Prodigal sailors free to return

By JULIE ASH

Former Team New Zealand members who defected after the 2000 defence could sail for the syndicate again, says new managing director Grant Dalton.

The 45-year-old veteran sailor was yesterday appointed to the new position, making him responsible to the trustees for administration, sailing, design and sponsorship.

Dalton said his priority was to secure personnel.

"It is about people and if you don't have the right people you won't have a chance even if you do have the money," he said.

"There is only one objective and that is to bring the cup back to New Zealand.

"That means burying the past, as far as I am concerned."

While Russell Coutts and Brad Butterworth will obviously remain with Alinghi, the controversial OneWorld team, which featured several New Zealand sailors, designers and shore crew, are not challenging again.

Nor are Prada, which included rising New Zealand helmsman Gavin Brady.

However, the OneWorld syndicate were docked several points during the regatta and severely fined after it was discovered former Team New Zealand members had taken design information with them when they left the defenders.

"It isn't like 2000 where people were walking down Syndicate Row with chequebooks, whipping them out as quick as people arrived at work," Dalton said.

"However, we must move quickly to secure people on a contractual basis to give us an option if we challenge."

Dean Barker has committed to remain with the team as skipper, after some hesitancy a few weeks ago.

The Team New Zealand trustees had announced there would be a new management structure for the syndicate, which would include the appointment of a director of sailing and a managing director.

Trustee Peter Menzies said this month that the director of sailing position "is the top priority".

But the position has been scrapped.

Barker's doubts appear to have been dealt with.

"I have been offered the role which I felt was more appropriate for me and that was to skipper the boat and head up the sailing operations side of the campaign," he said.

"It was really just keeping a clear understanding of what my involvement was."

And Dalton said: "For me no challenge could be contemplated unless Dean Barker was involved.

"Dean has given me a commitment that he would go forward and that is fundamental to Team New Zealand going forward."

Dalton admitted he and Barker had not spent much time on the water together. But he did not believe that was a significant obstacle.

"We've had three or four sessions together. We're not going to get married or anything, but it feels like we are finishing each other's sentences already.

"I think we think along the same lines about the way to go forward."

All Team New Zealand sailors' contracts expired at the end of last month.

A core group have been approached but none has signed so far.

While the internal review of this year's disastrous defence will not be made public until next month, it has been completed and is circulating among the team.

Before it becomes public it will be discussed with sponsors and the Royal New Zealand Yacht Squadron.

"Initially there were some very interesting things to come out of it," said Menzies.

"But as a team we pretty quickly got to the essential problem."

He said there would not be an independent review of the campaign, but the trustee positions would come under review.

Former chief executive Ross Blackman, former executive director Tony Thomas and former syndicate head and design specialist Tom Schnackenberg have all been offered positions.

While the review would help Dalton and Barker establish areas of weakness, Dalton said it was important to remember the campaign had some positive effects.

"It is very easy to be critical of what happened from the outside, but there are a hell of a lot of good things about Team New Zealand.

"They raised $90 million for the last campaign.

"Ask if anyone has ever done that before in this country and there is nobody.

"They created innovative boats," he said.

"They may have been fractionally misdirected, but they were innovative and you don't want to squeeze that out of the team."

With defenders Swiss syndicate Alinghi yet to announce the time and location of the next event, Dalton said Team New Zealand would spend the next six months trying to raise the $120 million or so needed to challenge in Europe.

"It is easy to get caught up in the euphoria of going and bringing the cup back, but we have a huge task to raise the money over the next months.

"I think there is the expectation that we are just going to roll through a few boardrooms and it is going to rain money.

"In my experience it doesn't work like that."

Further reading: nzherald.co.nz/americascup