Crank, no start after 9 months storage

Crank, no start after 9 months storage

I usually store the ZHP for 6 months during winter. This year it sat for 9 months before it was fired up.
It always struggle on the first crank but this year was a doozy.

The CCV has been renewed, so have the spark plugs and there is no vacuum leak. The battery is one year old and was tendered all the time when in storage. When it sits for 6 months it is difficult to start and runs rough for the first minute or so. I always use Stabil on a full tank and ran for 5 minutes. I'm pretty sure I did use Stabil this time but I have doubts. I may have forgotten.

This time around it took minutes of successive cranking to finally get it to fire. I probably damaged the starter in the process but it is getting changed with the clutch soon anyway. I got misfire codes. Cylinder 3, cylinder 6, multiple cylinders. Cleared those and kept cranking. Pulled the spark plugs and dried them form the fuel. Reinserted and repeated the cycle 3 or 4 times.

I've been reading everything I can here and everywhere else and have it down to 4 possibilities.

1. Bad fuel (91 octane but 9 months old no less);
2. MAF on the way out (Original);
3. ignition coils are tired (They are original from 17 years ago and 120,000 Km);
4. No combustion pressure from cylinders washed down with un-burned fuel.

After clearing the initial misfire codes I had no codes even if it was failing to start.
Once started and running rough for 5 minutes it works fine. Starts on the first crank. I'm baffled.
The only thing that changed from the initial no start condition is the cylinder walls are now oiled properly. Same tired MAF and ignition coils, same fuel.

The only thing that gets worse from a 6 months storage to a 9 months storage is also the possible lack of compression from dry cylinder walls.
Could it be as simple as Engine Storage Spray to keep the cylinder walls lubricated and insure compression ?
Could it be even simpler and a case of deactivating the fuel pump relay and turn the engine 2 or 3 bursts to restore proper lubrication before attempting a restart ?

And why is this not an issue with the E36 ... ?