June 04_WESTERN

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Alana Powell
Ph: 027 535 6583
alana@alliedmedia.co.nz
Rams import takes the plunge
FOR LOCAL ADVERTISING
Alana Powell
Ph: 027 535 6583
alana@alliedmedia.co.nz
A childhood spent on innercity
basketball courts has
led Canterbury Rams import
Tamenang Choh taking his first
swimming lessons as an adult at
Parakiore.
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Growing up in Lowell, Massachusetts,
Tamenang Choh – who
Ph: 021 457 469
Annabel Judd
goes by T – is the Canterbury
annabel.judd@alliedmedia.co.nz
Rams’ star import, fresh off a
season in Finland, and is taking
to the water like a duck.
The 27-year-old has built a
journeyman career that has
taken him from college basketball
at Brown University
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through France, Germany,
Jenny Wright
Spain, Bulgaria and Finland.
Now he finds himself donning
Ph: 021 220 3484
jenny@alliedmedia.co.nz
the Rams’ red and black, and
with a handful of swimming
lessons under his belt at the
central city sports facility.
He came across the adult
classes by chance while heading
to training, now the team is
based at Parakiore.
“Honestly, we’ve been blessed
to play in this beautiful new
facility, so I’ve been walking by
The Star, January 23, 2025
PHOTOS: CCC
the swimming pool every day
for practice, and I was like, ‘you
know what, let me just ask and
see if they have adult swimming
classes,” Choh said.
Staff at the front desk made
the process simple, he said, and
before long he found himself in
The Star, January 23, 2025
the proverbial deep end under
the guidance of an encouraging
coach.
“I was kind of, not intimidated,
but I just didn’t know
what to expect at first, because
in my eyes I can at least float
a little bit, but obviously not
enough to consider myself a
swimmer.
“I was kind of sceptical, just
because I was from Lowell, an
inner-city suburb, never really
around water, never really been
interested in learning to swim.
“It’s something that has taken
away opportunities to go swimming
with my friends, going
to the beaches, and I’m kind
of tired of saying ‘I can’t go’ or
making an excuse up. So now
being able to learn, it’s a great
life skill to have,” he said.
Choh said he has copped “a
bit” of stick from teammates for
taking up swimming at 27, but
With the Canterbury Rams based at Parakiore, Tamenang Choh has taken the opportunity to start swimming lessons. starnews.co.nz
most have been supportive of ‘you don’t know how to swim?’ “You can’t worry about
his willingness to learn something
And some are like, ‘oh, that’s a other people, what they think,
new.
really respectable thing, that’s a because at the end of the day
“It’s funny, because I joked to great life skill to have’.
some of them might not know
my teammates, and I told them, “You know, just the fact that I how to swim either, or they’re
‘I’m taking swimming classes’, am doing it, they are extremely maybe too scared to say it out
and of course, some of them go supportive.
loud,” he said.
starnews.co.nz
The Star, January 23, 2025
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The Star, January 23, 2025
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The Star, June 4, 2026
starnews.co.nz
School bands set
​BY GEOFF SLOAN
Guitarists from Along the Current. The Burnside High School band was one of the
top 16 acts to secure a place in the regional final on Saturday.
PHOTOS: TOMMASOS ZAMPERINI
The next generation of
musicians will turn up the
volume at the Ngaio Marsh
Theatre on Saturday when 16
acts battle it out for a place
in the Smokefreerockquest
national final.
The Smokefreerockquest
provides a platform for young
musicians from schools across
the city to perform original
music in front of a live
audience.
The 16 bands in the final
made it through from last
month’s Canterbury regional
heats at the Aurora Centre,
which attracted 94 emerging
acts, ranging from first-timers
to annual performers.
The high-energy regional
showdown featured young
musicians competing for a
place in this weekend’s final.
Judge Ashy Bachelor praised
the standard of performances.
“The ever-growing youth
music scene is inspiring
to watch as the standard
continues to get higher every
year,” he said.
“The development of young
musicians is so important and
it is a credit to the dedicated
students, teachers, families and
team at Smokefreerockquest
that they have allowed such a
safe and important space for
artists and musicians to grow
and share their music.”
St Margaret’s College band The Spoons.
The top two solo/duo acts
and top two bands from
the regional final will need
to produce a video of their
performance to submit to
the judges who will pick the
national finalists. The national
finalists will then perform in
Wellington in September.
They will be judged on a
three-song performance video.
The top 35 bands will be
shortlisted before the industry
judges select the eight national
finalists.
The finalists will then be
invited to perform two songs
on stage in Wellington.
Now in its 38th year,
Smokefreerockquest has
helped launch the careers of
bands and performers such
as Kimbra, Broods, Alien
Weaponry and Evermore.
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starnews.co.nz The Star, June 4, 2026
to do battle
The bands performing on
Saturday are:
•Along the Current — Burnside
High School
•The Spoons — St Margaret’s
College
•Third Take — St Margaret’s
College
•The Hit Squad — Middleton
Grange School
•Juvee — Burnside High School
Fire Tiger — Hillmorton High
School
•Face First — Shirley Boys’ High
School
•Pretty When It Burns — St
Andrew’s College
•The Lost Haven — Lincoln High
School, Te Puna Wai o Waipapa —
Hagley College
•Human Resources — St Thomas
of Canterbury College
•CHARM — Cashmere High
School
•Full Metal Jacket — Christchurch
Boys’ High School, Christ’s
College
•Vertigo — Christchurch Boys’
High School, Christ’s College
•Flik 220 — Kaiapoi High School
•C.O.M.A — Christ’s College
•Mercury’s Hour — Villa Maria
College
Tickets for the Christchurch
regional final at the Ngaio
Marsh Theatre, 7-10pm,
are available at eventfinda.
co.nz/2026/smokefreerockquestchristchurch-regional-final/
christchurch/tickets
St Margaret’s College band Third Take (above), Mental Joy from Hagley College and the drummer from The Lost Haven.
Reiss Fatani and Alex Gibson from Burnside High School performed as the duo
Mind The Gap.
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The Star, June 4, 2026
starnews.co.nz
​Shuttle an alternative to bus extension
BY KEES CHALMERS
The long running saga to bring
a bus route to Governors Bay
has been put back on the table
with submissions open for
Environment Canterbury’s public
transport network review.
However, the Governors
Bay Community Association
has decided it will not make a
submission in
support of the
extension.
Association chair
John Bannock said
this was because
the only option
given by ECan is an
extension of the No
8 route to Rāpaki.
Bannock said
the proposal
would attract low
Cathy
Lum-Webb
patronage, as most Governors
Bay residents travel into the city
via Dyers Pass Rd for work and
social commitments. He said a
Rāpaki-based extension would be
“counter intuitive” to the needs of
residents.
The association is encouraging
residents to make submissions as
individuals.
A shuttle service linking
Governors Bay and Lyttelton
has been floated as an
alternative by two Te Pātaka o
Rākaihautū Banks Peninsula
Community Board members.
Lyttelton subdivision member
Cathy Lum-Webb and Mt Herbert
subdivision member Nigel Millar
have been exploring a service
Te Pātaka o Rākaihautū Banks Peninsula Community Board members are looking into a shuttle service from
Governors Bay to Lyttelton.
that would connect Governors
Bay with the No 8 Lyttelton bus
into Christchurch.
Lum-Webb is making a
submission to ECan’s network
review, seeking guidance on
potential funding options.
Feedback closes on June 24.
After the submission process,
Lum-Webb will consult the
community to better understand
transport needs.
“We’re hoping people identify
there’s a need,” she said.
Governors Bay was snubbed
when the Rāpaki extension was
reintroduced four years ago and
was left off being included in
ECan’s Annual Plan 2025/26.
Last year it was revealed a
Governors Bay extension could
cost ratepayers $36.72 per
$100,000 of capital value, as residents
do not currently contribute
to public transport rates.
ECan South Ōwhanga councillor
Andrea Davis said a shuttle
service would be a more realistic
alternative.
“I can’t see it (extension) happening,”
she said.
“We don’t even
have enough
money to get
the buses where
all the people
live, we’ve only
just managed to
get buses into
Aranui.
“You’re never
going to please Andrea Davis
everyone, but I
think there are
cases for buses as a social service
and we need to get people
who need to get to work.”
Governors Bay has a population
of about 900 people.
Davis said ECan received no
submissions supporting a Governors
Bay bus extension in
its Draft Annual Plan 2026/27
consultation.
She encouraged residents
to back the idea through the
current network review.
Banks Peninsula Ward city
councillor Tyrone Fields is still
pushing for the extension to
be considered and believes it
should at least be trialled.
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starnews.co.nz The Star, June 4, 2026
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The Star, June 4, 2026
starnews.co.nz
Food to match
the season
Go for gold this autumn with piquant citrus cakes and succulent
baked squash, says Nigel Slater
PARCHMENT-BAKED PUMPKIN,
SPICED TOMATO SAUCE
I’m not sure it matters which
chilli paste you use here. I like the
deep blast of heat from Korean
gochujang, but otherwise just
use your favourite and adjust the
quantity accordingly.
Tweak the amounts to suit
your taste, bearing in mind that it
needs to balance the sweetness of
the pumpkin.
Ingredients
Serves 4
500g, peeled weight, pumpkin or
butternut squash
400g tomatoes
4 Tbsp olive oil
8 bay leaves
For the sauce:
400g cherry tomatoes
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic
2 tsp red chilli paste
2 Tbsp white wine or cider
vinegar
Method
• Set the oven to 200degC. Cut
4 pieces of baking parchment or
kitchen foil about 30cm x 30cm.
• Peel the pumpkin or squash.
Cut the flesh into cubes roughly
2cm square and put them in a
large mixing bowl. Roughly chop
the tomatoes and add them to the
pumpkin flesh with the olive oil,
bay leaves and a generous grinding
of salt and black pepper.
• Divide the mixture between
the sheets of baking parchment,
then pull the side edges in to
form a parcel. Secure the paper
with string or a paperclip. If you
are using foil scrunch the ends
together to seal and place on a
baking sheet.
• Bake for 50 minutes until the
pumpkin is soft and translucent.
• While the squash bakes, make
the sauce. Roughly chop the
cherry tomatoes. Heat the oil in
a wide, shallow pan over a high
heat, add the tomatoes and let
them cook until their skins soften
and juices flow. Peel and thinly
slice the garlic and stir into the
tomatoes together with a little
salt and a few twists of pepper.
• Continue cooking, with the
occasional stir, until the sauce is
thick, then stir in the chilli paste
and continue cooking for 5 minutes,
then stir in the vinegar and
check the seasoning. If you wish,
run it through the blender for a
silky finish.
• Take the parcels from the
oven, open each one at the table,
so the sweetly scented steam
wafts up and then spoon in some
of the tomato chilli sauce.
ORANGE AND POPPY SEED CAKES
These golden cakes have
wonderful sweet-sharp notes.
Ingredients
Serves 8
For the cake:
225g butter, softened
225g golden caster sugar
grated zest of 1 orange
grated zest of 1 lemon
110g plain flour
generous half tsp baking powder
115g ground almonds
4 eggs
20g poppy seeds
For the syrup:
50g crystallised orange peel
1 lemon
1 small orange
100g golden caster sugar
2 bay leaves
Method
• You will need a 12-hole bun or
muffin tin, each hole lined with
baking parchment. Set the oven
at 180degC.
• To make the cakes, put the
butter into the bowl of a food
mixer, add the sugar and cream
together until soft and fluffy.
Grate in the orange and lemon
zest.
• In a separate bowl, sieve
together the flour and baking
powder then stir in the ground
almonds. Break the eggs into a
small bowl and beat lightly.
• Slowly add the egg to the butter
and sugar. If it curdles slightly,
add a spoonful of the flour and
almond mixture. Continue
adding the flour mix until thoroughly
creamed then mix in the
poppy seeds.
• Transfer the mixture to the
lined cases. Put in the pre-heated
oven and bake for 20 minutes
until a skewer, inserted into one
of the little cakes, comes out
without any raw cake mixture
attached.
•While the cakes are baking,
make the syrup. Cut the
crystallised citrus peel into
matchstick-sized pieces. Finely
grate the remaining lemon.
Squeeze the lemon and the
orange into a small saucepan,
add the caster sugar and the bay
leaves and bring to the boil. Add
the strips of candied peel.
• Remove the cakes from the
oven. Still in their cases, pierce
them all over with a metal
skewer or fine knitting needle.
• Spoon the reserved orange
syrup and peel over the surface,
letting the syrup trickle though
the holes.
• Leave the cakes to cool and
remove from their cases.
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starnews.co.nz
CROSSWORD
1 2 3 4 5 6 7
8 9
10 11
12 13 14 15
16
17 18
19
20 21 22 23 24
25 26
453
SUDOKU
Every row, column and box should
contain the digits 1 to 9.
WORDBUILDER
6
356
356
WordBuilder
S C O
R S A
R S A
How many words of three or more letters,
How including many plurals, words can you of make three from or the more six
letters, using each letter only once? No foreign
words or words beginning with a capital are
How from allowed. many the words There's six letters, of at three least one using or more six-letter each letters, word. only
including once? plurals, can TODAY you make from the six
Good 16 Very Good 22 Excellent 27
letters, No Solution words using each 355: ABSURD, beginning letter only ads, bad, with once? bar, bard, a capital No foreign
bards, bars, are
words allowed. baud, or bauds, words There’s bra, beginning brad, brads, at least bras, with bud, a one capital buds, six-letter
bur, are
allowed. burs, bursa, bus, dab, dabs, daub, daubs, drab, drabs,
word.
There's at least one six-letter word.
drub, drubs, dub, rad, rads, rub, rubs, sad, sard, sub,
surd.
TODAY
Good 16 Very Good 22 Excellent 27
Solution 355: ABSURD, ads, bad, bar, bard, bards, bars,
baud, bauds, bra, brad, brads, bras, bud, buds, bur,
burs, bursa, bus, dab, dabs, daub, daubs, drab, drabs,
drub, drubs, dub, rad, rads, rub, rubs, sad, sard, sub,
surd.
letters, including plurals, can you make
27 28
29 30
31 32
33 34
Across
1. Abstain from (6)
5. Round-up (6)
10. Goes up (7)
11. Strew (7)
12. Appropriate (6)
15. Defy (6)
16. Considered (7)
17. Uncommon (4)
18. Greenstone club (4)
19. Snare (7)
20. Discourteous (4)
22. Hold together (4)
25. Entrance (7)
27. Commences (6)
28. Deprive of food (6)
31. Endurance (7)
32. Maim (7)
33. Settle comfortably (6)
34. Dull, slow-witted (6)
Decoder
Down
2. Aid in time of need (7)
3. Impede (6)
4. Desire (4)
5. Fog (4)
6. Formed (6)
7. Wrap around (7)
8. Debonair (6)
9. Twist in agony (6)
13. Residue (7)
14. Help develop or grow (7)
15. Inhibit, curb (7)
20. Sturdy (6)
21. Demean (7)
23. Bursts into (7)
24. Intensify (6)
25. Charge (6)
26. Stern (6)
29. Foundation (4)
30. Reverberate (4)
Crossword
Across: 1. Eschew, 5. Muster, 10. Ascends, 11. Scatter, 12. Proper, 15.
Resist, 16. Reputed, 17. Rare, 18. Mere, 19. Capture, 20. Rude, 22. Bind,
25. Ingress, 27. Begins, 28. Starve, 31. Stamina, 32. Cripple, 33. Nestle,
34. Obtuse.
Down: 2. Succour, 3. Hinder, 4. Wish, 5. Mist, 6. Shaped, 7. Entwine, 8.
Dapper, 9. Writhe, 13. Remains, 14. Nurture, 15. Repress, 20. Robust, 21.
Degrade, 23. Irrupts, 24. Deepen, 25. Indict, 26. Strict, 29. Base, 30. Echo.
WordBuilder
ACROSS, arc, arco, arcs, ass, car, cars, cor, cos, crass, cross, oar, oars,
oca, ocas, orc, orca, orcas, orcs, oscar, OSCARS, roc, rocs, sac, sacs, car,
scars, soar, soars, sos.
DECODER
Each number represents a different letter of the alphabet. Write the
given letters into all squares with matching numbers. Now work out
which letters are represented by the other numbers.
VOLUME 1
Enjoy WordFit? Magazines available.
See www.thepuzzlecompany.co.nz
Sudoku