The Celtic sports ground on Rockdale Rd in Timaru was ripped up by boy racers at the weekend.

Vigilante action saw boy racers leg it without their wheels after tearing up a Timaru rugby paddock at the weekend.

Timaru police say they would be more than happy to speak with the owners of the two vehicles, which have been impounded.

Senior Constable Paul Hampton said the cars were doing burnouts before being spotted by people near the Celtic sports ground. The witnesses took matters into their own hands by parking their cars at the entrance of the ground, leaving the drivers with no way out.

Constable Kieran Parsons said the perpetrators were pursued by police dogs after abandoning their vehicles.

"Basically they (the civilians) just parked the cars in front of the gate. The police have arrived and there have been no occupants (in the vehicles).

"The dog unit was called and a track was established through neighbouring properties," Parsons said.

The suspects successfully evaded police, with Parsons saying "it would appear" they were picked up somewhere near Rockdale Rd.

Celtic Rugby Club president Bede O'Driscoll was "pretty disappointed" with the damage, which covered a well-used rugby and cricket pitch.

"A lot of effort's gone into that ground, from cricket and rugby, to get it the way it is. It's just going to be a bit of a shame for junior rugby and the like for the rest of the year," he said.

The boy racers needed to think before acting and think about "the impact it has on the wider community", O'Driscoll said.

"It's all volunteer work."

The actions of those who blocked the entrance were greatly appreciated, O'Driscoll said.

Celtic JAB Rugby president Dan Gallagher said junior players still had three weeks of rugby left. The next step was to make a call about whether to play on the ground.

"Especially this weekend, because there's quite a few games on ... There would be 10 teams down here this weekend.

"These last two weeks are going to be quite busy. We start at 10 and the last game's usually 12 o'clock or one," he said.

O'Driscoll said he had never seen the ground damaged as badly as it was. It had been Celtic's since 1986.

Celtic Cricket Club president Ants de Joux said, with the rugby season coming to a close, the club's cricket teams would also bear the brunt of the damage.

"You just have to leave it. Let it grow itself out and then in the summer you've got to top-dress it and reseed it and smooth it all out.

"If we get rain, which is forecast this weekend and next week, on top of that it's going to make it a bog. That's going to take months to prepare.

"They'll probably be playing cricket with tyre marks all through it for the summer," De Joux said.

Hampton said people taking matters into their own hands depended on the situation. "Well, it all depends if you can do it and have no risk to yourself or your own property," he said.

It was "good to be able to get the two vehicles", with Hampton sure the owners would be interested in getting them back. The drivers of a Subaru, registration FFN920, and a Nissan, SD2338, were "welcome to come and talk to us about their vehicles".

Residents in the area were either not home, or unwilling to talk about the incident.

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Were you one of the people who blocked access to the field? If so, give us a call on 03 687 1320 or email newstips@stuff.co.nz