f asked to name Bermuda?s greatest ever bowler, all those who saw him play would most likely say Clarence Parfitt without a moment?s hesitation.

Cup Match?s highest wicket taker certainly has a formidable reputation, with some even suggesting that he would have been good enough to push for a place in the West Indian side if Bermuda had been so affiliated.

But for those who weren?t around when Parfitt was tying most batsmen up in knots, it would be difficult to look much further than Dwayne (Sluggo) Leverock, the national team?s inspirational left-arm spinner.

For both club and country over the past decade, the 34-year-old has been a class apart, while even now his importance to the national team, both as a bowler and a man, cannot be overstated.

Gus Logie, not one to hand out praise lightly, has called him the side?s ?champion?.

And whether glancing at his statistics or watching him lift team-mates with his infectiously upbeat personality, it is not difficult to see why.

Though a touch shy in front of unfamiliar people, among his close friends Leverock is a bundle of energy and laughter, often regaling them with hysterical and elongated tales ? complete with facial expressions and animated hand movements which have them in stitches.

It is therefore only natural that he is revelling in the increased unity of the national side under Logie and Clay Smith?s leadership, and he doesn?t have to try hard to reveal that he loves being a senior figure in such a flourishing set-up.

?We have spent so much time together overseas that we have all become very close,? said Leverock, a 17-year veteran of the Police force.

?It helps that a lot of us grew up together and played cricket together as youngsters back in the Shell Youth days. So we all knew each other pretty well before, but now that a lot of us are senior players in the national team as we build up to the World Cup, the bond has become even stronger and we have a lot of fun and laughs.?

For anybody setting eyes on Leverock for the very first time, it would likely come as something of a shock to discover that he was once one of Bermuda?s top junior sprinters.

But not only did once he represent the Island at the Carifta Games in the javelin, the four by one hundred and the four by four hundred metres relay, but he was also an accomplished footballer, playing in a variety of positions for Devonshire Cougars, Dandy Town and PHC as a youngster, though often as a powerful and speedy striker.

The son of the late Russell Leverock, a talented sportsman in his own right, it was of no great surprise that a young Sluggo excelled in whichever sport he turned his attention to ? and he credits the support of his family for much of his early success.

?Both sides of my family were very in to sports, but particularly cricket and soccer,? he said.

?My father and my mother were really behind me as far as sports were concerned and it is down to their encouragement and help that I kept on working hard at it and trying to be the best I could be.

?I just love sports, whether it is playing them or watching them. It is such an important part of my life. I also think it builds character in people and many of the lessons you learn on the field can also be used in everyday life.?

It is not being unkind to state, however, that the days of Leverock?s supremely athletic youth are long gone, and at close to 300 pounds, the subject of his weight is never far from the surface.

To his great credit, he has worked incredibly hard over the last few years to keep himself in adequate shape for cricket, conscious as he is of the need to stay injury free with so many important games still to be played.

He is also refreshingly honest about his battles against the bulge and how he has learned to deal with the extra attention ? and often ridicule ? which his size frequently attracts.

?It really used to bother me when people said things about my weight,? he admitted.

?I used to get upset and say things back ? but to be honest it has been an issue for so long now that I don?t let it bother me any more and I am able to laugh about it.

?I have to put in a lot of time in the gym just to keep myself down to the weight I am now, and right now myself and Irving Romaine have got a nice little routine going at the Olympic Club which I have started to really enjoy.

?It?s a great feeling getting up in the morning and going to the gym ? I feel a lot fresher and more energetic and it has helped a lot with my mobility in the field.

?I do a lot of cardio work ? a lot of spinning sessions and I?ve also started to work a bit more on my flexibility by doing yoga.

?But the reality is that I?m not going to be thin again no matter how much work I put in ? this is just the way I am and all I?m worried about is being fit enough to go out there and play to the best of my ability. Nothing else matters besides that.?

s is often the case with left-arm spinners for some bizarre reason, Leverock began his cricketing life as a handy medium pacer before switching to orthodox spin in his mid-teens.

Though he admits that the latter art has always come very naturally to him, he believes that improvement has come with age ? talking in revered tones about the influence the great West Indian off-spinner Lance Gibbs has had on his game since he began working with him a few years ago.

Capable of giving it a decent rip when he wants to, in limited overs cricket especially Leverock places more emphasis on varying his flight and his length, while his arm ball is notoriously difficult to pick.

A sign of any good bowler, but in particular a spinner, is the ability to penetrate as well as contain ? a feat Leverock has repeated time and time again against good players.

In only five first class matches, for example, he has taken a total off 31 wickets at miserly economy rate of 2.55. No other Bermudian bowler can boast anything like as impressive a record, and any injury preventing him from taking part in the World Cup would represent a sickening blow to Bermuda?s chances of being competitive next March.

As such, there is an enormous amount of responsibility resting on Leverock?s broad shoulders, although he is quick to make light of the considerable pressures.

?I have lived with being the main bowler for quite a while now so I?m not really bothered by the fact that the team looks to me to take the lead with the ball,? he said.

?I try not to put any pressure on myself. I just try to go out there and relax and do what comes naturally because that is when I end up bowling at my best.

?I just try to think one ball at a time and try to ask questions of whoever I am bowling to.

?Spin bowling was always something that came easily to me and I think I?ve got better and better as I?ve got older and have begun to understand my game more and take on more information. When you?re young you tend to just show up and bowl and not think a great much about what you?re doing.

?As I?ve got older, I?ve learnt to adapt my game according to the conditions and the wicket. I can turn the ball a decent amount when I want to, but sometimes that can be a disadvantage.

?You only have to turn it a little bit to beat the bat and as I?ve learnt more and more I?ve realised that is it more about beating the batsman in the flight than it is about turning it a long way.?

everock?s passion for spin bowling is unmistakeable and he is intent on organising a week-long spinning camp in Bermuda in the not too distant future with the help of Gibbs, who has become a friend as well as a mentor to him.

While the future of Bermuda?s seam attack will be built around the likes of George O?Brien jr and Stefan Kelly, Leverock is equally determined to ensure that the Island?s best young spin bowlers are properly nurtured in the years to come.

?There are quite a few good young spinners around at the moment and I?d like to think I?d have a role to play in the future coaching of spinners at all levels,? he said.

?Obviously we?ve got guys like Delyone Borden at the moment in the national side, and there is also the likes of Tre Govia and Jade Foggo who have got a lot of ability.

?I?d definitely like to become involved in coaching when I?ve finished playing because I?ve picked up a lot of good information and I?d appreciate an opportunity to pass some of that on.?

For the moment though, Leverock is focused entirely on the hectic year that Bermuda have ahead of them ? though he gave his strongest hint yet that he wants to be around until at least 2009 when the side will have to re-qualify for the 2011 World Cup at the ICC Trophy.

?Everybody in the squad is upbeat about the process which we are going through,? he said.

?There is still a long time to go until the World Cup and we are concentrating on being a little more consistent in our performances.

?At the moment we are batting well and bowling badly one day, and then doing the exact opposite the next. But consistency tends to come from experience and the more we play together the more consistent we will get.

?We don?t have any world class players, so I just feel it is important that we all play as a unit. Everybody has got to contribute if we are going to be successful.

?Personally, I haven?t given a lot of thought to what I will do once the World Cup is over. At the moment though I?m really enjoying the cricket and I would imagine that most of us older guys will be around come 2009 to make sure we get back into the next World Cup.?

If he is right, therefore, and his bowling does continue to improve with age, then the national side?s bowling attack will be in good hands for some time to come.