As seen by the recent obstacles encountered by Stephen Astwood, it is becoming abundantly clear that a direct route to professional football is a very tall order.

Times have changed since the days when Clyde Best, Shaun Goater and Kyle Lightbourne enjoyed a comparatively smooth transition into the English leagues. Since then, new legislation on work permits and increasing international competition for limited Premiership positions have dashed the childhood dreams of many talented Bermudian footballers.

Amidst the growing adversity that appears to have left the Bermudian footballer with very little hope, a frequently quoted cliche seems to encompass the perfect antidote: "Education is the key to success.'' This year's Dudley Eve competition provides a glaring example of how education may be the ticket to professional soccer as many of the participants are actually promising college students home on Christmas vacation.

Devonshire Colts' inspirational midfielder Damon Ming, who is presently studying sports management at High Point University in North Carolina, believes that there are many advantages to playing college soccer, particularly with the growth of the United States-based Major League Soccer (MLS).

"The advantages of taking the college route are that being away you get to broaden your horizons and there are a lot of scouts,'' said Ming. "Nobody really knows about Bermuda so they are not going to travel all the way down here to seek out players where as abroad there are numerous teams now that the MLS has started and coaches are scouting for that league.'' "Also, coaches from abroad are scouting in the US because US soccer is starting to raise the level of play, so, I think it would be a big advantage for young players to take interest in going abroad to school and to play soccer,'' Ming concluded.

Ming has attracted interest from lower level professionl teams while playing for his school but he has first set his sights on graduating in May 2002 before considering any possible professional soccer options.

PHC goalkeeper Jay Smith echoed the sentiments expressed by Ming. "Being away in school is a great advantage because you get to play at a higher level than what is found in Bermuda, especially now that Bermuda's level of football has fallen back,'' said Smith who is studying marketing at Alabama A&M University.

Smith aspires to play professionally in Europe or the United States and sees college as the avenue through which he and other young players can achieve their dreams.

"Obviously, Bermudians are not going to be able to get work permits in England so it might be best for young players to go through the United States,'' Smith contends.

"It is going to be hard to finish high school in Bermuda and then try to make it as a professional because as you can see, no matter how good you are, you are not going to get in. You might as well go to the collegiate level first.'' For Smith, college is the perfect stepping-stone between local soccer and professional soccer and it also provides him with a career on which he can fall back if his soccer career does not work out.

"Trying to go from Bermuda to professional is hard because you are going from training maybe once a week and one game on the weekend to training every morning, day and night. At the college soccer, you are playing one level under the professional level.

"You train five days a week and then two games on the weekend so it is almost like it (professional soccer). It is going to be harder to make one big jump to professional football from Bermuda. It would be better to go to college where you can further your education at the same time. It is a win-win situation,'' explained Smith.

Smith also believes that there are adequate soccer scholarship opportunities available for anyone who has the discipline to be able to go to school. Local players often lack the mental fortitude and positive attitude needed to transfer natural ability into international success.

"Bermudians have never lacked ability but we often have the wrong attitudes or we just don't take school seriously,'' said Smith.

"The scholarships are there, it is just a matter of the player getting his priorities in order and you don't have to be the smartest person in the world to go to college.

"To be successful in college you must have discipline to be able to balance your social life with academics. It is easy to get into school and once you get in, there are tutors and other resources that can help you. The hardest part is staying on the team because there are good players from around the world.''