The new cricket season may still be five months away but new Bermuda captain Clay Smith is already thinking about the 2004 campaign and what it has to offer.

Finally given the captaincy last month, the 32-year-old has begun preparing for his first major task ? getting Bermuda past the Americas Regional Tournament which will serve as a qualifying for the ICC Trophy in Ireland in 2005.

That qualifying will take place here in Bermuda next July, from which three of the six teams (amongst them the United States, Canada, Cayman Islands and Argentina) will advance to the ICC in 2005. From that tournament five teams will qualify for the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies when 16 teams will make it the biggest World Cup so far.

It will be Bermuda?s best chance to qualify for the World Cup and one that Smith is determined not to waste. But he accepts there is plenty of work to be done, especially considering the apathy shown by some of the Island?s top players to the Barbados tour in September.

Despite carrying a knee injury ? an injury that he revealed this week may require minor surgery ? Smith played in three of the matches. It was that dogged determination from one of the Island?s premier batsmen that finally persuaded the Bermuda Cricket Board that he was the right man to fill the post vacated earlier this year by Charlie Marshall.

Long overdue is how some would describe the appointment, with regular letter writer ?Recman? writing in The Royal Gazette this week ?finally, finally, finally the Bermuda Cricket Board have done the right thing and appointed Clay Smith?.

Politics may have prevented Smith from getting the captaincy earlier; that and his disciplinary record which has landed him suspensions. But nobody is more passionate about the post than the 32-year-old teacher who did not have to think twice once the captaincy was offered.

?I was a little concerned that I might have missed my calling, but I always kept the faith that I would eventually be given one opportunity,? commented Smith.

He was talked about as a Bermuda captain in 1998, the year after scoring two centuries in the Red Stripe tournament against the Windward Islands and Jamaica.

?I went to the Board to meet with the executives about two weeks ago and they offered me the job which I gladly accepted. It?s been a good four or five years now that I had a strong desire to be the captain of Bermuda.

?I believe it was in 1998 that my name first popped up when we were about to go to Guyana for the Red Stripe, the year after my two centuries. But unfortunately I was suspended and unable to go.?

Smith knows what he wants to accomplish at the helm of the Bermuda team and the players he would like to have in his team as he attempts to revive Bermuda?s fortunes at international level. He also wants the cricketing public to know that he intends to take the responsibility of the captaincy very seriously.

?I feel that I?m a very enthusiastic player, I strive off of motivation, and what I?ve had to learn to do is channel all of that energy in the right direction,? he says, explaining his conduct of the past.

?Before I used to let it out on the field of play in a nonchalant way, but lately I?ve had to curb my enthusiasm. But that is what makes Clay Smith, Clay Smith ? the fact that I have that passion for the game, the desire to win and being very competitive. Over the years I?ve had to mature and channel all of that energy in the right direction.?

The support he has received from the public has been encouraging, too.

?I was quite surprised I have gotten the type of responses that I have,? he stated.

?I?ve had several people approach me and give me their support. I know over the years I?ve had mixed feelings from the public ? a love-hate relationship with people ? but the public has been responsive to me in a good way.

?It?s nice to know that so many people believe in my ability to captain the country and it is always important when you have that support.?

Just by the manner in which he took on some of the fastest bowlers in the West Indies five years ago and scored two centuries ? it landed him the Bermuda Athlete of the Year award ? suggests he is a man who isn?t afraid to lead from the front against more formidable opposition.

That alone told those on the cricket board that this was a man who would not ask anything of his players that he would not do himself. But he will ask plenty of his players in the coming months if the Island is to finally reach the World Cup in 2007 in the West Indies.

?As a person I like to think I?m a very professionally-minded individual, I like to do things on a professional basis,? he stated. He describes his brother Wendell, one of the Island?s top captains in his era and a Bermuda captain for only a short period, as one of his role models. Wendell demanded a lot of his players at St. George?s and as a result they became a formidable team in the 1980s and 90s.

?Wendell and Dean (Minors) are my two biggest inspirations as a cricketer,? Smith revealed.

?As a youngster, following in Wendell?s footsteps was always going to be a challenge and that is what helped motivate me and to maintain the standards that I?ve had over the years. Without a doubt he was probably the best captain of his era and he has passed on a lot of knowledge to me.?

Added Smith: ?There is a lot I would ask of my players and expect of my players in order for us to prosper and move forward. But there is nothing I will ask my players to do that I won?t be willing to do myself. It?s important I do lead from the front and motivate the rest of them to strive to do better.?

The board held a meeting last night with a 34-man squad to map out plans for the national team?s training during the off-season. The captain knows that now is the time for those aspiring to represent Bermuda to get serious about the commitments ahead.

?I?ve spoken to a few of them, like Glenn (Blakeney), Lionel (Cann), mostly east end players because I see them on a regular basis,? said Smith.

As a top footballer for North Village, he has made the decision to forsake football to concentrate solely on his cricket obligations.

?From what I gather the players are very supportive of me being chosen as skipper. Right now my main focus is to motivate these guys to see the big picture and the ultimate goal is getting into the World Cup. Some may see it as being unrealistic but it is really not.

?In the last ICC there was no one dominant team, everybody was beating everybody. When I think of a team like Canada, who about three years ago we were beating with ease, qualifying it lets you know that while we have taken a few steps backways we are still not that far off.?

Since first playing in the ICC Trophy in 1979, Bermuda have never fielded their strongest team in the ICC Trophy. If that can change, Smith has no doubts Bermuda can make history in 2005 when five of the 12 teams competing in Ireland will realise the dream of playing against the world Test countries.

?The initial goal is to make sure we qualify and finish in the top three (in the Americas Tournament), but I would like to think, on home soil, we will actually be able to win the tournament,? said the confident captain.

?That would be good for the country as a whole in terms of bringing everybody back together, not just for the spectators but even from a sponsors? point of view in terms of gaining sponsorship in the future for the national team.?

Smith has achieved much as a player and captain, helping his hometown club, St. George?s, to win many honours since he broke into the team in the 1980s. In 1993 he became the first player to win both the Bermuda Cricket Board of Control?s MVP and Shell-ZBM Cricketer of the Year award after leading the east enders to an unbeaten season.

As captain he lost the Cup Match trophy in 1996, won it back the following year and then was controversially dropped in 1999 after opting to join neighbouring St. David?s. He vowed that he would never play for the club again, but the wounds have since healed.

In 2001 Smith, as captain and coach, led St. David?s to the league title for the first time. In fact, they had their most productive season ever by going unbeaten in winning the league, Eastern Counties, Champion of Champions, Knockout and Camel Cups.

Smith hopes to be in the post long enough to help the likes of OJ Pitcher, Delyone Borden, Mackie Crane, Jacobi Robinson, Dion Stovell and Stephen Outerbridge become established members of the senior team.

?Without a doubt this is probably the biggest challenge of my whole cricketing career, but when I look at the quality of youngsters that we have coming through, along with some of the senior players, I see no reason why we shouldn?t be able to prosper and more forward in the future,? said the captain.

?It?s just a matter of getting our best players on the field. That was one of our biggest problems in the past year, we?ve always had two or three of our top players not participating for whatever reasons.?

Smith will have some influence on selection of the Bermuda as he is one of the selectors, joining Shiraz Ali, Lionel Thomas, coach Mark Harper and Vance (Super) Fox on the selection committee. He admits the captaincy has taken his career to another level.

?Realistically, over the last week alone I have probably gone through about 50 different teams, just writing down different names to try a balance of what I think our strongest team will be from a batting standpoint and bowling standpoint,? Smith revealed.

?Trying to balance having a veteran team mixed with some youngsters, but at the same time just trying to come up with a winning formula, a team that I feel has the depth in all areas.?

Added the captain: ?As a player you are always looking for things to motivate you and this (captaincy) has probably added a few years on to my career.

?It is something I aspired to all my life, to captain Bermuda, and I?m going to try to make the most of the opportunity. When I leave I want to know that I did everything I could to get Bermuda?s cricket back on track.

?I told the Board that now that I?m captain of Bermuda, I will bend over backwards to persuade these guys to play for their country. What will help is when the players actually see the plan that the Board has for them in terms of their preparation from now up until the Americas Tournament.

?That should help motivate the players because there is a lot of cricket involved. And as players this is what you play for, to represent your country.?