I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but I believe you`re dealing with PU (polyurethane) coated nylon on the coated parts of that tent.

the PU coated nylon has a history of getting ``sticky`` when stored for longer periods, especially in heat. Now I`ve visited down under and I know you guys can get some pretty good hot on, so if your tent was stored outside, that might be one factor in the degredation of the materiel.

I`ve had a sticky PU tent in my distant past. cornstarch or baby powder can make it `less sticky` but won`t fix the degreation or make the materiel waterproof again. Most of the advice I`ve seen on the subject says it`s time to say goodbye and buy a new one..

The only consolation I might be able to give you is that silnylon doensn`t degrade like that, so a modern tent from tarptent or six moon designs might not have the problem, and will be cheaper than $1000 AUD...