America's Cup: Grant Dalton reveals Team New Zealand came within hours of closing their doors

You beauties ... Emirates Team New Zealand holds the Cup aloft. Photo / AP

Grant Dalton has revealed for the first time how close Team New Zealand came to closing their doors, telling the Herald the press release announcing the syndicate's closure had been drafted.

The Team NZ boss said in October 2015 the board of directors made the heart-wrenching decision that the cash-strapped syndicate had no option but to close up shop.

Only a last minute bail-out from an overseas donor allowed Team NZ to stay afloat.

Less than two years after the "darkest day" in Emirates Team New Zealand's history, Dalton was today holding aloft the America's Cup in Bermuda after the young crew led by Glenn Ashby, Peter Burling and Blair Tuke pulled off a dominant 7-1 win over Oracle Team USA.

"We were past shutting our doors," Dalton told the Herald.

"In my drafts, which I've kept since October 2015, which I wrote on a flight back to England - I keep it as sort of a motivation, is a draft of a press release to shut the team.

"We had a directors' meeting that afternoon, we decided we had to shut. I worked through that night and came up with some money by daybreak, and here we are."

Dalton would not say who helped Team NZ - the America's Cup's most enduring syndicate - stay alive.

"It was a combination of people. It was offshore money, and it kept us going."

Having had their "backs against the wall" at several points over this Cup cycle made today's victory an emotional one for Dalton, who endured a bitter public backlash early in the campaign after making a plea for more government funds.

"I certainly hugged a few more guys than I normally do, and a few of them had a tear in their eye.

"Credit to Matteo de Nora - he was the first guy I saw. He's just been amazing, as have Stephen Tindall and the rest of the directors. They've just been amazing."

"There were some pretty tough calls we've made when we've been pretty much against the wall in terms of money. It had gone in fact at one stage, and we came back."