The Blues last made the playoffs seven years ago and breaking that drought now looks impossible.
There are two major reasons 29 of the Blues' 38-man squad (76 per cent) came through the Auckland school system.
The first is obvious: Auckland offers the largest talent pool in the country.
From Malakai Fekitoa to Waisake Naholo and Kieran Read, Auckland rugby has long been criticised for letting quality players slip through the cracks. For the Blues to ignore the abundance of local talent would be negligent.
In all, there are 61 players from the Blues region in New Zealand's five Super Rugby teams, highlighting the region's ever-emerging depth.
"One of our pillars is to try to recruit from within, yet we also want to make sure we're getting the best person," Blues coach Tana Umaga says. "That comes into the equation when they are physically, technically and tactically similar.
"We can't go away from the fact this is the hotbed of football for any code so we shouldn't have to go out.
"If we do, they have to be quite exceptional to go past what we've got here and also offer us something different.
"We're very conscious of developing local players. Knowing guys who come through school and live here see a pathway to the Blues is important, but we also can't sit around and wait, because we know someone else is knocking on their door trying to pick them off."
The problem for the Blues is attracting exceptional recruits to complement that local talent is a major, long-standing issue.
The Hurricanes, the Kiwi team with the second-most homegrown players, have a much easier time recruiting. Ben Lam, Vince Aso, Sam Lousi, Vaea Fifita and Michael Fatialofa all moved from Auckland.
The Crusaders, with their rich history of success, are also an easy sell.
Every New Zealand team, bar the Blues, has won a title in the last five years. That success undoubtedly makes it easier to persuade players to commit futures there.
The dream scenario for the Blues would see them recruit a world-class fullback, lock and midfielder to join the mix. In Stephen Perofeta, there is hope they finally have a first five-eighths to build around.
But filling other key areas remains problematic, given they are not the preferred destination for many emerging or established stars.
"You have the successes and the ones that decide to go other places. That's just the nature of the game and the circumstances of each individual. You can only try your best," Umaga says.
"What I've learned from other sports is there's a pecking order in who you want to get to.
"It's when you have to keep dropping down when your original choices don't keep coming through that you need to look at things."
Luring marquee stars is even more challenging than signing youngsters because a move to the Blues is still seen as rolling the dice.
Umaga had success nabbing Sonny Bill Williams and Augustine Pulu, but that was solely down to his personal relationships with them.
All Blacks wing Matt Duffie was another good get, but his interest centred largely on moving home from Melbourne.
"Everyone has connections. You think about guys like Ben Smith, he's Dunedin through and through so it would be hard to get him out of there. Beauden Barrett and his connection to the Canes is another.
"We want that connection that they are proud of the team and the region because, as you see with other clubs, that digs a bit deeper than just playing for a jersey."
At the other end of the spectrum, young players seek the best development systems, where they see the best chance of progressing to the All Blacks.
Individuals can still shine in poorly performing teams. Despite their struggles, the Blues had a decent representation of six All Blacks on the northern tour last year.
But it is much easier to develop confidence and form in winning environments. For the Blues, once again at the foot of the Kiwi conference, this makes for a vicious cycle.
In the recruitment battle their only advantage is often offering a faster route to game-time than others who may be two or three deep in most positions.
"Young guys want to play straight away so it's making sure you have their best interests. Coming straight from high school into Super Rugby we've seen guys like Blake Gibson and the amount of injuries he's had.
"Although the want is there it's the reality of what you're chucking them into. We want them for a long time not just overnight."
Promoting from within is admirable but in a results-driven industry, it counts for little unless success follows.
