Another sailor quits Team New Zealand

Jeremy Lomas competing in the Louis Vuitton Pacific Series. Photo / David Rowland, NZPA

The dominoes continue to fall at Team New Zealand with yet another sailor quitting the troubled syndicate.

After yesterday revealing design chief Nick Holroyd and grinders Winston Macfarlane and Derek Saward had resigned from Team NZ, the Herald has learned pitman Jeremy Lomas has also followed them out the door.

It is understood there are other members of the team weighing up their future at the syndicate.

The departure of the trio of sailors leaves just three members of the 2013 crew remaining at the Kiwi syndicate - wing trimmer Glenn Ashby, who has been promoted to sailing director, tactician Ray Davies and Richard Meacham, the team's bowman.

Through an intermediary Lomas, who is out of the country sailing, said he wanted it known he had left the team, and directed inquiries back to Team NZ.

Team NZ did not return phone calls last night, instead putting out a statement confirming Lomas' departure.

"Emirates Team New Zealand confirm Jeremy Lomas has resigned. We wish him all the best for the future in whatever he does," it read.

It is not known when Lomas left the syndicate, but only last month he accompanied Ashby and Meacham to the UK for a testing session on board the new AC45 foiling catamarans, which will be sailed in the America's Cup world series events.

At this point Team NZ don't appear to have enough crew members to scrape together for the first regatta of the series next month in Portsmouth, with outstanding young talents Peter Burling and Blair Tuke the only other contracted sailors left.

In a statement, Team NZ said they plan to hold a training camp in the UK later this month, "which doubles as a unique opportunity for some exciting young talent being given a chance to sail with the existing crew".

The biggest concern for Team NZ will be the loss of Holroyd, who led the team's design operations during the last Cup cycle.

Holroyd would not be drawn on why he had quit the team effectively midway through the design project for the new AC48 catamarans, which will be sailed at the 2017 event in Bermuda.

"I'm limiting my comments to avoid collateral damage to a lot of close friends still there," he said.

But he confirmed Team NZ had not imposed a restraint of trade on him, leaving him free to link up with other cup teams. There is speculation Holroyd, a naval architect and engineer, may join Barker at new challenger Team Japan.

It is understood Team NZ have not been so generous with severance terms for Macfarlane and Saward, preventing the pair from joining other syndicates.