Team NZ’s perfect counter to race-hardened Italians
Forget what Jimmy Spithill will argue, when it comes to continuity, familiarity and success, writes Duncan Johnstone, the Kiwi crew are in a class of their own.
Team New Zealand are backing their crew continuity and familiarity to offset the growing claims of a race-hardened Luna Rossa in the America’s Cup match.
A delayed racing schedule is set to get under way on Wednesday and be sure to hear the likes of Luna Rossa cohelmsman Jimmy Spithill talking up the equation of racing against training, especially with the Kiwis not having lined up in a proper race since December 20.
While the defenders trained alone during January and February, Luna Rossa had 18 races, winning 14 of them, including 11 of their last 12 in the pressurecooker elimination stages of the Prada Cup series.
But there’s extreme confidence in the Team New Zealand around their crew work, and justifiably so.
The core of this team has been shoulder-to-shoulder for the better part of eight years. Brought together in the buildup to the successful challenge at Bermuda 2017, they have grown considerably for the 2021 defence at home.
Peter Burling, Blair Tuke, Glenn Ashby, Andy Maloney and Josh Junior form the ‘‘tight five’’, remarkable sailors in a variety of classes who have transferred that success to the America’s Cup scene.
Joseph Sullivan, Carlo Huisman, Guy Endean and Simon van Velthooven are grinders who have also kicked on from Bermuda, a campaign where the Kiwis trained alone, turned up late and found form the moment they hit the tropical waters.
‘‘Blair and myself have been together longer than that,’’ Burling said, noting their 49er partnership that began in 2009 and has netted six world titles and Olympic gold and silver.
‘‘You add Glenn, Andy and Josh into the mix, and it’s probably the main five controllers on the boat. We have all done a lot of time together. We were all part of the crew in Bermuda, we all have known each other for a lot longer than that. That really puts us in a strong position when the pressure really does come on, which it will.’’
At 43, Ashby is the senior statesman. A survivor from the 2013 heartbreak in San Francisco, he was virtually a lone figure in the Team NZ rebuild. When Burling and Tuke were signed, followed by Junior and Maloney, he and coach Ray Davies took them under their wings to school them in the realities of the America’s Cup environment.
Ashby marvels at the way they have matured into such a formidable force. Their voices have grown as much as their sailing, and in a design philosophy so reliant on sailor input, they have all been crucial to the development of the boat and the way it is sailed.
‘‘Seeing the younger guys come through has been incredible,’’ Ashby told Stuff.
‘‘The experience, the dedication and the talent those guys have, particularly pooled together coming from different classes, is absolutely incredible. It really is very, very satisfying to see how that has all shaped up.
‘‘To still be part of it is really wonderful. The symmetry on the boat is pretty special.
‘‘The guys are extremely talented at pushing the boat hard and also delving into the information and data side of things to actually keep making improvements with the designers and the engineers.’’
There’s a stark contrast in the Luna Rossa camp with their Cup continuity broken by their decision to withdraw from Bermuda 2017. Back in the game for Auckland 2021, their lack of cohesion was exposed during the Prada Cup round-robins.
To their credit, Luna Rossa have worked hard to refine their systems and were operating with real slickness during the business end of the challenger series. Spithill has undoubtedly provided a hard edge and competitiveness that was missing from previous Italian Cup campaigns.
Ashby acknowledges the genuine claims coming from the opposition camp about being match-ready, though he still likes the extra development time Team NZ have enjoyed while the Italians have had their boat locked into race mode.
‘‘The racing they have had is absolutely and undoubtedly a bit of an advantage for them,’’ Ashby said.
‘‘However, we have been able to keep developing, keep pushing ourselves and not really have to worry about measurement and the racing side of things as well.
‘‘I feel like we are in good shape; I don’t think there’s any stone that’s been left unturned in our preparation.’’
‘‘We have all done a lot of time together . . . That really puts us in a strong position when the pressure really does come on.’’ Peter Burling