Clay Smith, the Cleveland coach, warned Bermuda will continue to “spiral backwards” as a cricketing nation if clubs don’t start taking their competitions more seriously.

Smith and his Cleveland colleagues were dismayed after a no-show from St George’s meant they crashed out of the Lindo’s Twenty20 without a ball being bowled yesterday.

Cleveland had begun the day knowing that by defeating St George’s they would have a chance of progressing to the semi-finals of the end-of-season tournament; albeit only if St George’s could surprisingly beat Bailey’s Bay in the day’s other scheduled group C match.

However none of those permutations mattered as St George’s failed to turn up at the Sea Breeze Oval to play their two matches. Cleveland representatives said they’d been given no notification that their game would not go ahead.

Speaking at the Sea Breeze Oval, Smith, a former St George’s and Bermuda captain, accused clubs of failing to set high enough standards in their approach to tournament matches, and said he fears such unprofessionalism is hindering Bermuda’s hopes on the international stages.

“It’s just unfortunate for us because, at the end of the day, mathematically we still had a chance, if we had won our match and St George’s had beaten Bailey’s Bay,” said Smith.

“It just goes to show where our sport is heading right now. Unless we make some serious changes we will continue spiralling backwards as a cricketing nation.

“I have to blame the clubs. They have to have higher standards.”

In the run-up to the weekend, Neil Speight, the Bermuda Cricket Board chief executive, admitted that a scheduling conflict was unavoidable at this late stage of the season, with several two-sport players being forced to choose between playing cricket or football.

At least three St George’s players opted to play football yesterday — Charles Marshall III and Macai Simmons with St George’s Colts and Mishael Paynter with North Village. Three others have returned to school abroad, which has depleted the St George’s ranks.

“We are competing now with football so that’s an issue,” Smith said. “We need to put some more thought process into when we schedule to play this tournament. St George’s have at least two or three players involved in football as well.”

He added that unprofessionalism could have a knock-on effect with sponsors. “This is a sponsored tournament,” he said. “That I think in itself makes this a shame; when stuff like this happens. When you are trying to keep sponsors on board, it doesn’t come over too well.”

The semi-finals of the Lindo’s T20 Tournament will be played on Saturday at St David’s involving St David’s, Willow Cuts, Southampton Rangers and Bailey’s Bay, before the two winners advance to the final on Sunday at Somerset Cricket Club.