In America’s Cup Final, Will It Be Cheers for Conner, Jeers for Parry?

Australians rooting for Dennis Conner to win back the America’s Cup?

Don’t laugh. To Australians, losing to Conner may be more appealing than winning with Kevin Parry.

The victory by Parry’s Kookaburra III over Alan Bond’s Australia IV in the defender trials Tuesday hit this country like a wet blanket. The best-of-seven Cup final start Jan. 31.

Parry’s first act as head of the defending syndicate was to lash back at Bond’s good-natured charge during a dockside ceremony. Said Bond: “The awesome responsibility rests with you, Kevin. We won it. Don’t you lose it.”

Then Bond turned to the crowd of several hundred and said: “If Kevin doesn’t defend it, we’ll go and get it back for you.”

Parry had no chance to respond at the time, but at a media conference later, he answered his antagonist.

“Frankly, Alan, your statement threw unnecessary Australian pressure on us,” Parry began. “I think that’s childish, unnecessary and not worthy of your previous efforts.”

Bond had mentioned returning to challenge in 1990 with the boxing kangaroo as his battle flag.

“I don’t think the kangaroo belongs to you,” Parry said, “I don’t think the kookaburra belongs to us, and Warren’s welcome to his dingoes.”

He meant Warren Jones, the executive director of Bond’s syndicate who had said the protest-happy Kookaburras “howled like wounded dingoes (Australian wild dogs)” every time they lost.

“We’re out there doing our best,” Parry continued. “We’re not prepared to put up with any needling or any sparks. The fact that you weren’t good enough in the rundown to provide any competition is just a fact of life.

“I’m not interested in media campaigns to denigrate our efforts. I’m not interested in people creating innuendoes. The truth speaks for itself. I sometimes wonder whether the media speaks for itself. Over the past week, it’s been impossible to watch the defense races on Channel 9.”

Bond owns Perth’s Channel 9, and on Tuesday he managed to upstage his rival tycoon’s proud moment by announcing a $1 billion acquisition of other stations for a national network, with tentacles into the South Pacific.

Maybe that’s what really got under Parry’s skin. Twelve-meters are mere toys to these guys.

Parry’s boat had just disposed of Bond’s outfit in five straight races, the last by 55 seconds. But Parry’s craft was towed into the tiny harbor virtually in silence, hardly disturbing the birds.

Parry already had a big public relations problem, but after his attack on Bond his national esteem hit a new low. Outraged Australians, realizing that this was the face they would present to the world, were phoning newspapers and television and radio stations to protest.

When the crew returned to the harbor Tuesday after wrapping up the series, the sailors were on deck, ready to be greeted like conquering heroes.

But only a few hundred people lined the surrounding docks, one deep, and occasionally another boat blew its whistle. There was none of the crush and wild waving and yelling and carrying on that greeted Conner’s crew after he eliminated New Zealand a day earlier.

Out front of the waterfront compounds along Mews Road, not a single customer was buying a Kookaburra or Australia IV souvenir. The gates were not opened to well-wishers because there were no well-wishers to open the gates to.

On the water, it was a sad day for Bond, who became a national hero for his persistent efforts that in 1983 gave Australia one of its greatest moments in sports. The controversial but charismatic Bond was clearly the people’s choice over the brooding newcomer, Parry, who preferred to play the game in the protest room.

John Hamilton, cityside columnist for the West Australian, said: “I assure you that when they go to sea, the people here will be cheering Dennis Conner and booing Kevin Parry, and I don’t know how they (the Kookaburra syndicate) can retrieve the situation.”

Of course, one’s sympathy for Bond is restrained by the news of his expanding empire and that he can tour it anytime he wants to on his new $28-million yacht, Southern Cross III.

Rooting for Alan Bond is like rooting for General Motors. To say that he would trade it all for another America’s Cup might be reaching, but the man’s place in his country’s heart is assured.

Before Bond’s remarks, even Parry paid tribute to Bond as “a very hard act to follow, Alan going to Newport (R.I.) and defeating the Americans at their own game.”

Commodore Alan Crewe announced that the upstairs room in the Royal Perth Yacht Club where the America’s Cup resides--at least for the next three weeks--has been named the “Alan Bond America’s Cup Room.”

But then it all went sour.

Parry said his syndicate has been the victim of “a one-sided media war.”

A reporter asked him why he seemed an ungracious winner.

“Thank you for putting it so nicely,” Parry replied. “We’ve taken a lot of (criticism). I know the spirit of competition takes many forms, (but) people are entitled to be protected, and the only time we’ve ever spoken back is when it’s hurt some of our people, and it does hurt them to be projected in a false manner and spoken about badly.

“They aren’t allowed to answer back, to be drawn into that sort of situation, and every so often I think somebody has to say a few words.

“If you think I’ve been ungracious in my reply tonight, I’d appreciate the opportunity to try to correct that. I take that as constructive criticism.”

Neither Australian syndicate has been readily accessible to reporters, and neither skipper--AIV’s Colin Beashel or KIII’s Iain Murray--has much to say. At least Warren Jones’ colorful and often eloquent comments have kept Australia IV’s image up.

Jones admitted that when AIV changed its keel before the finals, “we screwed up.”

Then he leaned forward and howled into a microphone: “Arooooo! Arf! Arf! That’s a wounded dingo, and tonight I’m a wounded dingo.”

Both sides said all along they would help the survivor.

“I don’t want you to think we have any arguments among ourselves,” Parry said, drawing laughter.

Bond said: “Our offer is for the benefit of Australia to retain the Cup. I’m not going to comment on Mr. Parry’s idiosyncrasies.”

Parry’s most revealing comment was: “I think we do have an obligation to the media. I don’t quite know how to do that. Perhaps that’s one of the ways the Bond syndicate could help us.”

Bond got the last word.

“The comments I made, Kevin, are very realistic,” he said. “I’ll say ‘em again, in case you didn’t get ‘em. I said, ‘Don’t lose the Cup.’ It’s very simple. You’ve got the job in front of you. So you get off your backside and do something about it. That’s a responsibility you took on.

“I think you will get the people of Australia behind you if you act in a manner to encourage them to support you.”

Down to its last card Tuesday, Australia IV threw it away in the seconds before the start.

Skipper Colin Beashel, whose competence has been questioned recently, was in a controlling position on port tack under Kookaburra III’s bow, with plenty of line to his left, when, with 24 seconds remaining, he suddenly jibed and headed the other way.

KIII starting helmsman Peter Gilmour jibed around on top of AIV, which was forced away from the line and behind the committee boat. KIII then hung there, head to wind, holding AIV out until Beashel had to fall off in the wrong direction.

He started 36 seconds behind KIII and was never in contention. In the moderate winds of 12 to 14 knots, AIV occasionally recorded superior speed, but it was negated by the prestart foul-up.

British skipper Harold Cudmore, commenting on television, said it was “singularly, the worst start I’ve ever seen in the America’s Cup.”

America’s Cup Notes Kookaburra III skipper Iain Murray had said his boat picked up speed in the finals by doing something ridiculously simple. Tuesday night, he revealed the secret: They sanded blisters off the bottom of the keel that had slowed them down in the semifinals. “It’s probably quite laughable,” Murray said. . . . Asked about the Cup final, Murray said: “I’ve never actually met big bad Dennis (Conner). I’ve never actually come face to face with the man. I certainly admire his sailing skill and the people in (his) organization. I think his boat shows tremendous upwind speed in heavy air, and I think our boat has done the same in the last week. It will be an interesting competition.” . . . Alan Bond has made a deal to sell part of his 12-meter operation--including boats, perhaps--to Japanese real estate developer Yoshiya Kobayashi.