The Country 19/12/25: Rowena Duncum and Craig Wiggins talk to Jamie Mackay

Today’s second correspondent panel.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Here's the second of two panels today, Rowena Dunk and
the artist formerly known as the Country Producer and Craig
Wiggy Wiggins lean on a gate talk to him mate, Rowena,
I want to start with you. You've got some street
cred when it comes to being a cowcocky because you
were one for a while. But I did give you
a fair bit of grief about you commentating the wall
handling at the Golden Shares, because you wouldn't know a

(00:21):
fleece if one hits you in the face. But you've
been practicing, You've been rousing in the sheds.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
I have, indeed, Jamie, nice to be back with you.
I thought you'd lost my number, but I've been in Jenny.

Speaker 1 (00:31):
Vere we can't afford we can't afford you now that
you're in the corporate world with their FMG.

Speaker 2 (00:38):
I've been staying with the MULLINSS. This way you can
have been out with the Piway Mullins gang. Yeah, and
the Sheds in the mornings before work. So now I
can actually have some street cred, Jamie. And it's an't
it you that really gives me grief about it. Everyone's
been so welcoming in the Share yeah.

Speaker 1 (00:52):
Okay, well I'm really looking We're going up for the
Golden Shares, so we'll catch up there. That is, of
course the World Championships as well. It's going to be
so good. And Masterton and early March, right, that's Rowena.
Are you and Hawk's Bay today with Mavis?

Speaker 2 (01:06):
Yes, yeah, yeah and hey thanks?

Speaker 1 (01:08):
Are you doing any work for FMG?

Speaker 2 (01:10):
Absolutely, I'm just about to step into a meeting with
New Zealand Appels and Pears.

Speaker 1 (01:14):
All right, okay, Wiggy Craig Wiggins in Mid Canterbury. We
heard rocks up in North Canterbury say it's getting pretty
dry by their standards. What about Mid Canterbury.

Speaker 3 (01:25):
Oh, we've been pretty lucky actually, Jamie, thank you. It's
we had twenty eight miles just here in Eshburton just
this week and I think we do for some more
this afternoon and maybe tomorrow. So it was very dry.
But some of the clips are certainly doing all right
now for the reign that we've had, just a little
bit of worry around for the hail in some of
the damage that it can cause.

Speaker 1 (01:46):
Rowena Duncan because we've got to move on. We literally
have heaps of people to chat to between now and
the end of the hour, I know you've thought deeply
about this. Who is your twenty twenty five agg person
of the Year.

Speaker 2 (01:57):
I just wanted to quick shout out to the team
at Farmstrong because they've done amazing work this year, and
also everyone who helped get so many of those irrigators
back up and running in North Canterbury after that windstorm.
That was huge around the clock effort from everyone. So
well done. But my actors of the year is all
of the people who answer those fire sirens when they
go off in rural communities. We had one in danny

(02:20):
Vick this morning. I heard the one Radhi on Friday
afternoon and I just think we have so many volunteers
that time to text their communities. We're heading into quite
a big fire season as well. They attend car crashes
in rural communities, and I just think, you know, when
you see a discussion group or a rugby game the
siren goes off, it's the cockies, the deirus armors, the

(02:40):
shep farmers who get up and attend those calls. So
I think it's here. It's our volunteer emergency services for me.

Speaker 1 (02:46):
Yeah, and the people who put the power back on,
you know after the windstorms, working tirelessly. But you talk
about the Volunteer Fire Brigade and block a Drysdale a
mate of ours, as does it for the Belfer Volunteer
Fire Brigade. But the tough thing about that is you've
got to go out to road accidents and it may
be your kid or your neighbors. Can never know what

(03:09):
You never know what you're going to find. So you know,
they just lay people and they're not trained, well they're
sort of trained for that. But absolute admiration. Agree with you, wiggy,
who have you got?

Speaker 3 (03:20):
Well? I bet Rowena up on that filegate thing. I
used to do a bit with them and rat so
it's great that she's mentioned them. But I've got a
couple just to mention quickly. Sarah Foley Smith in the
Primary Industry Academy down in Geraldine. She takes all those
kids up to the Field Days and they clean up
in the fencing competitions. But they do a lot of
good work in that community as well. Mike Green for
the organization of that very successful Royal Support Trust event

(03:43):
at the Field Days last year. He gets stuff done.
But the David and Goliath award for the year has
to go to David Clark. Rookxie just mentioned what he's done,
and everybody knows just how much he's put he can
on the blocks this year. But it's a personal toll
to David. It takes a lot for him to get
that that angry, but also to know the behind the scenes.

(04:03):
I know how upsetting it can be for him and
his family with this sort of stuff. So for me,
he's my egg personal Royal Person of the Year.

Speaker 1 (04:10):
I'll tell you what you're I'm hearing. I've heard from
someone close to the source that what David Clark did
around the Consenting and ECAM was one of the major
drivers and certainly helped what the government did around RIMA reform.
So he is a hero.

Speaker 3 (04:26):
Definitely, And I mean he got into those coalition partners
and got in their air and then national had to
jump on board to and single handedly he is the
David and Goliath story of rural New Zealand this year.

Speaker 1 (04:38):
Okay, Rowena, Wiggy, We'll catch you over the break. Thanks
for your time. There we go. That is the second
of our two panels today.