Three weeks after the suspension of their programme, Bermuda?s Under-20 footballers are back in training.

The squad returned to practice on Monday at Bermuda College which will be their new base given the National Sports Centre?s (NSC) inability to accommodate them.

However, the plight of the Island?s Under-17 unit hangs in the balance as the Bermuda Football Association (BFA) is yet to find somewhere for those players to train; albeit just two months from their World Cup qualifier in Cuba.

?It?s a big challenge. We?re exploring options every day but certain venues are not available. So far we have been rejected by a few,? said BFA technical director Kenny Thompson of the predicament with the Under-17 squad.

Still thankful to have at least one youth team back ?up and running?, he noted Under-20 selectees have shown ?great enthusiasm? and are very motivated ahead of their World Cup qualifier in Jamaica in August.

?The events of the last week have served to take their motivation, to be part of the national team programme, even higher as they look forward to success in their own World Cup campaign,? said Thompson.

?Many are looking to get into the senior national team and they understand this is a stepping stone to the senior national team.?

Asked if the three-week disruption was a major blow to the Under-20s, he replied ?any time lost to preparation is significant?.

?When we had people making statements regarding how often we want to train it showed an attitude which Bermuda has been guilty of in years past; of putting a team together a few weeks before a major event and maybe a handful of training sessions will suffice. That?s not good enough.

?My response to things like that is that it?s the same type of concept that?s required for school students. They don?t go to school for three weeks and then take exams. There are 200 days in a school year.

?It?s the same thing for the technical and physical development of football players.?

The senior national coach said the important thing now was to make the most of the time left to prepare the team properly for their World Cup assignment.

Once again financial constraints have thwarted BFA plans to send the two age-group teams to the USA for warm-up matches versus clubs in the Super Y League.

Meanwhile, Thompson also revealed the senior team will compete in the Caribbean Cup ? a qualifier for the CONCACAF Gold Cup ? in late August with home-and-away games against Aruba.

The winners advance to a group stage in October or November in the Cayman Islands to battle the hosts, St. Vincent and the British Virgin Islands. The top two sides will then move on to a knockout round.

The senior team which battled to a 2-2 draw with the Salvadoreans at the National Sports Centre (losing the first leg 2-1) have been granted a month off before training resumes.

Regarding whether certain older players might bow out of national duty at this stage, Thompson said he was unsure as he had not discussed the matter with any of them.