The MCC tour finished last week and with the exception of two losses, the MCC team dominated the Bermuda opposition.What did Bermuda gain from this tour is the question? It is possible that head coach David Moore got more headaches from this one tour than his whole coaching tenure thus far.Have any new faces done well enough to possibly stake a claim for Twenty20 Global Qualifiers in Dubai in March? Will this tour be the start of a resurrection for Bermuda cricket?Over the duration of the MCC tour, Moore had problems just piecing together a team to play at times. Mr. Dennis Wainwright spoke publicly recently in The Royal Gazette about the current day player’s lack of interest in playing, but is that really the case or are there deeper underlying issues that players only speak about amongst themselves?It bothers me when people talk and don’t know the facts about player unavailability. In most cases specifically for games during the week some players like Lionel (Cann), Stephen (Outerbridge), Irving (Romaine), to name a few, are unavailable solely because of their jobs not releasing them.Should they risk losing their employment in these economic times to play for their country? What the elder spokesmen should have been asking is why didn’t the Government and Bermuda Cricket Board sort out government employee availability long before for such an important tour?It obviously was an important tour to the BCB as David Hemp and Stefan Kelly were flown from the UK, but our local boys were unable to join them.Then of course there were others who made themselves unavailable, harbouring issues and holding on to past grudges. When players like Rodney Trott and Malachi Jones are no-shows, questions have to be asked?While others have bailed out in the past, Rodney and Malachi have been faithful and stuck it out with Bermuda. So why did they opt out of playing this tour for most part?Looking at the bigger picture, it is more than just the absence of Rodney and Malachi that should be cause for concern. Justin Pitcher was absent until the last game, along with the likes of George O’Brien, Delyone Borden and Chris Foggo, just to name a few.This list could go on and on as too many of our quality cricketers simply were not interested as their boycott of this tour shows. It’s easy for the public to make assumptions about drug testing, but these suspicions are all unfounded as all of these players have been tested before and travelled with Bermuda, so there must be another underlying issue.Instead of an inquiry about the finances, maybe an inquiry needs to be held about player involvement or lack thereof.Bermuda, the time has come for a players union, whereby a representative will be able to speak on behalf of the players without the fear of repercussions. Players want to speak, but are afraid of being “black balled” and labelled.Something must be put in place to bridge the gap between the Board and the players. It is long overdue for an open forum between the Board and the players . . . an open and honest discussion from both parties. This is the only way to heal the rifts that ultimately are hindering our advancement.In an effort to see where we have gone wrong and how we can start to fix it here is some feedback from the 2005 and 2007 players.Dean Minors: “I see a great deal of communicative distance between the national team members and the Board. They have a perception of us, and us of them. We now have players that cannot express themselves and it’s wrong, especially in fear of retribution. Many of the players need to be respected and heard because their concerns are valid. Currently, we have too many problems within our cricket and they are spaced all over the place:n Players’ attitudes and lack of passion.n No umpires or umpires lacking game management (keeping the game and players disciplined).n Board not operating transparently.n Older players not giving back to the national squad for various reasons Board in how it operates, players’ attitudes, etc.n Clubs not pulling their weight pitches, changing rooms and grounds below standardsn Outdated coaching methods at the club level and other levels coaches constantly need professional development.n Better incentive for players at the national level.n Board representatives need to be seen on a Sunday at cricket games participating in an official role (match referee, official) etc.“The list can go on and on but at the end of the day all of these ideas have to be categorised into different areas and have those on the Board taking care of them.”Irvin Romaine: “Junior cricket! Cricket in the schools has to be improved. At the present moment several PE teachers do not even teach the basic skills anymore during school time.“In school is the only time you can reach out to every child in the Island. Not all parents send their children to clubs after school to get better coaching. Also cricket in the schools is played during exam time during the school year. Some principals do not even allow teams to leave to play games during this time.“These situations only allow our present day children to play eight to ten games which are put on by the BCB. That isn’t enough games for children when they are at the crucial time of their development.“I believe children should be playing games all summer. BCB cricket ends in June, which means the children only play games during the summer if they are involved in Junior Eastern Counties or Colts Cup Match.”Ryan Steede: “Part of the problem I think is that too many players retired too early because of what people were saying. Basically Bermudians were saying get rid of all the senior players and breed youngsters.“I think today’s players have no work ethic and are spoon fed. Unity played a tremendous part in our qualifications and players worked hard for one another. Today’s players’ bark is bigger than their bite.“They think they are better than what they produce. Respect for the game has definitely gone out the window. In order to fix our problems we need a collective effort from all involved in cricket.“We need an indoor centre like the Frank Worrell Training Centre in Trinidad. If we have a centre like that players can train all year round, also be taped and have their game modified. One thing Gus (Logie) did that can help the current group is have one-on-one sessions during players’ lunch times or whenever they are available as not everyone can train because of work commitments.”Steven Outerbridge: “I think it’s a million things we could do differently. We as players need to take more responsibility in improving our game outside the norms of domestic cricket.“Coaches at all levels need to understand modern coaching techniques and principles with the abilities to be able to implement a solid development infrastructure at all our clubs. Alternatively, a generic coaching manual, preferably designed from those heading the coaching at the national level be mandated for cricket development at all levels of cricket.“This will hopefully close the gap between what is expected at club and national representative cricket. Another issue that needs to be assessed is the collectiveness between those involved in the game; past players, administrators, current players, umpires and clubs. It seems when something goes wrong it is always slapped on the current player, which is unfair.“I am sick and tired of past players blaming us for everything. My challenge is for our so-called great players to put up or shut up. If you are a so-called great player put on a workshop or go to your local club and lend assistance. Otherwise I do not want to hear your opinions if you are not willing to help get Bermuda cricket to a competitive level.”There are issues are arising day by day in our national sport and whoever takes over the role of presidency has a tremendous job ahead. One thing the new president will have to have is the player’s backing and confidence.If these facets are missing, we will be another four years in the wilderness. In our small Island we cannot afford three to five of our top players to go missing and not play. While we can sit and say that cricket will go on regardless if they play or not we have to be mindful that we don’t want our cricket to continue spiralling backwards? So my question now is who is the right man for the job of presidency of the BCB?In closing, if Bermuda is to have any chance of Twenty20 success in Dubai our team should be as close to this as possible and in batting order: Dion Stovell, Glen Blakeney, Lionel Cann, Stephen Outerbridge, Janeiro Tucker, David Hemp, Dean Minors, Malachi Jones, Justin Pitcher, Kevin Hurdle, Delyone Borden. Reserves: Lateef Trott, Rodney Trott, Allan Douglas Jr.