flock to National Stadium on Sunday to remember is that the 1-0 victory over El Salvador is a thing of the past.

No one can deny Kyle Lightbourne's superb winning goal and the determination the team showed throughout in defeating a country that has qualified for two World Cup finals.

Those two points are in the bag and any others that are to come during this second-round league format will be equally as hard to come by.

Much has been said and written of El Salvador and the probability that they are the strongest side in Group B, which also contains 1986 finalists Canada and Jamaica, who we will see this weekend.

Maybe, maybe not.

But that does not erode the fact that Jamaica will come forth with a more determined effort. And with the knowledge gained from playing the Jamaicans twice in the past year, national coach Gary Darrell knows it will be bruising encounter.

He has made it quite clear that he would have preferred the highly-touted Trinidad and Tobago side instead. But they were taken care of by Jamaica 3-2 on aggregate in the last round.

So, Bermuda and Bermuda's fans. Be prepared for a war. Plus the fact that our brothers to the southwest will have a huge following here, which neither El Salvador nor Canada can boast.

Remember the days when support for the national team was clearly divided and West Indian residents outcheered locals? It was not long ago. Just over 12 months to be exact.

Back to last Sunday's match, it was one of the more complete performances by a Bermuda team.

Unlike the one-sided affair against Antigua, Bermuda were forced to defend at times by a skillful side whose off-the-ball running created a few problems.

On a whole, coach Darrell's gamble with the five-man defence worked as Leroy Stevens and Kentoine Jennings combined to diffuse a serious threat in striker Oscar Ulloa, the number nine.

Neil Paynter's first match at sweeper was sound though not spectacular. He escaped twice when half-clearances were not capitalised upon by the Salvadoreans.

Goalkeeper Dwayne Adams can expect to be tested more if such cases arise against Jamaica, witnessed by their stunning goal in the 1-1 draw with Canada in Kingston.

In order to put Paynter at the heart of defence, Darrell had to find something to do with Shawn Smith. At first the move to put him in midfield looked like a ploy to keep a promising player in the side. But after the first 45 minutes when the game passed him by, Smith played a vital role in keeping Bermuda on top of the visitors. He can only get better there.

With suspended Kyle Lightbourne out for Sunday, his PHC team-mate Sammy Swan looks like getting the starting nod alongside Elliott Jennings. That alone heightens the need to get top scorer Shawn Goater into more dangerous positions until such time that enforcer Philip Clarke is introduced.

Goater, while effective in his second match in midfield for Bermuda, spent far too much time in his own half on Sunday. What that resulted in was that Lightbourne and Jennings often lacked quick support when receiving service from flank defenders Voorhees Astwood and Meshach Wade who both had very strong games.

To be fair, this was prominent throughout most of the first half when we were feeling out the opposition and then the early parts of the second half.

The key thing, wherever Goater plays, is that he has the ball at his feet in or around the opposition's penalty area where he can make something special happen. That did not happen enough on Sunday.

The crowd is vital for their support but the El Salvador match highlighted the negative effects of over-exuberance.

Lightbourne's goal touched off a scene that could still land Bermuda in hot water with FIFA. Soccer's governing body contacted the BFA over Lightbourne's suspension and could still be mulling punitive measures for the pitch invasion.

Right now, no news is good news but the BFA needs to take steps to ensure this never happens again. And it could start with a more adequate seating area for dignitaries at a sufficient distance from the playing area.

And now to Peter Bromby.

Bermuda's top athlete off land never ceases to amaze. And today he will bid to continue his merry run through the Omega Gold Cup when he takes on world match racing champion Russell Coutts of New Zealand in the quarter-finals.

Bromby, who financed his Olympic campaign with little sponsorship, other than from his loyal supporters at the Sandys Boat Club, confirmed his class in dispatching of world number 33 Marc Pajot of France, the seventh seed here, in three races -- each quite comfortably.

The opposition for Coutts will indeed be formidable and all Bermuda sailors...and those who still question the quality this little island can produce should witness this match-up.