Peter Lester: Memo to Team NZ: Phone Portugal - now

COMMENT

If Emirates Team New Zealand really have not placed a call through to Russell Coutts in Portugal they should do so. Now.

They say they have not. If that's the case, they should remedy it pronto.

I'm not saying I believe Coutts will be rejoining the syndicate he walked out on four years ago. Indeed, I'd say the likelihood of Coutts wanting to return to Team New Zealand is slim. But it would be prudent to ask the question.

Firstly he has to find a way out of the legal jungle brought about by his sacking from Alinghi and bustup with Ernesto Bertarelli this week to be available for hire for the 2007 America's Cup regatta. Whether he can is a moot point.

But if it was up to me it would be the first call I'd be making, just to say "Hey, is it worth us talking?"

From there you work out if there is any point getting into serious discussions.

I believe failure to at least broach the topic would be a blunder on Team New Zealand's part.

Why? Because he is the greatest big boat yachtsman in the world, and probably the best we've seen. He is a winner. If you want to regain the America's Cup you must have the best available on board and Coutts fits that bill.

Rest assured other syndicates will be thinking the same thing. Team New Zealand should at least position themselves to be in the frame if the three-time cup winner is on the market.

My views on the departure of Coutts and Brad Butterworth with other New Zealand sailors in 2000 have not changed.

I was disappointed at the way they left Team New Zealand. Not so much at the fact they they went, but the way it was done, misleading the public, misleading friends.

I am certain there are people within the Team New Zealand operation who feel the same way I do. There are some who are more bitter about what happened.

They will need to swallow hard, bite their tongues and remember that this is a business. It's not tiddlywinks. A hard-headed approach is required.

Team New Zealand boss Grant Dalton has essentially made all the right moves since taking charge. This would be a tough call in many respects, given the history between Coutts and Team New Zealand.

Put it this way: Michael Schumacher is the undisputed king of Formula One and I see plenty of similarities between F1 and the America's Cup.

Schumacher is known as much more than just a peerless driver for Ferrari. He is absolutely outstanding in all respects to do with the preparation of his car, and in the same way Coutts is more than just a classy helmsman.

In yachting, there are a lot of guys - such as Chris Dickson, Magnus Holmberg, Dean Barker and James Spittall - who are capable of going out and sailing those boats very well. But they don't have that extra dimension Coutts has.

He has such good intuition and feel, he can talk to the designers and technicians at their level. That's the difference.

To be blunt, I don't know if Coutts is a hell of a lot better yachtsman per se than other very good sailors. But in the complexities of the America's Cup I think he holds the key because he understands the geometry of the boats and how they work.

I also applaud the general philosophy Coutts has for the development of the cup regatta, getting away from the slow-moving, heavy boats, getting more speed and more visual appeal. It is a shame for the event it has not happened.

The split between Coutts and Bertarelli does not surprise me. Nothing ever surprises me with the America's Cup. This is simply another in the catalogue of incidents which have littered the history of the event. It's how the game is played.

The players at the moment just happen to be Coutts, Bertarelli and, to an extent, BMW Oracle boss Larry Ellison. There's always been controversy, litigation and people challenging others' rights to act freely - think the big boat challenge, the bowsprit, the winged keel ... For some of us, that's the appeal.

A lot of others find it incredibly frustrating and feel hard done by. But they shouldn't. It's what has made the cup what it is.

* Peter Lester is high performance manager for Yachting New Zealand and a respected commentator.