GRANDSTAND OPENING CELEBRATION

Opening day 4th December 2020

Following months of construction, opening day finally arrived on 4th December 2020.
A large crowd gathered on the club’s fields to participate in a magnificent gala-style afternoon with a variety of cultural recitals and displays performed by the local schools, Indian community, Kapa-Haka groups and club teams.  The opening ribbon was officially cut by the club’s primary sponsor, Murray and Heather Salt.

Opening Evening 4th December 2020

An opening dinner was held in the club’s gymnasium with over 300 attendees.  The evening took the form of a dinner with several key speakers.  The Western Bay of Plenty mayor Garry Webber was opening speaker with All Black captain Ian Kirkpatrick alongside All Black Eric Rush as guest speakers.  An auction of special items including a club quilt hand-crafted by Heather Salt and two on-field sketched portraits capturing Ian Kirkpatrick during test match action raised significant funds for the grandstand project.   All major sponsors were formally thanked for their support and a comprehensive on-screen overview of the stages of construction was presented.
This opening celebration was the finale for a project that had taken years of planning, fundraising and effort by club members.  The full presentation shown at the function can be seen here.