Division getting started on Saturday and concerned about the shortage of umpires at Premier Division matches so early in the season.

It was only late on Friday afternoon when an official of the Bermuda Cricket Board of Control (BCBC) contacted the various clubs to advise them of impending matches...the next day.

Several clubs felt this to be inadequate notice for them to formulate teams and make necesarry arrangements -- for home or away games -- and it is believed that no matches were played.

When contacted yesterday, BCBC vice-president Reggie Pearman referred inquiries to Clarence Tucker, who he said was responsible for the scheduling of matches. Tucker could not be reached for comment and nobody was available for comment at the BCBC office.

This follows on the heels of last year when at least one club claimed to have played exactly half a match the entire season in the First Division, which was plagued with the usual high number of defaults and was never completed.

According to the master schedule, the league was due to start April 10, along with the Youth League, another competition that has had similar organisational problems. That date was dropped to accomodate the FA Cup final and the start off pushed back one week.

More concern surrounds the umpiring situation where the first two weeks of the season have seen several matches featuring a single official performing duties.

Secretary of the Bermuda Cricket Umpires Association, George Francis, could not be reached for comment, however full slates of umpires -- two for each match -- for the first sets of weekend matches were submitted to The Royal Gazette .