcher shop by horse and cart.

The butchery and family grew. Richard died in 1921 at the age of 50, leaving Fran to raise the young family. Patrick died several years later aged 52. The butcher shop continued and the original apprentice Bill Haines took over the business in 1928.

Richard’s son George Cotter was a keen rugby player and when he and others couldn’t get a game, a Bert Smith suggested a new club be formed. George and Bert were the founding members of the Waitete Football club. The clubrooms were built on land gifted by the family in 1931.

The weekend’s unveiling was greeted with a few tears, Lee-Anne said.

“Everyone knew it was gifted by the family but this was like the official recognition really,” Lee-Anne said

She said the family appreciated Waitete Rugby Club, “especially Malcolm Burmester and Neil Macrae… they were organising where it was going to go. They helped us with setting up the area and building”.

The Maniapoto Rugby Union added to the grounds in 1927 when it purchased 14 acres known as Cotters’ paddock for 1400 pounds.

Of King Country’s exciting win over West Coast to clinch the Lochore Cup - Lee-Anne said, “I thought it was quite fitting they did play on Sunday and they were winning on Cotters’ paddock, it kind of tied it in quite nicely.

“Especially when that guy missed the conversion, the Cotters waved that away,” Mike said.

He was referring to the kick that would have given West Coast the game on full time. The ball bounced off one of the posts and the match was given 20 minutes extra time, during which King Country won the Lochore Cup.

Cotters reunite on cup day

King Country has beaten defending champions West Coast 46-44 in extra time at Rugby Park in Te Kuiti today to take out the Heartland Championship's Lochore Cup.

Tries to the high flying Latrell Smiler, Ah-Kiong, Cody Nordstrom 2, Leveson Gower, Logan Patterson and Liam Rowlands and five conversions and two penalties to Patrick Hedley.

Read: Sunday's Cup Day

King Country wins Lochore Cup

Organisers of the Targa Rally have been dealt a blow by a Waitomo District Council decision to decline an application for road closures.

Councillor Janette Osborne told The News the council had turned down the application because of concerns raised in submissions and the anticipated impact road closures would have during a long weekend.

Rally organisers wanted to have roads closed on October 25 and 26 for the event – but those dates clash with Labour Weekend. Labour Day, a public holiday, is on October 28.

Roads which would have been impacted included part of Harbour Road within the Waitomo District, Taharoa Road, Te Anga Road, Haurua Road, Waitomo Valley Road and Rangitoto Road.

The four-day rally based around Otorohanga, Kawhia Harbour, King Country and finishing in Rotorua, is planned to start on October 24.

See: Rally closures approved

Rally bid declined

Meghan Hawkes

Harry Lampra, a 19-year-old from Te Kūiti, disappeared at the end of June 1889.  He worked for Mr Tanner, a boarding house keeper, and had been sent out on horseback to look for some cows which were thought to have strayed across the Mangaokewa River.

Since the time he left Mr Tanner’s nothing was seen or heard of him. The horse, however, was found the next day near the river.  Constables Lowther and Berriman and several railway workmen searched for the lad but no trace of him was found. 

Harry’s mother, Elizabeth, was a widow, residing in Alexandra Street, Auckland. Eleven years previously she, her husband John and their five small children had arrived in New Zealand from England by the immigrant ship Appelles.  John, 28, found work as a stableman at Auckland’s Crowther’s Stables where his obliging disposition meant he was well liked.  But within three months of the Lampras’ arrival John died from injuries after accidentally falling through the stable loft floor.  He was buried in Auckland’s Symonds Street cemetery.

John left his wife and children in very precarious circumstances having arrived in the country without money and being unable to save anything out of his wages. A subscription was raised on their behalf and contributions were collected by the Auckland Star and Mr Crowther.  Over 87 pounds was raised for the Lampras and Mr Crowther said of the generous response that not a single request for a donation had been refused and many were voluntary and unsolicited.  He proposed to get a laundry box mangle with part of the money, so Elizabeth could take in work, and place the balance in a bank account.  He would be glad, he said, to receive a better suggestion or any guidance on estate management.

He was warned to beware.  In Auckland large sums of money were often raised for widows and orphans. A proper deed needed to be drawn up, and the widow be made to party to it. Otherwise, any loafer may beguile her into marriage for the sake of the money or wheedle it out of her without the ceremony of marriage.

Elizabeth, though, did not fall prey to any swindlers and purchased a box mangle.  This was a cumbersome affair consisting of a large box filled with rocks that rested on a series of long wooden rollers. Damp laundry was laid flat under rollers or wound round the rollers. They required a fair bit of strength to operate but soon Elizabeth was advertising ‘Mangling done in a superior manner in a First-class Box Mangle.’

By the late 1880s the mangle was sold, and her eldest son Harry was missing in Te Kūiti.  It was feared he had drowned while trying to cross the flood swollen river.   Four long weeks passed before his body was found caught against a snag a short distance below a ford. Constable Berriman had him removed to the railway goods shed.

The inquest found that Harry had accidentally drowned.  The difficulty of where to bury him then arose as local Māori objected to their land being used.  Harry was ultimately buried in a corner Te Kūiti’s railway station reserve.

The death of Harry Lampra

Janine Krippner

This time 20 years ago, countries around the Indian Ocean were reeling from the grief and horror of one of the deadliest events in modern history - the Boxing Day tsunami triggered by the 9.2-9.3 magnitude Sumatra–Andaman earthquake.

Around a quarter million locals and tourists lost their lives. Well over a million were displaced. Each one of those lives mattered. The impact was so large that we cannot accurately measure it.

Around the world we watched in horror as the news (not yet smartphones) showed footage of people running, waves rolling in, and houses and all sorts of other debris washing inland. It has always brought goosebumps to my skin.

The earthquake was triggered along the subduction zone where the Indian tectonic plate is moving down below the Burma micro-plate. We call the area where the two plates meet a fault or megathrust. The relative movement of these two large plates past or against each other built up strain, potentially over hundreds of years, when they were locked into place at the fault boundary.

On Boxing Day, 2004, this strain was released in a catastrophic failure over a length of 1200 to 1300 km, that’s approximately Bluff to Whakatāne in a straight line.

It took around eight minutes for the total length of the fault to fracture, and the rupture speed was 2-3 km a second. Think of a crack spreading through the ground on a massive scale and very fast. This is what causes the shaking.

What caused the tsunami was the upward movement of the seafloor, shoving vast amounts of water vertically that then formed a set of waves we call a tsunami.

If you hold a hand under water then flick it upwards, you’ll see multiple waves moving out from you in the same way.

We are so used to water being part of our everyday lives that we forget the force of it, especially in large volumes. You can be swept off your feet in around 15cm of moving water. On that Boxing Day the tsunami wave heights varied depending on location, reaching over 30m in places. The water moved kilometres inland depending on location.

It’s important to remember these events and take a moment to think about what we would do if we were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Evacuation is our best shot of surviving, and knowing where to go is your best shot of getting out fast enough. If you head to our beaches this summer, check out any tsunami evacuation signs and have a chat about where you would run to. Remember “If an earthquake is – Long or Strong, Get Gone”. Don’t wait for an official warning because you might not get one if a tsunami is generated close to shore. The Boxing Day tsunami speed reached  800kph in the ocean.

It’s better to be potentially embarrassed by a false alarm than face the consequences of not acting fast enough. A false alarm is a good practice run.



The Boxing Day tsunami

Supplied

A magic circle

I just wanted to drop a quick note to the citizens of Ōtorohanga to let them know what a fine town they have. 

My wife and I recently completed a long tour of New Zealand, and Ōtorohanga was one of our favourite stops, primarily because of how friendly the people were. It started with Bill Millar who met us at our train with a hearty welcome and interesting information about the history of the town, then Vanessa at the information centre who provided valuable practical advice for our stay, and Jeff at the Palm Court Motel who was extremely accommodating, providing private transportation to several of your area attractions.  We enjoyed the many activities your region has to offer, from the Kiwi House to the caves, and even the pleasant dike walk around the town. 

It was a small miracle that we ended up in Ōtorohanga.  Before our trip started we purchased a large, detailed map of New Zealand at a second-hand shop.  The only hand-written mark on the map was a circle drawn around the town of Ōtorohanga. We had to check it out,  and we are certainly glad we did.

Spencer and Stasia Harvey

Charleston, South Carolina, US 

Letters to the Editor

Sigrid Christiansen

A touring Scottish harpist has added an extra gig to her New Zealand sojourn – and it will be at a Waitomo Caves home.

Biddy Stubbs spotted Esther Swift performing at Hamilton’s Nivara Lounge during a previous tour and this time round approached her to ask if she would perform at the Stubbs family home on Saturday week.

“She was amazing. I contacted her and yes, she could fit us in.”

Swift will perform a community concert and patrons are invited to cover her costs.

Smith’s musical talent has drawn comparisons with Icelandic artist Bjork.

“It’s an amazing contemporary take on the instrument. People might think it’s something quite old fashioned, but she’s quite off beat,” Stubbs said.

Swift is on her third New Zealand tour.

She will make festival appearances in Wellington, Nelson and New Plymouth.

Because the instrument is so large, she left her own harp at home and will use a borrowed instrument.

Swift, who studied at Edinburgh’s St Mary’s Music School and the Royal Northern College of Music has also performed in Vietnam, Malaysia, Mongolia.

Extra string to a tour

A King Country born duo has won a radio vote in the United States to be named best new artists of 2024.

Rowdy’s Rose collected their award in Connellsville, Pennsylvania. The poll was run by American station Hugs Radio, based in the 7000 strong community.

The stations celebrates “songs you never heard, by artists you never knew existed... but damn well deserve to be heard, and tomorrow you’re gonna go look for them”.

Te Awamutu based singer-songwriters Blair and Rosie Shaw were earlier invited to attend the USA Radio Awards in Pennsylvania in October, both as performers and as nominees – for People’s Choice Vocalists of the Year 2024, and Songwriters of the Year 2024.

The event was televised over six states.

The pair were also selected by NZ on Air as New Tracks artists in June with their new single ‘Shooting Star’, which has featured on music charts in both New Zealand and the US.

After their latest accolade they told followers on social media “quite a few people said we belong in Nashville”.

The duo plan to be back for the Ōtorohanga Christmas markets on December 1 – and to prepare their next music video.

Listeners love Rowdy

Te Kūiti Museum volunteers are scratching their heads over the motivation behind last month’s burglary of storage sheds next door to their building in Rora St.

The sheds, on the property owned by NZ Post, were raided on September 13 and again on September 24.

The first burglary was probably a reconnaissance to see what was there. The burglars returned to steal a range of items a week later.

Volunteer Russell Aldridge said the thieves took two old reel mowers, a power saw, a copper backpack sprayer and some old spanners.

The reel mowers were powered by Villiers two-stroke engines which would be hard to adapt for use in any other kind of machine.

“I reckon they were bloody stupid because this old stuff would have been junk to them, but to us quite valuable,” Aldridge said.

“I doubt even a scrap dealer would have been much interested, except for the copper sprayer. These machines were valuable as museum exhibits as they were relics from a bygone era. They were on their way to being cleaned up and put on show.”

He added that if the thieves had not already disposed of the items, they could quite easily put things right.

“If they have any brains at all they’ll go back and leave this stuff outside the sheds they took them from. We’ll take it from there.”

Are these thieves for reel?

The Ōtorohanga Lions Club celebrated its 60th year of service to its community at a dinner held the Caves Motor Inn last night.

Member Dave Williams said it was timely occasion to celebrate and consider what has been achieved since the club was formed in 1964.

“We also want to remind local residents that our club is here for them. For example, we’re now considering this year’s applications to their Laurie Harnett Scholarship Fund. Laurie was a local farmer and though not a member of the Lions Club he left the club a large bequest, so we want his name remembered.

“Laurie gave away substantial funds not only to us but to other local organisations which service this community.”

Funds from the scholarship which the Lions oversaw were being made available to second-year university students and second-year apprentices.

Williams said the Lions Club was there to assist young people, older people and those in need.

“The Lions Shop in town is now our biggest fundraiser but we raise funds in other ways such as running golf tournaments and street raffles. Our physical work in the community is usually unseen but we are able fund many community projects and events usually with an emphasis on youth and education.”

The current Laurie Harnett Scholar, Ben Pettigrew, is studying conservation and the previous scholar, commerce.

Williams enjoys working alongside other positive minded people as they work for their community.

“There’s nothing more worthwhile than helping people with a group of like-minded people who are united in a common cause. The Lions are a real cross-section of society. We’re from diverse backgrounds and racial groups but the common thread is concern for those less fortunate, or who need a hand up to reach their goals.

“None of the Lions are in it for themselves - we really do want to do something for others but a by-product is that we have a lot of fun along the way.”

Club members meet twice a month. One meeting is for business, at which members broke up into committees involved in community work.

The other meeting takes the form of a dinner, with a guest speaker providing a talk on a subject seen as relevant to the Ōtorohanga community.

“We now have 31 members and are very proud that our oldest member., Laurie Cowan, who is 102.

“We have had much involvement with Beattie Home and the Papakāinga Homestead dementia centre, which is a state-of-the-art facility we can all be proud of.”

Lions mark six decades' service

News

It's about productivity

Together in disasters

Community's rapid response

More take regional buses

Briefs...

Tainui opposes waste plant

Dairy farmers are spending millions of dollars on effluent storage for no environmental benefit, says Agricultural Business Associates natural resource engineer Fred Phillips.

Phillips questioned the effectiveness DairyNZ’s Dairy Effluent Storage Calculator (DESC) during Waikato Federated Farmers Executive meeting in November as it is spun out of a two-tier system classifying farms as either high or low risk based on soil type.

The region could do better than loading an additional $80,000 capital expense for the construction of dairy effluent ponds on dairy farmers because of collective ignorance, Phillips said.

“If that pond takes out 0.4 hectares of productive land, then there is an ongoing income reduction of $2,200 per hectare,” Phillips said.

“If the pond does not result on an improved environmental outcome than who benefits?”

Farm effluent system salespeople would be rubbing their hands together at the prospect of Fonterra raising the midpoint of the 2024/25 season forecast farmgate milk price from $9 per kilogramme of milk solids to $9.50.

The Waikato region boasts the greatest concentration of dairy herds in the country with 1,057,651 cows in 3,020 herds (28.5 per cent) grazing 362,204 total effective hectares, according to New Zealand Diary Statistics 2022-23 published by DairyNZ and the Livestock Improvement Corporation. The Waikato produced 22 per cent, or 412,514,347 kilograms, of New Zealand’s milk solids. There were 595 dairy herds in Waipa district, 331 in Otorohanga district and 59 in Waitomo district.

The Waikato region is New Zealand’s largest dairying region with 28.5 percent of the national herd spread over 3,020 herds.

“Of the 685,542ha of dairy land in the region I would estimate that at least 120,000ha or 17 per cent is incorrectly designated as High Risk including about 60 per cent or more of the Region's peat based agricultural soils,” Phillips said.

“﻿﻿At best this is just irresponsible. ﻿﻿The excessive storage being recommended as a result of this misinformation has a cost of about $400 per hectare or $48 million and it has zero environmental benefit.”

“Two categories of soil risk are totally inadequate when it comes to storage requirements,” Phillips said.

“There are also thousands of Ha of volcanic soils that should also be classed as Very Low Risk that the DESC does not get right.”

“DESC assumes that farmers will irrigate on every available day.

“The soil guidance maps are not fit for purpose. This causes major conflicts.

“Unless Federated Farmers takes some leadership in this, farmers will continue to be required to spend millions of dollars for no environmental benefit.

“Farmers need to push DairyNZ into Action. The calculator is a dog and has never been ground truthed for very low risk soils.”

“The proposed Waikato Regional Plan Change 1 says we have got to use DESC,” said Waikato Federated Farmers Executive member and Te Pahu dairy farmer John Bluett.

“If we fix the DESC we don’t need to change plan change 1.”

Bluett told The News he would be taking Phillips concerns to DairyNZ.

Meanwhile, Phillips shared his findings with Waikato Regional Council in August and the matter is due to be discussed at the council’s ordinary meeting on November 28.

Effluent - money going to waste

A members bill that would amend KiwiSaver rules to make things easier for young farmers and farm staff is a good first step but doesn’t get a pass mark from Federated Farmers.

In the lead-up to the 2023 election, Federated Farmers called on the Government to allow young farmers to withdraw their KiwiSaver funds to buy a first home, farm, herd or flock.

Rangitīkei MP Suze Redmayne’s KiwiSaver (First Home for Farm Land and Service Tenants) Amendment Bill would allow someone to withdraw their KiwiSaver funds to buy a first farm – but not their first herd or flock.

It would also open the door for those living in service tenancies, such as farm staff, to use their KiwiSaver to buy their first home without having to live in it straight away.

“This bill will go a long way in supporting young people in our rural communities to get on the property ladder and build some equity,” Federated Farmers dairy chair Richard McIntyre says.

“That can only be a good thing for the next generation of farmers who are really struggling with high interest rates and a lack of support from their banks.

“What’s incredibly disappointing is that this bill won’t allow people to withdraw their KiwiSaver funds to buy their first herd or flock,” McIntyre says.

“From my perspective that’s absolutely critical for famers who are just starting out – particularly sharemilkers – to build equity as they progress through the sector.

“We’ve got young farmers scrimping and saving to get the cash together to buy their first herd, and sometimes they’ve got tens of thousands of dollars in their KiwiSaver they can’t touch.

“At the same time, we’ve got plenty of people at the other end of their career looking to sell their farm or get a sharemilker on, but can’t find anyone with enough capital.”

Allowing more flexibility to buy a first herd or flock would help address both these significant issues and support the next generation of Kiwi farmers.

“It would put young farmers in a much stronger financial position with their initial equity, but they’d also have less debt – which means they’d be paying less interest too.”

Federated Farmers will be pushing hard for all political parties to support this bill and for amendments to allow the purchase of a herd or flock.

Close, but no cigar

DairyNZ Hamilton-based scientist Charlotte Reed has received the 2024 Australasian Dairy Science Symposium Emerging Scientist Award.

The Symposium brought together 140 science and extension professionals from
across Australasia.

Reed shared research on ‘What do milk urea concentrations tell us in temperate grazing systems?’ from a collaboration between DairyNZ, AgResearch, Lincoln University, and Fonterra under the Low Nitrogen Systems research programme.

The programme is investigating how combining mitigation options can help farmers reduce nitrogen losses while meeting viability goals.

“I am really proud of the collaborative efforts of the research team to help farmers manage their nitrogen use efficiency and contribute to improving freshwater quality,” says Reed.

The work relates milk urea concentrations and the of surplus nitrogen in the herd’s diet.

Milk urea indicates the crude protein level and therefore the amount of nitrogen in a cow’s diet. If a cow’s diet is rich in protein, it might produce more urea, which is usually excreted in the urine and higher levels can be detected in the milk.

When the diet lacks nitrogen, the cow’s body recycles the urea back into the rumen.

Reed specialises in cow physiology, reproduction and behaviour. She graduated from Victoria University in 2020 with a PhD in cell biology, focusing on how egg quality affects dairy cow reproduction. She also holds an Honours degree and a Bachelor of Science in physiology and animal science from Massey University.

Science award for Reed

Farmer confidence is lifting with beef, sheep and dairy prices.

Sheep and beef are fetching an estimated 30 per cent more at stock sales compared to last year, said PGG Wrightson sheep and beef rep for Piopio and Te Kuiti Bill Harrison.

Dairy giant Fonterra raised the midpoint of the 2024/25 season forecast Farmgate Milk Price by 50 cents to a record $10 per kilogram of milksolids on December 5 less than a month after lifting the midpoint to $9.50 on November 11.

The lift in fortunes follows Federated Farmers national president Wayne Langford’s revelation to Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Minister of Agriculture Todd McClay on November 26 that farmer confidence was at a record low.

The organisation had been surveying farmer confidence for 12 years and things had never been so bad, he said.

Harrison said sheep and beef prices were “coming back pretty good” at stock sales.

“The market is up around 30 per cent,” he said. “It’s looking a lot better than last year.”

Wools of New Zealand national wool manager Simon Averill said the market had been steady for the last few sales.å

“Confidence is improving especially with positive forecasts coming out for both the  Beef and Lamb markets,” he said.

“The wool price improvement certainly is a positive for sheep farmers around the country. Some parts of the country like the Hawke’s Bay are experiencing dry conditions which has its own sets of challenges.”

Roto-o-Rangi dairy farmer and Fonterra Co-Operative Council member Andrew Myers welcomed Fonterra’s record Farmgate Milk Price.

“It’s better than good news, it’s fantastic,” he said.

“I have talked to one or two dairy farmers, and they are over the moon. There are signs that things are improving. We are just happy that we can contribute to our communities.”

Ongoing compliance costs had hurt farmers, he said.

Piopio dairy farmer and Fonterra Co-Operative Council member Paulette Johns agreed with Myers.

“The vibe is very positive,” she said.

“We were a little surprised to get the extra uplift before Christmas and it’s very good news. What’s good for us is good for our community.”

“We’ve seen a recent recovery in demand out of China as domestic milk production rebalances and demand from Southeast Asia continues to be strong,” Fonterra chief executive Miles Hurrell told farmers in an email.

“We are continuing to monitor factors that may influence global supply and demand dynamics, including any potential impact from heightened geopolitical uncertainty.”

The first payment to farmers to change will be December paid January.Upon hearing the news of a record Farmgate Milk Price, Open Country Dairy supplier John Hayward said: “That’s pretty cool news, isn’t it? It’s positive for the whole community.”

Open Country Dairy had paid him $8.81 per kilogram of milk solids last month and he was using the capital to pay off farm debt. He was expecting further rises as Open Country Dairy generally paid more than Fonterra.

“You can’t count it until it’s in the bank,” he cautioned. “We have got a long way to go through the season yet, and things can change. We are in early December, and we have got to get to May. Most guys will be cautious.”

Sharefarming Consultants founder Louise Gibson also cautioned restraint, urging farmers to use the opportunity to reduce debt and invest in tools that drive efficiency.

“Next year is not the year to rush out into a variable order sharemilking agreement without testing your budgets against historic lows - think $5 or less - or rush into taking on too much debt just in case this is a repeat of cycles of years gone by,” she said.

“If you have contract milkers, consider where you can profit share - they have had to ride the milk price lows through lower inputs and working with infrastructure that hasn’t been improved or repaired on schedule.

“Look at your houses on farm - this could be an opportunity to invest in getting them up to Healthy Homes standard and make them more attractive to staff and sharefarmers.”

Confidence on the bounce

Bruce Rowe had the Prime Minister’s ear when Christopher Luxon sat down next to him at Mystery Creek.

The former dairy farmer, who now breeds cattle near Cambridge, was joined by the Prime Minister at the Federated Farmers Restoring Farmer Confidence Tour before Luxon took to the stage.

It was a brief discussion filled with niceties, but Rowe also took the opportunity to talk to Minister of Agriculture Todd McClay to push for a review of the legislation that led to the formation of dairy giant Fonterra in 2001.

“It has been a disaster since day one,” Rowe said of the legislation. “I am very supportive of Fonterra. It’s the backbone of the country. When I see competition, it riles me. It’s got right out of hand.”

Rowe was particularly concerned with foreign owned entities competing with Fonterra in New Zealand.

“I believe in looking after Kiwis and the land,” he said.

Rowe thought he got a favourable hearing, with assurance from McClay that the Dairy Industry Restructuring Act would be reviewed next year.

“He said he would look at it,” Rowe said.

The act requires the Minister of Agriculture to undertake periodic reviews, including the state of competition in the dairy processing sector, must be initiated after July 31 next year, with a report presented to Parliament no later than June 1, 2027.

The terms of the review will require Cabinet approval and stakeholders will expect full and transparent consultation.

A word from Bruce for Luxon and McClay

Dairy farmers Dave Swney and Alice Trevelyan turned to growing native plants to earn a secondary income to complement their farm.

Trevelyan drew on her experience as a Waikato Regional Council catchment management officer four seasons ago to turn the tennis court on the family farm between Te Awamutu and Ōtorohanga into a native plant nursery.



The enterprise puts the couple among 26 per cent of farmers a recent survey revealed were supplementing their farming business with non-farming income.

The Native Dairy Farmer, as they called their add on business, is in its fourth season growing around 30,000 plants per year, predominantly for use in riparian plantings schemes on farms.

“It was getting harder and harder to be able to run your own farm,” Sweny, a former DairyNZ field officer, said.

“We knew we had to think outside of the box a little bit. If we could do something that was not dairy farming it was a win,” he added.

“When we started the Native Dairy Farmer things were tough financially so any extra dollar of income, we could generate through this other revenue stream was invaluable,” Trevelyan said.

“Like any new business it has been tough to get started and create a customer base, however now we have a couple of years under our belt we have developed some really cool relationships with our customers.”

“The pressure on the Native Dairy Farmer to produce a profit has been a true reality.”

The native nursery, with its irrigation system, allowed Trevelyan to leave her council job and mother two boys – Walter, aged two, and Rex, aged one.

Orders come in large and small.

“They buy five plants, or 1000,” Trevelyan said of her clients.

“A big part of my role is working with farmers to improve environmental best practice.”

She said she didn’t know a farmer who was not interested in improving the environment.

In the last three seasons the pair have turned to providing their natives in biodegradable pots, meaning farmer do not have to remove and recycle plastic pots when planting, halving planting time.

Riparian planting improves water quality, reduces erosion, lowers water temperature, and increases biodiversity on farms.

“Alice and I are strategic partners,” Swney said.

The couple welcomed Fonterra record Farmgate Milk Price forecast of $10 per kilogramme of milksolids, but as Olam Food Ingredients (OFI) suppliers will wait until the end of the year to learn how it has affected their milk price.

Fonterra raised the 2024-25 season forecast by 50c on December 5.

“Great to see payout looking stronger for the 23-24 season. It is welcome news after a couple of tough seasons,” Trevelyan said.

“With improvement in milk price and a reduction in interest rates it means we can catch up on some capital improvements, repair and maintenance and debt reduction that have been put on hold for the last couple of years.

“OFI will review our milk price based on data at the end of each month.”

OFI opened a dairy processing plant in Tokoroa last November.

“It was just right for us and our family,” Swney said.

The couple are contract milking 410 Jersey cross cows producing 190,000 kilograms of milksolids on a 124ha dairy farm between Ōtorohanga and Te Awamutu on Ōtorohanga Road. They are in an equity partnership with Swney’s parents Phill and Deb who has owned the farm for 35 years. The farm also employs second in command Jayson Jacinto and farm assistant Boota Singh.

Swney, who also sits on the national committee of Smaller Milk and Supply Herds (Smash), prefers to graze calves on the property for their first year rather than send them off farm.

He grows 10 hectares of maize and five hectares of chicory and lost some to hungry insects earlier in the season.

“We milk every cow once a day when she calves until we are happy with her eating and appetite (gut fill), typically seven to 10 days post calving,” Swney said.

“Both herds are then milked twice a day until the heat starts to ramp up around Christmas when we put the young cows on once-a-day milking for the rest of the season. The other herd continues to be milked twice a day but kept close to the cowshed.”

“We have a long skinny farm,” Trevelyan said.

“Because of that we do things a bit differently,” Swney added.

They have also installed a feed pad at the approach to the milking shed to give their herd a boost.

Dairy farmers grow natives

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Minister of Agriculture Todd McClay heard at Mystery Creek how low farmer confidence has dropped last week.

The message came from Federated Farmers national president Wayne Langford at the Federated Farmers Restoring Farmer Confidence Tour.

The organisation had surveyed its 13,000 members across 24 regions for 12 years and Langford said confidence was the “worst it has ever been”.

High interest rates, inflation and compliance costs had hit farmers in the wallet.

“It doesn’t matter whether you’re sheep, beef, arable or dairy. There’s a large number of farms that have been bumping some bills out month to month and a lot that have only just come right recently,” Langford said.

Fonterra, New Zealand’s largest company, raised the midpoint of the 2024-25 season forecast farmgate milk price in November to a record $9.50 a kilogram of milk solids, but it is only about $1 a kilogram of milk solids above breakeven for the average farmer.

Langford said the National-led government had “come through” on nine of a dozen action points the organisation had asked for.

It is still waiting for a law change allowing young farmers to access their KiwiSaver, a rethink of the Emissions Trading Scheme Forestry Rules and building the farmer workforce through immigration reform.

Luxon, rural caucus in tow, told the meeting there was nothing more important to New Zealand than the rural sector.

“… about 13 per cent of our people work in this sector, about 350,000 people, you have 40 million people being fed all around the world because of what you do. You are 80 per cent of all our export earnings and, importantly, you generate $10,000 for every man, woman and child in this country.

“You were the sector that powered New Zealand out of Covid. You are the sector that powered New Zealand out of the Global Financial Crisis, and we need you to power us out of this recession that we’ve now had for three years thanks to the last lot,” Luxon said

Luxon said the sector needed better communications and to tell more good news stories to mainstream of New Zealand.

Farmers were complaining of spending a quarter to a third of their time on compliance, rather than farming, Luxon said, so the Government had spent its first year cutting the red tape that was “calcifying the sector and slowing it down.”

He said the last government “went to war on farmers”.

McClay told the crowd every time the Government found a rule that did not work it cut it.

Ōhaupō dairy farmer and Waikato Federated Farmers vice president Andrew Reymer said he was not surprised to hear farmer confidence was at rock bottom but “we will see it start to turn”.

Confidence hits new low

Erina Wehi-Barton is excited about the prospects of a growth in waka ama involvement following a record entry of King Country paddlers competing in the national champs at Lake Karāpiro this week.

Nine teams from the Maniapoto branch of the Aratika Water Sports Club club – up from three last year – were lakeside.

“It’s the intensity now. All the kids want to paddle,” said Wehi-Barton whose iwi affiliations are Ngāti Rereahu - Maniapoto - Waikato - Rarua - Tūwharetoa - Te Atiawa.

The club has 56 paddlers with the youngest – Parakau Mulligan-Green, 6, of Te Kūiti – making his debut on Sunday after a pōwhiri from Ngāti Korokī Kahukura and Ngāti Hauā iwi.

The lack of suitable training facilities in Te Kūiti does not hamper members – they head west to Awakino instead and rely on iwi and whānau for ongoing support.

Last year the younger members of the club went to Rarotonga in the Cook Islands to compete and came home with six gold, three silver and six bronze medals.

“Waka ama caters for the entire whānau – from babies, siblings, kaumatua, everyone,” said Wehi-Barton, a mātauranga (traditional) researcher who has spent the last 10 years establishing rangatahi/whānau initiatives and observing the behaviours of awa and tuna.

Her doctorate studies are focusing on the economic benefits of using her knowledge of the moon phases and soil for the betterment of her people.

Meanwhile a woman described as the “queen of waka ama” was honoured during an emotional pōwhiri at the start of the week-long sprint championships at Lake Karāpiro on Sunday.

Members of Kiwi Campbell’s whānau including people from Waipā, Waikato and King Country were present as several speakers recalled the Gisborne woman’s contribution to the sport.

Campbell, 43, a competitor, coach and administrator from the Horouta Waka Hoe Club - and a regular visitor to Karāpiro - died last November.

Four years ago, the mother of two boys Mairangi and Maia, and wife of Bruce Campbell, was inducted into Waka Ama New Zealand’s virtual hall of fame for her outstanding contribution to the sport.

With a spine-tingling call, fellow club member Cynthia Sidney led the visiting teams towards Ngāti Korokī Kahukura and Ngāti Hauā iwi, waka ama officials and local competitors.

Just over two hours later, the Tamariki pools got underway highlighting the phenomenal growth of waka ama since Mareikura, the first club in New Zealand, was established in Gisborne in 1985 followed five years later by the first national outrigger canoe paddling champs at Karāpiro.

A record 3868 competitors and twice as many spectators are at the lake all week and more than 1400 of them are aged 13 years and under.

Competitors have come from throughout New Zealand with internationals from Fiji, Tonga, Cook Islands, United Kingdom and Australia.

Campbell’s aunty Liz Reedy of Hamilton said her niece’s death came as a shock to her whānau. Seeing how highly people involved in the sport valued her involvement was emotional, she said.

Campbell had recently joined the Waka Ama board adding to her significant achievements competing on the water and coaching off it.

'All the kids want to paddle'

Cambridge harness racing legend Nicky Chilcott is on the cusp of another personal milestone.

The 53-year-old veteran trainer needs one driving win to notch up 700 wins in the sulky, cementing her place as the country’s second best female driver.

She brought up 699 last week at the Cambridge Raceway in race three driving favourite Showtym Girl and had a chance to bring up the milestone in race eight behind Idolou but was well beaten.

Chilcott doesn’t have a drive tomorrow night (Friday) at her home track on Cambridge Raceway, but will be in action at Otaki next week.

The 700 total will be 121 short of South Island-based Samantha Ottley’s mark and well behind the only drivers to have more than 3000 career wins – Te Awamutu’s Tony Herlihy (3693), Maurice McKendry (3410) and Ricky May (3146).

“To be honest I’m not a numbers’ person,” said Chilcott. “I’m pretty proud of the achievement though.”

From 7902 starts since her first win behind Local Choice at Auckland on July 2, 1993, she has notched up 699 wins, 760 seconds and 746 third placings for stake money of $5.342 million.

She is also in the exclusive 500 trainers’ club with 558 wins from 4945 starts.

Chilcott doubts she will get to 800 driving wins but reckons she still has another 10-15 years in the sulky ahead of her mostly driving the horses she trains.

“I’m starting to slow down, and I don’t freelance anymore. I used to actively ring around for drives, but I don’t anymore.”

She has 22 horses in her White Star Stables next to the Cambridge Raceway and Village Rebel is arguably the best in what she describes as a “bread and butter” crop.

“I don’t have stars as such but we’re ticking away nicely.”

One of them is Messenger Buoy who won an emotional race on December 19 driven by Leah Hibell. Ten days earlier, part owner Alan Messenger of Taranaki died and his fellow owners – wife Lyn and daughter Maree – were on hand to see the win.

Chilcott has one horse entered tomorrow night – Blazing Louie in race seven – but Andre Poutama usually drives the six year old gelding.

Meetings on the grass in Otaki on Sunday and Tuesday loom as the likely opportunities for Chilcott to bring up the milestone.

It is one her favourite tracks and she is taking down a team of 10 to compete at its first full race meeting since the pandemic.

“I’ve had some good results there over the years so that will be a good place to do it,” said Chilcott.

Chilcott nears 700

Bowlers have raised $1100 for Te Awamutu’s Riding for the Disabled organisation.

Kihikihi Bowling Club’s latest tournament – won by a Te Kūiti combination - was a departure from the norm, in that all proceeds from the day were donated.

Representatives from the RDA attended the prize giving and co-ordinator Rosalie Rea spoke about the role of the riding for the disabled in the community.

The organisation also has a branch in Ōtorohanga which will be fundraising at the Artbeat even in town this weekend. Bowlers also came to the party with individual donations – and the return of prize money into the pool.

The tournament attracted a bowlers from throughout the Waikato and King Country and the results indicated the level of competition out on the green with only one team managing four wins from four and three finishing with three wins and a draw.

The winners were the Te Kuiti team of Kevin Higgins (skip), Steve Woods and Peter Lange. Second place went to a Kihikihi team of Owen Johnston (skip), Irving Garrett and Don Millin. Cambridge Central’s Robbie Davidson (skip), Ron Greenwood and Craig Pilkington were third.

Bowlers ride to the rescue

Triple world-title holder axeman Jack Jordan is in France chasing one title that has eluded his swing – the World Championship.

Taumarunui’s Jordan achieved the sport’s first-ever three-peat last year winning the World Trophy – held annually in Europe and described as the 20/20 cricket of international wood chopping.

Now in Toulouse, France, this weekend Jordan is trying to knock off the elusive World Championship - a more traditional, long-form format across six different wood-chopping and sawing disciplines against a 12 strong international field.

“Perhaps I’ll have a bit of a target on my back coming off my three-peat success, but I’m very well prepared this year and will be giving it a bloody good crack to bring that World Championship title back to Kirikau,” he said.

Kirikau, south west of Taumarunui, is where Jordan 28, runs the family sheep and beef farm.

Jordan eyes world championship

One of the heroes of King Country’s dramatic Lochore Cup win over West Coast last month has his fingers crossed about his left knee.

Zac Wickham-Darlington’s biggest game ended early on October 20 as he twisted the knee going into a first half tackle – and it looked as though the injury could be serious.

But Wickham-Darlington is hoping to get word soon that he faces recovery spell of just six weeks – meaning a “big off season rehab” which sees him ready for the start of next season.

The injury cost Wickham-Darlington a chance of Heartland XV selection – and he has set that as a target for 2025.

“It wasn’t the tackle that actually did the damage - I did a left foot step immediately before going into the tackle, so it was just off a side step,” he explained.

The two West Coast players heard him cry out in pain and immediately got off him, something he acknowledged.

“We’ve always had a good relationship with those fellas - probably one of the most respectful teams we’ve come up against, year after year,” he said.

Wickham-Darlington spent the rest of the game in a knee brace on the sideline as the Rams took the cup in extra time 46-44.

He made it to the after match, where it was found the Lochore Cup topped out with the beer from three stubbies.

“I was walking at the after match. I was still walking around for the most part of it. It was an awesome night, a lot of the boys stayed together later and went back to one of boys houses to carry on.”

Wickham-Darlington moved from Te Kūiti to Hamilton about three years ago – but continues to play for Bush in the King Country club competition.

He is a social worker in Hamilton working with young offenders, and is often in court for them. He also assists with their rehabilitation – everything from helping them into work to assisting them obtain their driving licences.

His season with King Country came to an abrupt end – and had a hiccough in between.

Wife Shelley – Shelz - gave birth to their daughter Brisbyn in mid-September and for three weeks beforehand the midwife was worried baby could come at any minute.

“It affected my away trips, basically two Wickhgames out… I couldn’t play because I was worried if I left I would miss out.”

Wickham-Darlington learned his rugby at Hamilton Boys High School and New Plymouth Boys High.

The family had moved back to Te Kūiti when he accepted a rugby scholarship at New Plymouth. It was a timely offer because it saved his parents the issue of juggling transport for schooling in Hamilton.

In 2015, in Year 10, Darlington was playing for New Plymouth Boys High, then continued his education at Hamilton Boys High. His plans for next season are to continue wearing the Bush colours, get back into the King Country team “and make a good solid effort to get into that NZ Heartland team next year.” Teammates Kristian Gent-Standen and Kaleb Foote represented the province in this season’s team.

Zac plans summer rehab

By Andy McGechan
New Zealand made its debut appearance this season at the women’s section of the International Six Days Enduro, held in Spain, and impressed many at this huge gathering of the motorcycling world elite.
The three-rider New Zealand women’s contingent that battled in the Women’s World Trophy (WWT) teams’ class – Ngaroma’s Rachael Archer (Kawasaki) joined by Tapanui’s Kylie Dorr (Beta) and Opunake’s Taylar Rampton (Husqvarna) – managed a few jaw-dropping results on their way to finishing 10th overall in their first appearance at this massive annual dirt-biking marathon.
Archer was the stand-out for the New Zealanders. She finished overall runner-up among the women, just under three minutes behind United States team rider Brandy Richards after an incredible six days of brutal racing in the Galicia region, on the Atlantic coastline in the north-western of Spain.
Archer managed to tap into any left-over reserves of energy to significantly cut her deficit to Richards on the final day, which featured a motocross, an aspect of off-road motorcycle racing that is considered faster but arguably less technical.
The rider who finished the enduro third overall in the women’s rankings was Australia’s Jessica Gardiner, ending the event just a little under five minutes behind the hard-charging Archer.
Archer was not only overall runner-up in the individual standings for the women, but also she wound up an astonishing 54th overall (when ranked alongside the men. More than 570 riders in total were at the event.
“It felt good to win a special test (a tightly timed sprint section) at this event,” said Archer. “I felt like I rode decent and didn’t crash, so put in a solid ride.
“I didn’t really set any goals or expectations for myself coming into the week. I just wanted to learn and gain as much experience as I could. I feel like I’ve done that and also shown some speed.”
Dorr was meanwhile classified 28th individual in the WWT class (and also finished 129th overall alongside the men). Rampton dropped out after day five with an injury, but was still credited with finishing 30th overall among the women.
“New Zealand team manager Justin Stevenson said it was “not the dream result for Team New Zealand - but close”.
Team France won the premier World Trophy (WT) class ahead of the United States and Spain. In the Junior World Trophy (JWT) class, Team Sweden won ahead of France and the United States.
There was no Kiwi men’s team entered this season.

Archer shows the enduro way

Ōtorohanga netball was celebrating the century of netball in New Zealand on Friday, but unlike the parent body’s date 1924 beginning, Ōtorohanga netball’s origins are unknown.

“We lost our minutes in the ’58 flood,” Otorohanga netball president Dorothy Carr said.

They’ve since obtained some records from 1954, which may give the club a better look at its history, Dorothy said.

As its part in honouring 100 years of netball in New Zealand, the Ōtorohanga Netball Centre hosted a heartwarming celebration last Friday.

The event brought together past and present members of the Ōtorohanga netball community, giving everyone the opportunity to reminisce, reconnect, and celebrate the legacy of netball in their lives, Dorothy said.

Among the attendees were three families, each with three generations present — a testament to the enduring passion for the sport passed down through the years, she said.

A highlight of the afternoon was a game of walking netball, which symbolised the inclusiveness and longevity of the game. Players ranged in age from 13 to 85, creating a powerful image of how netball continued to unite and engage players of all ages.

Celebrations moved to the Ōtorohanga Club in the evening, where four Service Awards were presented in recognition of significant contributions to the netball community. As part of the event, the Honours Boards, dating back to 1959, were unveiled, serving as a visual reminder of the people who have shaped and supported Ōtorohanga netball over the years.

“We have now got the honours boards up to date going back to 1958 - of all our patrons presidents, treasurers, umpires co-ordinators. So we have done a bit of mahe on that,” Dorothy said.

Some service awards were presented and next year they will start doing life memberships.

“You know how you have some of those things that you need to do every year and you kind of push that out because you are busy running competitions… this has just given us an opportunity to tidy those things up.”

She said event was a powerful reminder of the deep sense of camaraderie and connection netball fosters in the community. It highlighted the role the sport plays in creating lasting memories, bringing whānau together, and building a bridge between the past and the future.

The timing of the celebration felt particularly poignant, as just two days later, the Silver Ferns secured a thrilling victory over Australia, a fitting capstone to a weekend of honouring netball’s proud legacy in New Zealand. Netball was introduced to New Zealand as ‘women’s basketball’ in 1906 – a nine-a-side game played on grass, with baskets tied to posts at either end of the court.

It was introduced by Rev J C Jamieson who started up basketball teams from his bible classes.

The first games were played on a paddock and the teams were nine-a-side.
The rules allowed three bounces, and throws from one end of the field to the other.
Baskets were used for goals and after each goal, the ball had to be tipped out to restart play.

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Belated honour for Trevor

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King Country News, King Country Farmer and the King Country App is independently owned published by Good Local Media Ltd – also publishers of the Te Awamutu News, Cambridge News and Waikato Business News.