Far North senior men's cricket got the new season under way last weekend, with wins for Kaikohe and Kaitaia.

Time finally caught up with Kaitaia's Koa Rebekah and Northern Star International Order of Odd Fellows (IOOF) Lodges earlier this year.

So someone has finally had the guts to publicly state the obvious, but not our politicians, nor mayors, or councillors or business groups, but an outsider looking in.

This year's crime statistics, for Northland at least, have a ring of truth about them.

The foundations for Te Tai Tokerau Tarai Waka Kupe Waka Centre have been laid at Aurere, marking what project spokesman James Watkinson described as a significant milestone.

One of the Far North's most successful and enduring local government politicians of recent years died in Kaitaia on Sunday.

Three-term Te Tai Tokerau MP Hone Harawira took almost two weeks to formally concede defeat to Labour's Kelvin Davis.

An open letter to Krim Dotcom, Hoha Hone and Ms Harre.

Alive and thriving

THE Earth shifted on its axis for some of us last month.

Two Far North District Council staff members, both based in Kaitaia, have received national customer service awards at the Association of Local Government Information Management (ALGIM).

Twelve young Far Northerners leave for Christchurch today, to pursue opportunities created by Project Haere (Pathway, formerly Project Pipeline). And they will soon be followed by many more.

The last piece of the old Kaikohe Hotel that was still standing came down on Thursday afternoon.

The Houhora Riding Settlers' and Ratepayers' Association has been trying to protect Houhora Harbour from commercial fishing for some 50 years, but has made no real progress.

The fourth and final week of the Northland junior representative rugby season was played out at Old Boys RFC in Whangarei on Saturday, September 13, and saw Mangonui teams competing in all grades.

Kaikohe Rugby Grounds was the venue last week for the annual Year Seven and Eight Rugby Seven Tournament.

A Whangarei woman who donated a kidney to her husband has begun walking the length of New Zealand to encourage others to donate their organs.

The Waitangi National Trust will re-introduce an entry fee ($15) for New Zealanders who visit the Waitangi Treaty Grounds as of this Saturday.

Fears that the 90 Mile Beach Snapper Bonanza staged earlier this year could be the last thanks to a loss of sponsorship have been laid to rest by the competition organisers.

If Hockey New Zealand ever needed proof their investment in the six-a-side version of the game was paying off, Kaitaia's Pamapuria School eagerly provided it.

It's hard to imagine things going much worse for the Swords - and representative league as a whole for the province

Speak up now

Harsh lesson for Hone

A complaint will be lodged with the Far North District Council over the dumping of spoil at the junction of State Highway 10 and Kohumaru Road.

A 65-year-old Far North man was remanded on bail without plea when he appeared before Judge Murray Hunt in the Kaitaia District Court last week.

No one was sure whether the sou-westerly blast that stripped the iron roof off a house in Awanui on Saturday evening was a tornado.

Former Kaitaia Intermediate School principal Kelvin Davis beat Mana founder Hone Harawira to win Te Tai Tokerau in Saturday's general election.

It's already been another full-on year of football for Cameron Hansford and it's far from over yet.

The 90 Mile Beach Surfcasting Club's summer season got off to a good start after a recess over the winter period.