It was no doubt in the interest of fairness and integrity that the Bermuda Cricket Board of Control made an honest draw for this weekend's Champion of Champions competition. However, in hindsight many would have excused them for exercising some bias in the proceedings.

"The only names that should have gone in the hat were that of Western Stars and St. David's ... to see which would play Willow Cuts during Saturday's semi-final," said an unnamed club official. "The obvious set-up everybody's been looking for all this time is a Stars v St. David's final, entertainment-wise, spectator-wise, money-wise, and the Board has gone and screwed it up."

Harsh words against the Board that was merely operating within the guidelines of the season ending competition that pits the champions from each of the three counties - Western, Eastern and Central - against each other in limited overs play over two days.

It was hoped, anticipated even, that Stars, the Central Counties champions and Premier League runners-up would face St. David's in the final tomorrow at Lord's in a fitting finale of the Island's powerhouse teams.

However, that day now stands as a potential anticlimax to this afternoon, as the Islanders and men from St. John's Road battle to see who will face Willow Cuts, the perceived sacrificial lambs in tomorrow's final.

For Cuts' part, they have just as legitimate a right to contest the final based on their county being an equal part, but the theory ends there, as practical assessment dictates they have little hope in Hades of defeating either St. David's or Stars.

Don't tell this to Cuts' skipper Richard Basden, who, following his side's capture of the Western Counties Cup crown, was adamant regarding their worthiness, pointing to 1991, when they upset the form book in toppling a then high-riding St. David's outfit.

"Everybody's looking at it as St. David's against Stars, but we'll have something to say about that," said Basden at the time. "It doesn't matter who we have to play, we'll be there representing the west, and I truly feel we have a chance of beating either of them."

Tough words, however Cuts did little to back up such banter last weekend, collapsing for 74 against Bailey's Bay on Saturday and losing by eight wickets.

Conversely, today sees the home side enter as marginal favourites against a Stars team they've usurped as the undisputed champs, having duplicated the latter's feat of an undefeated league campaign, and are unbeaten in all competitions to date, with an overall record - won-draw-loss - of 17-2-0.

Still, the route will be a tough one, particularly in that St. David's will be likely absent the services of prolific run scorers Glenn Blakeney and Albert Steede.

Steede, normally a guest player for the east Enders, will instead lead Stars out, while Blakeney, who plays regularly for St. David's in the league but performs for Bailey's Bay in the Eastern Counties, is ineligible based on the latter.