a small town in the Selwyn district of Canterbury Photo / SuppliedA grand estate on the outskirts of Christchurch that has been hidden behind grand electric gates for 14 years is up for grabs and sparking the interest of locals Harcourts salesperson Jack Milligan said he had sold many in Prebbleton but the Aberdeen Road home was the nicest he had encountered in the area The “one-of-a-kind house” was also well-known among locals Milligan said the owners bought the 1530sqm section and built a grand property after relocating from overseas It’s not your typical house you would list every day,” he said “Everything has been done properly and there hasn’t been a dollar spared.” - Paul Henry and Diane Foreman selling their mansion - 'you'll have to be rich' - Revealed: The renovations that can add $400,000 to the value of a home - The trophy home where you can hunt wild deer from the deck - ‘I shot three in one night’ The house is wrapped in Oamaru stone and the main four-bedroom three-bathroom home has chandeliers hanging from the ceilings and gas fireplaces in several rooms while the separate cottage has three bathrooms and one bathroom There is also a pavilion with its own kitchen two hangars that have been used for storage and a gym No expense has been spared on the property which has multiple chandeliers hanging from the ceilings The estate comprises the main house and a cute three-bedroom cottage The couple once even had a live-in gardener who kept the grounds immaculate “It’s probably the most beautifully landscaped houses I’ve ever seen The landscaping is second to none – you can’t get much better than that Just every little detail from the garden to around to the cottage is Milligan said Prebbleton was only 12 minutes from Christchurch and would suit a family looking for a lifestyle property or a farmer looking to downsize which can only be viewed by appointment only and has an RV of $2.42m is being sold by deadline closing October 23 Milligan declined to give a price indication but said it could “potentially” be a record for the area The most expensive property to sell in Prebbleton in the last four years was a 4620sqm lifestyle property on Penberley Road that sold for $3.3 million in November 2023 - 117 Aberdeen Road, in Prebbleton, is to be sold by deadline, closing October 23 Get ready Prebbleton – we’re about to paint the town Red and Black The Farah Palmer Cup presented by Bunnings Warehouse will soon be hosted at Prebbleton Domain on 14 September when Canterbury play Hawke’s Bay After the success of taking NPC to North Canterbury the last two seasons CRFU are very excited to bring an FPC game to another local ground is looking forwards to showcasing Canterbury women’s rugby at a local ground “club rugby is the roots from where we have all developed” she said “it’s super important to be able to involve our local clubs and hopefully inspire the younger generation of girls and boys by showing them the pathways that are available” let the kids loose at the Kids Fun Zone and get involved in the FPC coming to Ellesmere Grab your tickets for just $10 from Ticketek info@crfu.co.nz(03) 379 8300 About Canterbury RugbyTerms of UsePrivacy PolicyHealth & Safety You are not permitted to download, save or email this image. Visit image gallery to purchase the image A police spokesperson said the crash was reported about 10.30am on Tuesday It is understood Birches Rd has been closed following the crash a rapid response vehicle and an operations manager to the crash scene Chrislynchmedia.com  reported one person was trapped in a vehicle but no one was seriously injured in the crash When John and Wendy Hillary first walked past the 1864 home on Tosswill Rd they have stripped the home back to its skin and bones to rebuild it into a modern classic in England and arrived in Christchurch in 2011 they were trying to decide whether to settle in Napier or Christchurch “We chose Christchurch because it was more populated.”  they were greeted by a city in ruins after the February 22 they were living in a caravan at the South Brighton Holiday Park “It was like we were in a warzone – there were still soldiers on the streets,” Wendy said John got a job with Fletcher Building as a project manager assisting with the rebuilds of damaged homes Wendy got a job in the Koru Lounge with Air New Zealand After living in several rental properties in Christchurch the couple purchased their Prebbleton house in 2014 The electric bill was unbelievable,” John said Said Wendy: “We were just heating the street because it was just going out the windows and out of the walls If the wind was blowing you could see the curtains lifting.” While in Wellington they rented out the home “When we came back we thought we’d do a renovation so we started removing all the linings and realised there was a really badly damaged chimney so I got in touch with EQC (now NHC) and it turned out it was earthquake damage that was missed.” The couple tried to apply for the on-sold programme which would help pay for the repairs which had been missed but after about three years of trying for approval “We were left with an uninsurable property and did not have many options so we decided to throw our life savings behind it,” John said the house was listed as a heritage building which added further red tape to the building consent process they got the required consent and began by raising the house to replace the original stone foundations with modern timber and concrete piles Wendy said in high winds you could feel the house move around on its old foundations “The house feels so good compared to what was.” work has started on removing walls to make the downstairs kitchen as well as adding new treated timber framing and double glazing retrofitted to the original window frames the interior will be a mix of modern and heritage features Part of the renovation includes rebuilding a lean-to James and Ann Prebble arrived in New Zealand in 1840 with five of James’ children from his first marriage and an infant son born during the voyage James’ son William began using 5000 acres of vacant land near what would become Prebbleton James’ younger brother Edward bought 50 acres nearby The Prebble family was actively involved in the development of the township including helping to build the first church with Darfield defeating Prebbleton in the dying moments 27-26 to secure their maiden title It was a game that had everything out at Ellesmere Finals Day with Darfield going undefeated in the Luisetti Seeds Ellesmere Division 1 to secure the club’s first ever Coleman Shield success with the Ducks trailing throughout the match and needing a try and the ensuing conversion in the final moments to get them over the line It was Prebbleton who had the better of the early running earning an early 17-0 lead after just 12 minutes A Darfield fightback saw the Penguins find themselves up 20-13 at the half time break before a Darfield try levelled the scores at 20-all after 50 minutes It then went tit-for-tat for the remainder of the game with Prebbleton leading 26-20 with a minute to go who ran hard over the line to give Darfield the opportunity to snatch victory at the death with the successful conversion giving the club their first lead of the match and also break those many years of hoodoo As the top two teams in the Luisetti Seeds Ellesmere Division 1 competition Waihora and Prebbleton will have the chance to meet for the final time this season with the Coleman Shield the prized possession for the victor Waihora will be hoping it will be third times a charm on home turf with Ellesmere Senior Finals to be held at Rhodes Park in Tai Tapu “It’s exciting to have the opportunity to play a home final.” said Waihora Head Coach Ross Soper “We broke it down at the start of the season and the Coleman Shield was our priority To make the final is the first goal achieved and to have the luxury of having it at home is great from the home support to the familiarity of the ground will hopefully be a good bonus for us Prebbleton are a really good team so we just need to knuckle down and play good footy.” said Soper “We’ve got a bit of experience from the last few times we have been in the finals but it’s been great this year to see the progression of our club and to see eight of our Colts players from last year stepping up to be a key part of the culture we’re growing here at Waihora.” Prebbleton have already experienced finals rugby this season with a trip to the Luisetti Seeds Combined Country Final and will be looking to go one better in the search for the club’s first Coleman Shield since 1974 Prebbleton captain Tom Brand talked to the excitement amongst the Prebbleton side “We’re really excited to be back in the final The end goal we set at the start of the season in pre-season focused on the Coleman so we’re pretty keen to tick it off this year.” said Brand “We’ve gained some good experience from our past few finals We haven’t done a lot wrong in either performance but it’s slipped away so Saturday will be about putting our heads down and realising that those little moments mean a lot in the finals.” Prebbleton will feature in almost every final on the day with the club developing a great environment and culture that has shown with results on the field too “The club’s been tracking well over the last few years I think everyone that plays out at Preb just enjoys it which helps with the keeping good numbers and people around.” Brand said Hayden Cook will referee his first Coleman Shield Final with Rob Goodman and Sam O’Reilly in support Andrew Brosnahan and Daryl Sullivan will act as sub controllers has returned to Prebbleton after two weeks in England with the George Cowie Foundation in partnership with Premier League and Women’s Super League club West Ham United She was one of 50 youngsters who spent time under the eye of coaches at West Ham and other clubs the daughter of Prebbleton FC president Shannon Gilmore was selected after excelling at similar camps hosted first in Christchurch It was really fun getting to know all the other people as well Gilmore said Everley had more than held her own at the camp "They say they can teach anything that you haven’t got “They had to be available from 7am every day until 11pm “They had a couple of days off where we did a bit of sightseeing and went to a couple of those EPL and WSL games.” The family was also looking into where they could go to further Everley’s football development “There’s not a huge amount of opportunities with pathways for kids in Christchurch of that age group so we could be assessing her options moving forward,” said Gilmore “There’s also a lot of good opportunities in Australia "A lot of the people who were on the camp were Aussies or Kiwi-born Aussies and some of the learnings from talking to those guys was that the opportunities over there are pretty good and she’s on a real high from taking that trip.” North Canterbury raising the Tane Norton Trophy in 2023 with five teams battling for the Tane Norton Trophy This year marks the first season Canterbury Pasifika are in the running for the prestigous trophy The revised format for the Tane Norton Trophy is set to provide strong competition across Canterbury’s senior men’s rugby representative program The competition will also allow for better player comparisons and a clear pathway to the Canterbury B’s That side will be selected at the culmination of the Tane Norton Trophy to take on Otago Wellington & Tasman throughout September The first games are taking place Saturday 3rd August with Canterbury Pasifika going up against Ellesmere in Dunsandel and North Canterbury versing Waitaha at Tane Norton Park Next week Canterbury Pasifika and Waitaha will go head to head in this years first Double Header at Apollo Stadium prior to round one of the Bunnings Warehouse NPC when Canterbury will play Northland. The draw for the Tane Norton Trophy can be found here Congratulations to all players who have been named in their squads The Bridge owners Murray and Melissa Smith say it could take that time to repair and get through consent processes for the Prebbleton venue Oily tea towels which  spontaneously combusted in an area near the eatery’s kitchen caused the damaging blaze about 5am last Wednesday The fire did not spread into the main bar and eating area Fire and Emergency NZ specialist fire investigator Mitchell Jeffery said there is a risk of fires occurring from spontaneous ignition when fabrics have been contaminated with oils or grease prior to washing which can be common in commercial laundries “The cause of the fire was determined to be spontaneous combustion of oily tea towels Ignition happens because of the slow oxidation of the oil or fat residues in the fabric It typically takes a long time before ignition occurs “When washing rags or other items that have been exposed to oils: They should have a hot wash with detergent be allowed to dry thoroughly and ensure that they have returned to normal temperature after being dried before being folded or put away.” It had traded as Armadillos before closing in 2022 They renovated it and restored its name to The Bridge she initially thought it was about the Tai Tapu Hotel “I thought it was The Tap because we’ve had a couple of false alarms recently They thanked the community for their support Selwyn residents won’t have to go far to see Provincial Rugby up close in 2024 Canterbury today announced that their Bunnings Warehouse NPC preseason against Otago will be held at Foster Park in Rolleston while the final home game of the Farah Palmer Cup against Hawkes Bay is heading to Prebbleton “Our Rugby Community is a vital part of our DNA; they’re of utmost importance to us emphasised Canterbury Rugby CEO Tony Smail; so and where they play their rugby is a key part of who we are and what we do.” The two matches to be played in Selwyn directly result from the resounding success of Canterbury's first-ever NPC match played outside of Christchurch last year held in Rangiora as part of the annual Southbridge Shield contest between North Canterbury and Ellesmere saw Canterbury emerge victorious over Taranaki This success paves the way for matches in Selwyn promising an exciting rugby season for the community “There are lots of things that go into making a day like that successful from broadcast to facilities and transport but with nearly 7,000 people attending the day in Rangiora I’m sure Selwyn residents will come out in force to support these two games too,” Smail added  Ellesmere Rugby Sub Union President Chris Thornley agrees “Our clubs work tirelessly to deliver quality rugby experiences for our community so to be able to work with Canterbury Rugby to bring these games to Ellesmere is a great reward for the two clubs and everyone that enjoys the game in our region.” “It’s fantastic to be able to bring these two games to Selwyn for our passionate sports community Sports and events bring our community together so to have the opportunity to host such prestigious sporting events like this is a real win It’s great to see more and more sports choosing Selwyn and recognizing the excellent facilities and opportunities we have We look forward to seeing many people there and enjoying these games.”  Sam Broughton  Rolleston Club President Nicky Ruki said “hosting a high level representative game will be a first for the Club and our Community With the growth in population in Selwyn and in particular Rolleston we’re incredibly excited to support this event whilst showcasing our facilities.” “It’s going to be a fantastic day here at Prebbleton We’ve worked hard to develop a women's program which is a great reward for all those who have contributed to that.” Jeromy Knowler The Bunnings Warehouse NPC pre-season match against Otago at Foster Park is scheduled to kick off at 2:05 on Friday The Farah Palmer Cup clash against Hawkes Bay on September 14 also gets underway at 2:05 and will be broadcast on Sky Sport Memberships to attend all NPC and FPC home games are on sale now through Ticketek and include the exclusive retro members jersey The Luisetti Combined Country Final Cup will make its return to the Glenmark-Cheviots trophy cabinet after beating Prebbleton in the final last Saturday 41-27 “It was an awesome weekend to be a part of it’s always a privilege to be able to pull on a Glenmark-Cheviot Jersey let alone pull one on for a final“ said captain Andrew Hull and put down some good try’s.” Glenmark-Cheviot are an experienced side with a number of the lads having played over 50 or even 100 games in blue With the weather onside it was an awesome day out for club footy the team wished to thank all those who made the Luisetti Competition happen Along with the tavern on the corner of Springs and Toswill Rds a 2044m2 block of land next to the pub is also up for sale A medical centre owned by Prebbleton Health is confirmed for the land on the Springs Rd side of the tavern “Expressions of interest are being sought for the remaining two lots on the site including the tavern,” they said Construction of the medical centre is expected to start later this year The Gilmores said they feel bittersweet about retirement age and health have also played a part in the decision “The business has been operating well through a time when hospo has been challenging "We still have our fair share of a competitive market which is exciting “We will miss the people but look forward to more time with family,” they said “We started with a three-year plan but that all changed when the business took off and a family came along Their son Shannon has been the general manager for 25 years after he came in to help during the university holidays and never left the tavern has supported the Prebbleton Football Club which Shannon has been the president of since its inception The tavern has been operating since Edward Prebble built his shop on the site in the 1860s and when the liquor part of his business became the most profitable Since then it has seen various forms with the Gilmores adding extensions The pub is up for sale at the same time as Lincoln’s Famous Grouse Hotel which may be changing ownership The Lincoln Club is considering an offer to sell the business Birchs Village Ltd is appealing to the Environment Court for its 37 ha 400 home subdivision on Birchs Rd to be allowed The plan was rejected in a private plan change (PC79) due to the land being highly productive and Prebbleton not needing any more capacity For the subdivision to be built the land will need to be rezoned from rural to residential Opposing the appeal are Birchs Rd residents John and Susan Sheaf “The land is not connected to the Prebbleton village If the land was developed to housing it would create a peninsula to Prebbleton village,” the Sheafs said in their letter to the Environment Court “The plan change hearing PC79 clearly concluded that there is sufficient section available within Prebbleton for at least the next 20 years The Frasers echoed similar comments in their letter to the court Birchs Village argues the site is strategically located across the road from Kakaha Park and it would bring the new reserve into the township “Providing land for future residential use increases housing resources leading to an expanded social and economic base for the strategically located rural township Servicing connections currently exist north along Birchs Road allowing for extension to existing infrastructure and services,” a Birchs Village spokesperson said in its appeal to the Environment Court the nationwide knockout competition which was won last year by Christchurch United Prebbleton will be taking on Halswell United in the preliminary round at Kakaha Park on Monday night – most likely the toughest opponents they could have drawn But while Prebbleton may be wearing the club’s green kits on the scorecard they will be High School Old Boys President Shannon Gilmore said Mainland Football’s policy of ‘no new clubs’ has forced them to come to an agreement with HSOB Prebbleton players register with them and compete under their banner but form their own teams and play in their own kits Since joining Mainland’s competitions more than 10 years ago Prebbleton have played under the banners of Hornby United and Christchurch United and are now with HSOB But the team to take the field on Monday will be wholly comprised of Prebbleton players – Gilmore said HSOB had no players interested in entering Prebbleton aren’t the only team from the region in the Chatham Cup with Southern League side Selwyn United receiving a bye and entering at the next stage First-tier Southern League clubs don’t compete in the preliminary round Halswell are second in the Premiership (second-tier) while Prebbleton compete in division four Gilmore said it was a great opportunity for the club “It’s good for the juniors to see the seniors having a go at something prestigious and we’d hope to have a go next year as well and make it a regular fixture for the club.” who was one of the founding members of the club 20 years ago said it was a “dream” to be in the Chatham Cup “To have Prebbleton come this far and be playing under lights at Kakaha We’ve got more club members than we’ve ever had this year – I think we’ve grown almost 30 per cent who played in the Chatham Cup for HSOB in the 1990s it’s just an occasion to go out there and have another game of footy and do it under lights against quality opposition “We’re under no illusion that they’re five divisions higher than us Ward said the result was irrelevant to him “We just want to go out there and enjoy ourselves Antique-style street lights have recently been replaced with LED equivalents Resident Roger Sell said the lights should have been replaced with what was there “I would have thought you would have found a like-for-like LED version to replace them,” he said “It is a feature of your street when you move into it.” but they were much cheaper and more practical to install “I agree with them (the residents) they are a style crime They look absurd on the decorative poles that were put there we are staring a double-digit rate increase in the face and anything we can do to keep the rates down which is what people tell us they want us to do Lyall said the cost of upgrading the current antique style to LED was investigated “To put in the decorative lights it was three or four times more expensive than the standard lights,” Lyall said The original lights were installed by the developer of the subdivision with the responsibility now in the council’s hands to replace the ageing equipment infrastructure and property Murray England said it has been upgrading 9000 street lights across the district the council has been upgrading these streetlights to LEDs as part of a nationwide effort co-funded by NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi,” Washington said “Changing to LEDs reduces the cost to our ratepayers and helps improve our carbon footprint give less light pollution and have the ability for us to add remote connection so we can turn them up The council is in the final stages of the project changing the last of its 5000 non-LED lights to new standard LED lights over this year The budget for the district for the project is $4,885,000 of which Waka Kotahi has provided $3,357,146 in co-funding When Simon Fitzgerald took up the director of rugby role at Prebbleton in September last year he didn’t expect to be coaching the club’s top side too But the supportive environment at Prebbleton made him want to coach again and he capped off his first season with the club by leading the division 1 team to their first Coleman Shield win since 1974 “But it was the team all delivering at a high level which allowed me to scope and manage this team,” he said He has previously coached overseas in Canada it has made me continue to want to coach again.” Club president Jeromy Knowler said they always intended for Fitzgerald to lead the division 1 side and he eventually agreed after a month or two Knowler said their training runs had been a “switch-up” to previous years under Fitzgerald’s expertise “He’s bought a lot of change within the senior group,” he said “The big thing is that he’s brought professionalism “Video analysis is really broken down for the players and the trainings are really specific.” 2 and colts sides often trained together this season The colts triumphed over Waihora to take out the Ellesmere title while the division 2 side narrowly missed out on the final after winning nine of their 10 round robin games Prebbleton life member and former division 1 head coach Derek Todd first introduced the combined trainings This season the teams also had shared themes throughout the year and met for Thursday dinners which Fitzgerald said “gave a good sense of belonging” Prebbleton’s women’s team have had a successful year too winning the Metro premier reserve final against High School Old Boys before beating Springston in the Ellesmere final Their success trickled down to the junior ranks too with new Canterbury women’s coach Jimmy Sinclair hosting workshops for up-and-coming coaches it’s about increasing participation and not losing sight of what we’re here for.” A large number of players eligible for colts were playing for the division 1 side this year which Fitzgerald said will be integral for the club’s future “People said I was handing out (debut) ties like confetti “They’ve had a taste of success as well this year “The players really enjoyed training as a bigger group and everyone felt like that had an equal opportunity,” Fitzgerald said Knowler said their success had been bubbling away for the last few years with Prebbleton being beaten in both the 2021 and 2022 Coleman Shield finals we’ve been really competitive and showing signs of promise,” he said Fitzgerald said drawing in new young players is important for the future of the club “We’ve all got a shared vision on making it a welcoming place,” he said “We’re not going to just focus on winning more titles Prebbleton will be chasing their first shield since 1974 after being beaten in the last two finals – losing by a point to Darfield last year Prebbleton avenged that loss  with a 24-6 win over Darfield in their semi-final on Saturday Prebbleton have the psychological edge over Waihora after beating them twice this season But winning finals has been Prebbleton’s Achilles’ heel they also lost the 2021 Coleman Shield final to Southbridge They also lost the Luisetti Seeds Combined Country final to Ashburton Celtic 19-7 last month But Prebbleton head coach Simon Fitzgerald said since that loss his team have improved “We didn’t execute our game plan in the combined final earlier this year but we have really improved in our kicking game each week since then to the point that it’s now one of our main strengths,” he said “We’re looking forward to implementing it this time round as we aim to go one better.” Prebbleton scored an unanswered 24 points against Darfield to progress to the final despite being 6-0 down in the early stages of the first half “We were playing into a strong wind in the first half and gave up some field position early,” Fitzgerald said “The conditions were horrendous last weekend certainly not the weather anyone wants to play rugby in “We played smart rugby in the right areas in the semi which we’ll need to do again this week,” Fitzgerald said Waihora finished second in the round robin stage due to the 27-13 loss to Prebbleton two weeks ago but sealed their final spot with a hard fought 16-15 win over Southbridge on Saturday Waihora had an opportunity to overcome Prebbleton in the dying minutes of the combined semi-final last month Waihora were able to hold on and claim the final spot in another nail-biter against Southbridge on Saturday With the two teams tied at 10-10 at halftime two Waihora penalties saw the team narrowly beat Southbridge who could only manage an uncoverted try in the second period The clash against Prebbleton will be Waihora’s first Coleman Shield final since 2020 Combined Country title and Murray Cooper Shield in a dream run which included winning 18 of their 20 games Selwyn edged out Timaru Boys’ to climb into eighth place on the Miles Toyota Premiership standings and qualify for the plate semi-finals this weekend Selwyn were able to hold off a second half fight-back from Timaru to take the win Billy Duncan made his debut off the bench for Selwyn in the clash Saturday’s result followed Selwyn’s 41-27 upset win over St Bede’s College who helped the combined team progress to the playoffs by beating Shirley Boys’ High 37-7 in the last round Selwyn will travel to St Andrew’s to take on the team they beat 31-24 in the first round of the premiership on May 13 Selwyn Schools’ head coach Tim Keery believes his team can “definitely” repeat their first round win on Saturday “Bring on the semi-final versus St Andrew’s Selwyn will be searching for their third consecutive win against St Andrew’s The winner will play either Christ’s or Marlborough Boys’ College next weekend This season has already been an improvement for Selwyn who finished 10th last year after their 42-14 loss to Christ’s in the bowl final Selwyn take on St Andrew’s at St Andrew’s College at 2.45pm on Saturday “A bit of a relief.” That was the short post-match answer Prebbleton coach Simon Fitzgerald gave after their convincing 37-3 win over Waihora in the Coleman Shield final earning them a reputation of being finals chokers But they put the moniker to rest in emphatic style at Rhodes Park on Saturday scoring four tries in their first Coleman Shield win in 49 years “It’s been building for a few years now,” Fitzgerald said “This club is built around a really positive culture and the result was a testament to that I’m really privileged to be a part of it.” A montage of the squad was quickly posted to the club’s Facebook page after the match signed off “from everyone’s favourite chokers.” Prebbleton’s emergence as an Ellesmere powerhouse was underlined with their colts the under-18s defeated Waihora 20-10 and the women downed Springston 45-18 Fitzgerald said the clubrooms were “buzzing” when his victorious side made it back to their Tosswill Rd headquarters Waihora were first on the scoreboard with an early penalty which would end up being the only points the Magpies could manage Prebbleton found the tryline on the last play of the first half Fitzgerald’s message to his team at halftime was “just hold on to the ball” “I felt like the score was close at halftime but we were on top,” he said Prebbleton halfback Robert Sporke was a “standout” in the game for Fitzgerald while Waihora halfback Jordan Stirling-Rowling set the tone for the second half after being given a yellow card Prebbleton were able to capitalise by scoring two more tries before a second yellow card was handed to Waihora second-five Brett Gillan for yet another tackle infringement The royal-blue pack of Prebbleton supporters could hardly contain their excitement when the Penguins dotted down again for their fourth try of the match First-five Ted Coleman capped off the game by slotting his seventh attempt at the posts to finish the final with 100 per cent accuracy It was Prebbleton’s third win against the Magpies this season – and undoubtedly the best Fitzgerald said Prebbleton’s kicking game had been a focus since losing the Luisetti Seeds Combined Country final 19-7 to Ashburton Celtic in June “Our kicking game was really good,” he said and the guys are really happy that what they had been doing at training has paid off “And a big credit to defence coach Ant Sharpe as we didn’t concede a try in the semi or final.” Fitzgerald already has a hunger to “do the double” and claim the Coleman Shield and combined country trophies next year – a feat Prebbleton has never achieved “We believe we can do (the Coleman Shield) again,” he said “We really want to win the combined as well.” Waihora 20.• Under-16: Rolleston College 27 West Melton 10.• Under-14.5: Rolleston College 25 The Selwyn District Council has released a summary of submissions for Plan Change 68 as it calls for further submissions Thirty-eight submitters made 118 submission points of which 105 - or 89 per cent - were either opposed or opposed in part while five neither supported nor opposed it Residents’ concerns included loss of urban form and rural character pressure on infrastructure and increased traffic Environment Canterbury and the Ministry of Education opposed the application with the latter saying the development would increase traffic congestion and the applicant had not allocated a site for a school Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency neither supported nor opposed the application including that the 67ha was outside a projected infrastructure boundary meaning the developer should consider the need for more roads and public transport PC68 Suburban Estates Ltd and Cairnbrae Developments Ltd is the largest of three zone change applications before the district council for the Prebbleton area If all of the plan changes went ahead it would increase the size of Prebbleton by 80 per cent FreshChoice Prebbleton opened its doors to the public on Tuesday morning with a speech from Selwyn Mayor Sam Broughton and a ribbon-cutting ceremony The construction of the supermarket began in September but its opening was delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic general manager of Woolworths NZ which owns FreshChoice said the supermarket has taken six years from planning to construction "We started building and then we had Covid [It took] guts and determination," Sexton said Said Prebbleton Properties Ltd owner Grant Hatton: "The Prebbleton community they'll be very proud of what we opened today." "I think through Covid we saw the importance of neighbours looking after neighbours but also the centrality of supermarkets," he said It will cater for about 5000 people who live in Prebbleton This month marks the 150th anniversary of the consecration of the first All Saints’ Church in Prebbleton To help celebrate the milestone Prebbleton Heritage is providing a display at the church The church has a long history on the site at the corner of Springs and Blakes Rds beginning with the donation of the land itself for the purposes of building a church and providing a school to support a township The land provided the place where a chapel/school was built – a school during the week and a chapel on Sundays and fundraising began to build the first All Saints’ Church on the site with the foundation stone being laid in July 1871 with much pomp and ceremony Building progressed quickly and a year later services were being held there Although the interior was not entirely finished a service to consecrate the church was held on All Saints’ Day and it is this occasion which we are marking 150 years later marriages and burials which had taken place at the chapel/school and church prior to 1906 enabled the rebuild of the church to commence and 15 months later the second All Saints’ Church was opened for worship on July 11 The rebuild included the replacement of the organ one which is recognised by The NZ Organ Preservation Trust as being of significance and in 1913 a new peal of five bells was installed These were said to be the finest in Canterbury and are still being rung today There is much to tell of the history of this church the first church being designed by Benjamin Mountfort and the second by his son Cyril and our display gives a more detailed account of this history The public are invited to come and see for themselves both the church interior and the display on Saturday The churchyard has many stories of those buried there over the last 150+ years and there will be a cemetery tour available to join at 10.30am and 1.30pm on Saturday and 1.30pm on Sunday The tour will begin at the earliest headstone in the cemetery that of Lucy Kimber who died in 1869 aged just 23 We then move on to hear about William Hazlehurst roller skating rink and other of his entrepreneurial enterprises The “Prebbleton Sparrow Club” will feature along with the stories about more of the early residents of the area as well as hearing the amusing story about Isaac Harding’s missing pig The tour finishes at the grave of James Prebble who settled in the area and gave the town its name The local community market will also be on site (weather permitting) from noon to 4pm on Sunday This service is designed to get passengers from Lincoln and Prebbleton to the city as quickly as possible in the mornings and back home in the afternoons The route may vary depending on traffic conditions.  The route services the stops between Lincoln and Prebbleton as well as four locations in the city and does not stop anywhere else Please see the maps below for pick-up and drop-off locations.  public holidays or during the Christmas/NY period when the network runs to weekend timetables Download large format timetable Fire crews were called to a blaze in the roof of a suburban home in Prebbleton this morning Four fire appliances were used to fight the blaze which broke out inside the two-storey house on Guilder Drive about 10am on Wednesday The fire appeared to be contained to the roof of the house It was brought under control by about 11am A neighbour said no one was in the house at the time of the fire - By Geoff Sloan- Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air If each section was developed for three dwellings Developers at Prebbleton are proposing to push the township boundary out across rural land to the southwest with 527 new sections Birchs Village Ltd and Ngāi Tahu Property Development Ltd have increased the number of sections in the proposed 37ha subdivision on Birchs Rd from 400 as medium density provisions are introduced Selwyn District Council has accepted an application from the developers This means the application will now be notified for public submissions PC79 follows two other controversial Prebbleton plan changes being adopted by the district council The PC68 decision has been notified while the PC72 decision has been notified and appealed The township's current number of dwellings is about 1850 The number of dwellings would increase even further if the maximum of three homes per section was pursued as is allowed under the medium density provisions the district council does not believe developers will necessarily triple the number of dwellings in each of their plan change areas developers can introduce covenants to stop individual section owners doing this Strategy and policy planner Rachael Carruthers told district councillors at their meeting last week that the proposed medium density provisions created a challenge in determining the likely number of dwellings Carruthers said three units on each section would be unlikely to align with the market demand for Prebbleton does not mean that it will happen," Carruthers said This gave a theoretical yield of 2568 units "Given that the housing market in Prebbleton is primarily for detached family homes whilst such an outcome is theoretically enabled by the proposed zone in reality it is considered to be fanciful that such an intensive development will eventuate," she said the developers considered 527 lots to be a more realistic yield "If each of these lots were then further developed for three units although again this is considered to be extremely unlikely," Carruthers said Carruthers noted that PC79 was initially to stretch from Prebbleton to beyond Transpower's Christchurch-Twizel 220kV transmission line which runs along the rural outskirts of the township so it will no longer extend under the transmission corridor As district councillors moved to accept PC79 councillor Sophie McInnes referred to previous plan changes and TVNZ's Sunday current affairs programme that aired last week The programme covered the controversial PC69 Lincoln South development set against the backdrop of the loss of fertile soils nationwide McInnes asked if the Government's soon-to-be-released National Policy Statement – Highly Productive Land (NPS-HPL) would be able to be taken into account at the PC79 hearing even though the district council was accepting PC79 now before it had been released Carruthers said the hearing commissioner would take into account all relevant laws and rules at that time The Government has been accused of being too slow to release the NPS-HPL while the earlier National Policy Statement – Urban Development has opened the door to large-scale subdivisions across rural land The only high-reach ladder truck in Auckland broke down last night The large development near Stationmasters Way has also been given its official name - the Bupa Ashford Retirement Village and Care Home Head of property development Jamie Gibson said: “We’re currently working with our contractors to assess the impact of Covid-19 but early indications suggest stage one will be ready for sale by January next year,” he said The retirement village will have 101 villas a 56-bed care home and 16 serviced apartments “We’re looking forward to providing quality living and care to residents from the Prebbleton community.” The development is the second retirement village planned for Prebbleton with Summerset also planning one at the old Meadow Mushrooms site Data from the 2018 census shows the number of people in the district who are over 65-years-old increased by 36.2 per cent since 2013 The figures show 6975 residents are in the age group which makes up 11.3 per cent of the population The total population of the Prebbleton township increased by 62.8 per cent between 2013 and 2018 to 4515 residents Retirement villages are not the only new developments in Prebbleton The Fresh Choice supermarket on the corner of Tosswill Rd and Central Ave is expected to open soon Woolworths New Zealand Ltd and Prebbleton Properties Ltd are behind the project The supermarket will be 1300m2 and will open 7am-10pm Resource consent for the Summerset retirement village also planned for Prebbleton is expected to be lodged later this year Said Summerset general manager development Aaron Smail: “Over the last six months since settling the purchase of the Springs Rd land in December last year we have been in discussions with the district council and gathering information to inform the village design,” he said Smail said for construction they typically employ local sub-contractors under the management of Summerset’s construction site managers quality assurance advisors and site co-ordinators A start date for construction won’t be known until closer to the time of all consents being granted “The construction of a village of this size usually creates around 350 jobs and once the village is operational it would employ between 30 to 50 full-time equivalent staff across a number of roles including management roles Summerset Prebbleton will be home to around 370 people townhouses and an aged care centre incorporating a memory care centre specially for people living with dementia It will also include amenities such as a bowling green The Selwyn District Council will also consider raising the crossing Prebbleton resident Lauren Stevenson has welcomed the improvements Stevenson said she had previously been on the pedestrian crossing with her pre-schooler and baby when a car failed to stop as it approached “The car missed my daughter’s buggy by inches,” she said She had undertaken a poll on a Prebbleton Facebook community group 64 per cent had personally experienced a near miss at the crossing In one incident a boy had been hit by a car and was knocked to the ground She was thrilled to learn after the meeting about the improvements the district council was going to make These included next month installing flashing lights and removing shrubs which were up to more than 1m high and obscured children District council transportation asset delivery manager Mark Chamberlain said the council would also be happy to consider the suggestion of raising the crossing Funding would need to be agreed by the council and it would need acceptance from nearby residents while she also accepted the district council’s position that a median island would not work at the crossing Chamberlain said the council had already investigated this and found there was limited space due to a nearby intersection Stevenson was one of three Prebbleton residents who brought their concerns about the crossing as well as the Springs Rd/Hamptons Rd intersection to the district council at its meeting last week Stevenson was accompanied by Adam Gard’ner and Chris White The intersection is set to be upgraded to a roundabout in 2024/2025 and it may have its speed limit reduced from 60km/h to 50km/h new speed signs with the name of the village are planned for the approach to Prebbleton Gard’ner said the district council needed to also increase the length of the 60km/h zone around the intersection Chamberlain said speed signs needed to be installed where roadside development warranted the lower speed limit “It would make little sense to have a 50km/h speed limit starting where there is open paddocks,” Chamberlain said Selwyn District Council has recently summarised 46 submissions received for the Plan Change 72 rezoning application The period for further submissions closed last week would enable about 290 residential lots on 28ha south-west of the township Submitters’ concerns included increased traffic congestion on Birchs loss of existing vegetation and pressure on infrastructure Submitters included the Christchurch City Council the Ministry of Education and Waka Kotahi NZ Transport Agency The city council and ECan opposed the application Prebbleton School on Springs Rd about traffic congestion along the road as well as the need for an additional primary school Waka Kotahi neither supported nor opposed the application but expressed concerns about increased commuter traffic and limited planning for public transport Prebbleton Community Association neither supported nor opposed the application but expressed concerns about increased traffic It wanted to be consulted on any developments in the township “We do not want our community split into two halves by a major traffic corridor which will happen by the cumulative effect and acceptance of developments such as these,” association members said There are two other applications before the district council for the Prebbleton area while PC78 is yet to be accepted by the district council for public notification If all three Prebbleton plan change applications were approved in their entirety after the submission and hearings process This would be an increase of about 80 per cent on the district council’s estimate of about 1850 dwellings in the township Fire and Emergency NZ crews were called to the blaze at The Bridge on Springs Rd just after 5am on Wednesday Crews from the Lincoln and Wigram stations took about 40 minutes to bring the fire under control He believes the blaze was caused by a pile of tea towels that had been washed and dried we are looking at it being spontaneous combustion." Jeffery said the towels had been left in a bunch and the heat within them was enough to cause them to catch fire "They were sitting there bunched up retaining all that heat so there still a bit of oil residue in and eventually The Bridge co-owner Melissa Smith said the fire was devastating "We are devastated but it’s contained and thankfully nobody hurt," she said She said the fire damaged the kitchen and they should be able to reopen the bar and eatery soon The Bridge opened last year after new owners Melissa and Murray Smith took over the lease for the building in August Emergency services have been called to a crash involving a bus in Prebbleton The two-vehicle crash was reported about 1pm on Friday at the intersection of Robinsons and Birchs Rd The road has been temporarily blocked due to the crash There has not been any reports of serious injuries at this stage It is understood a vehicle may have run through a stop sign and clipped the bus A St John spokesperson said two ambulances had been called to the scene A Fire and Emergency NZ crew from Lincln has been sent to the scene The proposed masterplan for a multi-million dollar reserve development on Birchs Rd in Prebbleton will be presented to the district council today The plan features a fenced dog park with exercise equipment for your pet and a separate area for small dogs that will also be fenced A number of large grassed open spaces are also included that will cater for organised sports and informal use Sports field lighting would be available for the largest space public toilets and 400 car parks also feature in the proposal The masterplan will be presented to district councillors for approval at a meeting today public consultation was undertaken on a draft masterplan for the project and a total of 58 submissions were received District council major projects manager John Reid said the feedback received was positive and supportive of the plan “We appreciate the time and effort that has been put in to providing many thoughtful and overwhelmingly supportive comments “They have helped form the revised proposal and more will be included over time as we work on a more detailed layout of the park We look forward to keeping working with the community to create this exciting community space,” Mr Reid said Some of the key messages included in the submissions regarding what the community would like in the park were: The multi-purpose sport and recreation park will be built on a 22ha site on Birchs Rd The land was purchased by the district council in 2016 for $2.3 million and a further $8.98 million has been set aside for the project sold under the hammer for $465,000 after a competitive bidding war Photo / SuppliedA plaster townhouse in an ‘as is where is’ condition that one agent thought would be impossible to sell so they rejected the listing ended up sparking a bidding war at auction two-bathroom property on Winchester Street sold for $465,000 after a competitive auction on Thursday Harcourts Grenadier salesperson Lin Ma said she was “very surprised by the outcome” of Thursday’s auction because only cash buyers could purchase the plaster home in its current condition on a cross-lease section - Entry-level homes in Auckland $200,000 cheaper - 'sellers want to make deals' - ‘Sugar hit’: Bank slashes its mortgage rate by 1% for first-home buyers - ‘For $1m you’re getting the best house in town’: Fed-up buyers flocking to South Island Bidding for the Winchester Street property opened at $250,000 and crept up in mainly $10,000 bids It was announced on the market at $415,000 and eventually sold for $465,000 The new owner of the Winchester Street property plans to keep the current tenants who are paying $580 a week “There were three people who really wanted it Ma put the strong bidding down to the good location The home was surrounded by private schools and was also zoned for the sought-after Christchurch Girls’ High School The property attracted interest from both property traders and investors but was eventually won by an investor who was overseas and planned to continue renting it out to the existing tenants who were paying $580 a week “If people want to buy a rental – what can you buy for $400,000 with tenants who want to keep on renting It’s a good return and even if the whole lot was damaged again and also no insurance then you have the land value to cover you for that location – so I guess nothing to lose to be honest.” Ma said the owner had approached another agent first about listing the home “That agent didn’t want the job – they thought there’s no way we can sell cross-lease A stellar location was also the key selling point for another three-bedroom two-bathroom deceased estate in Ilam that was sold at auction within two weeks of hitting the market The brought-forward auction opened and was announced on the market at $980,000 but sold for $1.071 million after some fierce competition There were five buyers in the room and three who actively bid for it exceeded expectations when it sold under the hammer for $1.071m last week Harcourts Grenadier listing agent Julie Proctor said there was “fast and furious bidding” for the Tuirau Place do-up which offered the opportunity for people to get into the area and be in zone for some popular schools including Burnside High for supposedly under $1m The bidding “went on and on and on” and eventually came down to an older couple and young family both fighting for it The older couple eventually won the auction and were relocating from Akaroa to a smaller property in Christchurch “It was surprising because usually in that demographic they are not looking for a do-up and I think they are just looking to repaint and replace the bathrooms and kitchen but it’s still quite a significant update.” Proctor said the family member who she had been dealing with over the sale had been in tears on the phone when she learned of the result “She couldn’t believe it with the brought-forward figure at $980,000 so to get anything else was a bonus I’ve had quite a few auctions like this in the last couple of months.” Proctor said when two to three people fought for a property they determined the value of that property – not the agent “We can put all the facts and figures around it as much as we like but if people want it enough that’s where the power of auction really comes into play You will never know if you don’t try it first.” There were seven buyers all competing for a lifestyle section in Prebbleton which sold well over reserve for $1.33m Photo / Supplied There were more surprises at a Harcourts Gold auction when a lifestyle block in an exclusive subdivision in Prebbleton which is a 10-minute drive from Christchurch There were seven people vying for the empty 5000sqm section on Penberley Road it was announced on the market at $1.075m before the hammer finally dropped at $1.33m Harcourts listing agent Jack Milligan said it was the last remaining section in the sought-after subdivision which seemed to be attracting even more people since Prebbleton Village opened two years ago The bidders were all local buyers trying to get their hands on the property to build their next home “It’s just showing that Prebbleton is quite popular at the moment It’s sort of an up-and-coming suburb and it’s been quite undervalued out there for the last year or so I think – that’s my personal opinion.” - Click here to find more properties for sale in Christchurch Prebbleton is about to increase by another 820 sections after a successful plan change and would almost double in size if two other plan changes are approved Several residents live on one of the latest chunks of rural land that could go into housing – some support development while others are avidly opposed The Plan Change 79 rezoning application for 527 sections on 37ha on Birchs Rd recently received 36 submissions It comes as the Lincoln Voice residents’ group continues to fight Plan Change 69 in the Environment Court PC69 would see 1710 sections on 190ha of rural land Neighbours John and Sue Sheaf and Tom and Helen Fraser believe PC79 will not be successful after the National Policy Statement for Highly Productive Land came into effect last Monday The PC79 area comprises mostly class 1 and 2 soils which have been given enhanced protection in the new legislation Nevetheless they fear it will be approved and they will be surrounded by fences and dense housing in spite of the PC79 area being half a kilometre outside the Prebbleton town boundary “That’s a matter of principle that we are prepared to put our bank balance against,” he said they did not want to see the valuable soils “going underneath houses and asphalt” Sheaf said he and Sue had lived happily at their 0.6ha property for six years They had rebuilt the interior of their home The Frasers said they had lived on their 4ha property since buying it in 1970 as a bare block “We are the longest-term residents within the proposed subdivision We find it incomprehensible that someone can apply to subdivide our land without our consent,” Tom Fraser said but it’s also morally wrong to take highly productive land and convert it to concrete.” The Sheafs and Frasers were among the majority of submitters who opposed PC79 Reasons given by submitters also included pressure on infrastructure and oversupply of homes following the other two Prebbleton plan changes Among supporting submitters were the Sheafs’ and Frasers’ neighbours including that building houses would be a better and more efficient use of their land the PC79 area would be a logical extension to the township and it would be well-placed to connect with the new Kakaha Park across the road The Broadways also said their lifestyle block was too small for a viable farming business It was currently used for grazing “a few sheep and a couple of horses” Rademaker also said Kakaha Park would have hundreds of car parking spaces and lighting which was more suited to the residential lifestyle the subdivision would bring The PC79 application was made by Birchs Village Ltd He lives in Christchurch and is understood to own one of the eight blocks of land which make up the PC79 area Geddes did not return calls to the Selwyn Times the two remaining plan changes pertaining to Prebbleton are Plan Change 68 for 295 sections on the south side of Trices Rd and eastern side of Birchs Rd PC68 is soon to be operative after no appeals were received by the deadline date of October 14 while PC72 is being appealed in the Environment Court who want to retain the semi-rural nature of their area are "absolutely gutted" an 820-home subdivision is likely to go ahead The size of Prebbleton is set to increase substantially as hearing commissioner Tony Hughes-Johnson recommends Selwyn District Council accept Plan Change 68 a rezoning application from Urban Holdings Ltd It comes as another recently approved Prebbleton plan change heads to the Environment Court after being appealed The PC68 application pertains to 68ha between Trents Rd Hamptons Rd and the Sterling Park subdivision Currently it is home to just 13 properties The proposed subdivision would affect three neighbouring nurseries - Trents Nursery The nurseries are among about 10 neighbouring property owners who supported each other in their individual submissions against PC68 The group employed an urban planner to be an expert witness at the hearing "They didn’t listen to the people that it affects the most," Tod said Among Parva Plants’ concerns was that its Trents Rd frontage would become a busy intersection as the spine road through the subdivision to Hamptons Rd would begin there This would create disruption for customers staff and delivery drivers trying to access the nursery "Having that intersection is going to cause a real traffic hazard," Tod said said in his submission that the long-standing horticultural business employed locals and annually generated revenue of about $2 million per hectare while contributing about $3 million to the local economy through wages and buying products and services Among his main concerns was that their new residential neighbours would complain about the noise of fans and heaters and the potential for agricultural spray drift from the business He and his wife Julie now held concerns for the business’ longer-term future Relocation was not feasible due to the high cost of re-establishment was also concerned about the potential for their future neighbours to complain about their activities making it impossible in the long run for the business to stay there which employes 62 permanent staff and 10 seasonal staff Tod said he had a "glimmer of hope" that district councillors would see common sense and not adopt the commissioner’s recommendation District councillors are to consider the recommendation at one of their upcoming meetings Tod said previous expansion expectations for Prebbleton had been on the other side of Springs Rd so he hoped district councillors would decline the plan change and not follow the path they had taken for another controversial plan change application that of PC69 for 1710 new homes at Lincoln The PC69 application was approved by the district council and is now subject to appeal Tod said he and fellow submitters may appeal the PC68 decision if it was approved the district council’s decision to approve PC72 has been appealed by a neighbour of the proposed development The Drinnans have concerns about stormwater drainage and want some of their property to be included in the rezoned area The PC72 rezoning application was from Trices Road Rezoning Group made up of the existing landowners of 28.7ha on the southern boundary of Prebbleton The start of May has been a busy one for Amy Rule with the tighthead prop selected in the Black Ferns squad for their upcoming test series and making her return to club rugby over the weekend the return to club rugby was a special one for Rule who linked up with the Prebbleton Royals for their match against Lincoln University.   Rule joined the Prebbleton club as a coach many of whom made up the side she played with on Saturday On loan from the same Lincoln University side she found herself up against Rule said it was a cool opportunity to play with and against friends.   “We had been released to play club and with our first game back being against the Prebbleton girls I used to coach it presented itself as a really cool opportunity to go over and help out for the week “It was so cool to see how far the girls had come since I was last involved and it was really awesome to be welcomed back with open arms The game was also a really fun opportunity to go up against my Lincoln teammates so there was a bit of banter on the field during the game”  with the Black Ferns selection helping to building towards a big year for the 21-year-old prop.  there’s been a lot of change so far this year but being named in the squad presents an awesome opportunity to learn and prepare for the Pacific Four Series in June.” Rule said.   “Being a professional this year means I can give 100% effort all of the time so it’s going to be a great year for me and push myself going forward.”   said it will be a “missed opportunity” if ultimately the proposed subdivision Commissioner Paul Thomas last week issued his recommendation to the district council for it to decline the rezoning application from Geddes’ company It encompasses Geddes’ lifestyle block and seven surrounding lifestyle blocks Thomas’ reasons for his recommendation included the location did not achieve compact urban form for Prebbleton and the plan change did not give effect to the National Policy Statement for Highly Productive Land The recommendation is opposite that given last year by hearing Commissioner David Caldwell for the planned Lincoln South (Plan Change 69) development where people objecting to it cited loss of productive land Residents’ group Lincoln Voice is fighting the district council’s PC69 decision in the Environment Court four months before the National Policy Statement for Highly Productive Land came into effect Lincoln Voice was one of the 37 submitters to PC79 Spokesperson Denise Carrick said it was “great news” Thomas had “listened” to opposing submitters PC79 did not offer enough development capacity to meet criteria of the National Policy Statement on Urban Development and was not required to meet residential capacity demand in the life of the Operative This demand was “more than satisfied” by two other recent plan changes in the area while PC72 is for 295 sections on the south side of Trices Rd and eastern side of Birchs Rd Sheaf said he was “thrilled to bits” by the recommendation “It’s quite bizarre you can apply for a plan change over somebody’s land without their permission,” Fraser said While Sheaf and Fraser opposed PC79 and submitted against it the remaining five landowners in the plan change area supported it Both Sheaf and Fraser are now waiting for another hearing decision as Birchs Village Ltd has also been seeking the rezoning for Birchs Village through the Proposed District Plan hearing process The district council will be releasing its Proposed District Plan decisions by August 20 Geddes said it was too early to say whether he would appeal the decision of the district council if it decided to adopt the commissioner’s recommendation and decline the plan change “We will keep all our options open until we know what the decision of the district plan process is,” Geddes said Geddes made no apologies for including the Sheafs and Frasers in his company’s plan change application saying his neighbours would not be forced to develop their land as part of the subdivision if they did not want to He also made no apologies for choosing fertile agricultural soils for the proposed subdivision He believed the new highly productive land legislation was aimed at protecting farms many of which did not have irrigation consents He said he would be disappointed if the subdivision was ultimately not able to go ahead particularly considering it was across the road from the “great asset to Selwyn” “I just think it is a huge missed opportunity to have an amazing development with a proven developer to deliver something that was pretty unique beside the park,” Geddes said The Prebbleton Dairy in Canterbury has reportedly been targeted by burglars for the third time A dairy in Canterbury has been targeted by burglars for the third time this morning Police say they were called to a commercial premises in Prebbleton after a ram raid burglary about 3.35am on Thursday Items were taken and they are making inquiries into the incident A spokesperson for the Prebbleton Dairy on Springs Rd confirmed it happened at their store "It is basically the third time," he told the Herald A post on the Prebbleton Community group on Facebook on April 27 said someone smashed into the front door of the dairy and "steal a few things." Barkers' Convenience Store in Hornby was targeted with the offenders taking "a lot" of cigarettes there was another ram raid and attempted burglary at the On The Spot on Hamill Rd in Halswell A vehicle was located at the scene but it did not appear anything was taken from the premises They face off for top spot in the final round robin match of the season on Saturday But there will be an equal amount of interest in the race for third and fourth Lurking four points adrift of Darfield in fifth are West Melton who have a mathematical chance of grabbing the last Coleman Shield semi-final spot if they can demolish struggling Lincoln-Rolleston and Darfield go down without earning a bonus point Waihora and Prebbleton did not allow tricky match-ups to stop their forward momentum on Saturday Waihora travelled to Darfield and came away with a 20-10 victory while Prebbleton beat West Melton 38-8 on home turf Saturday’s clash between the sides  will be a repeat of the Luisetti Seeds combined competition semi-final and a potential precursor to the final Prebbleton travel to Waihora for the match The Ellesmere senior club finals day will also be played at Waihora on July 29 “We probably haven’t played our best rugby in the last couple of weeks So it was nice to bounce back (against West Melton) and play an 80min game with some good counter-attacking rugby given the conditions” said Prebbleton head coach Simon Fitzgerald Southbridge enjoyed a successful Pasifika day with a 68-0 win over Hornby The club celebrated the strong Pasifika community who provide so much to the club beating Lincoln Rolleston 15-10 in a tight tussle at Lincoln Domain Awarded a Bunnings Rugby Assist grant at the end of last year Prebbleton Rugby Club have set about giving their clubrooms a much-needed facelift in what is shaping up to be an exciting year for the club With the Prebbleton Senior Girls side becoming a staple at the club and the Premier Women’s side returning for the first time in 20 years the decision was made by the club to upgrade their existing facilities The work undertaken by Hayden Garbutt and the Prebbleton volunteers has seen an upgrade to the bathroom facilities as well as an upgrade to the bench seating around the club “We put in the application to do a big facelift to the club in preparation for the return of the Women’s team and we’ve managed to do a couple of things with the money since.” said Garbutt “The big part of that was making the women’s facilities much more presentable for our new side as well as making the rest of the club more welcoming for our community.” That work has helped create an exciting environment for the club with the return of the women’s team this season seen as an exciting step forward for the club following several successful seasons with the Senior Girls side “We’re extremely grateful to Bunnings and New Zealand Rugby for opening up this fund We’ve stretched the $10k and it’s helped us tick off a number of things we had wanted to do with the help of a great team of volunteers that care about the club.” Garbutt said “Our team has really enjoyed helping the club to find the materials they needed to upgrade their facilities and giving them a helping hand where we could We wish them all the best for the rugby season ahead.” It’s created a great environment at the club this season “A lot of people have been commenting about how good the club looks on Saturday and Sunday so it’s going to help us keep growing the club it’s been really well received by the new players to the club and it’s been a great way to make them feel welcome at the club.” said Garbutt There’s no doubt the side will feel more than welcome this weekend with club day scheduled for Prebbleton Domain with the facilities set to be put to the test on a day of celebration for Prebbleton