As we have done throughout the season, we put some key questions to Auckland Tuatara GM Dale Budge.
How are we feeling after the weekend?
Obviously we are very disappointed. The goal from the outset this year was to win the competition and anything other than that feels like we fell short. There is no getting around that. But this is professional sport, and our opponents also have the same goals. Our group threw everything we had at it and the organisation is immensely proud of them. We have an amazing group of coaches, management and players that we wouldn’t change for the world. It hurts because this group deserves to be called champions. We will come back again next season and try and change that.
Did the home final assist the Rams?
Yes, of course it did and so it should. They earned top spot and earned the right to host the Grand Final. Their fans were loud and were right behind their team and I’m sure that has an influence on the home side’s performance. It potentially influences refereeing decisions as well in that the home fans will let refs know if something is going against their side. That’s how it should be. We had the benefit of playing a home semi-final at Eventfinda Stadium on the Wednesday night and that helped our side in the same way. We commend the League on how they staged the playoffs this season – it was the first year we have done it this way and while I’m sure we can find some lessons from this season that we can apply in future years, the move was a positive one.
The Tuatara are the first team in history to lose three straight Grand Finals – how does that feel?
This is an interesting point and I’m not sure why it is a thing? Maybe it is just a random talking point for media. If we’d lost in the semis this year or even run last in 2024, no one would be talking about it. It is an achievement to make three consecutive Grand Finals – I’m sure there are nine other franchises out there that would have loved to have achieved what we have achieved. We’re gutted not to have won one of them, but the other team was better on the day on each of those occasions. It is worth noting that no team has won as many games as the Tuatara have since we joined the Sal’s NBL. The Tuatara have never lost a semi-final or play-in game. During that same three-year span, the Wellington Saints (easily the most successful franchise in this competition and the benchmark we all measure ourselves against) haven’t won a single play-off game. The Sal’s NBL these days is a tough competition, making the playoffs is a significant achievement and getting to three Grand Finals is something we should be proud of.
Was 2024 a success for the Tuatara?
Absolutely! While it hurts right now that we didn’t win that elusive title, there is more to success than championships. We made massive gains with our fans this season – selling out eight of 10 home games and seeing many of the same fans come back each game. We have secured some amazing commercial partners this season that has set the franchise up to succeed moving forward. Not only do our partners help us with financial support but they are genuinely part of our team, assisting us in any way they can and that is extremely humbling. It was amazing to see some of those partners with us in Christchurch over the weekend, riding the emotion with us, while others joined other fans at our watch party at Mayfield Sportshouse and shouted Tuatara fans some food and drink. We have a very special group of people in our corner, and we are extremely grateful for that. It is a tip of the hat to those people that the Tuatara was awarded the Fan Engagement Award by the Sal’s NBL in 2024 – something we are extremely proud of. In addition to the off-court success, we saw plenty of success on the court. We won 16 of our 20 regular season games for an 80% win-rate. That included the biggest win in franchise history and our biggest ever score in a single game as well. We enjoyed a 10-game winning streak during the season, dropped only one game at home all season – to the eventual champions – and had Rob Loe named to the All Star Five for the second year running. He also picked up the Defensive Player of the Year award for a second successive season and was the best Kiwi forward for a third straight year. Corey Webster had a superb season for us, leading the League in assists, while he, Tom Vodanovich and Reuben Te Rangi all made the Tall Blacks Olympic Qualifying side. It was amazing to see Charlie Dalton and Braydon Iuli join us mid-season and see how much both players have developed. They both got a chance with us as teenagers and have been a huge part of our franchise since it started. They have massive futures ahead and we hope they continue to come home to play for us in the ensuing years.
All in all we feel we are in a really good place to kick on from here and capitalise on the hard work we’ve all put in to really make some strides next season.
Will the coaching staff and players return in 2025?
It is too early to tell but it goes without saying we’d love to put the group back together again and make another run at this thing. As is the case with how the League operates, all players are off-contract now and so too is our coaching staff. We will have to wait for the League to confirm the salary system rules for 2025 before we can start making too many plans, but we’d love to have everyone come back again – this is a pretty special group. Many of our players are heading out this week to elsewhere in the world, some have new contracts and teams to join in the short term and we will need to take a few weeks to assess options before we can lock anything in for next season. It is fair to say we’d hope to have a similar look to our group next season.
So, is that it until 2025 for the Tuatara?
Not at all. We are working on a few things that will be exciting for our fans – so watch this space for some announcements. Memberships for 2025 will take us to a new level with some major changes set to really excite our fans – they will be on sale in the coming weeks. As we continue to grow, there will be more and more for our fans to get involved in and we look forward to sharing that with you as we move through the off-season. In the meantime, don’t hesitate to reach out with ideas or feedback and make sure you follow our friends at the BNZ Kahu as they get ready to defend their GJ Gardner Tauihi League crown. Thanks for your support this season!