Exposing the Island?s youth cricketers to a higher level of cricket at a young age is the way forward, says Bermuda Cricket Board (BCB) second-vice-president and youth committee chairman Allen Richardson.

And while Richardson, a former St.David?s and St.George?s Cup Match opening batsman ? one of only four batsmen to score over 1,000 runs in the Eastern Counties Cup competition ? is pleased to see youth cricket revived in Bermuda, he reckons there is still room for improvement.

Richardson, pictured right, spoke to immediately following a Press conference in which Bermuda-based reinsurance company Montpelier Re announced a sponsorship deal with the Board to the tune of $60,000 to be handed out in $20,000 instalments over the next three-years.

The BCB executive stated: ?One of our primary objectives as a Board is to provide our youth cricketers with more international experience and I think donations such as this will go a long way toward supporting and fulfilling these particular objectives.

?At the moment I don?t think our youngsters are nowhere near their full potential. But I think now with the interest of the World Cup the players themselves will put more effort into their games and we are also pleased to see the corporate sector coming onboard.?

Richardson said it is vital to instil the rudiments and rules of the game in our youngsters at the grass roots level.

?It?s important we instil the beauty and the rules of the game so when they graduate to a higher level the foundation has long been set,? he added. ?This can only better our youngster?s cricket and we always invite others from the corporate sector to assist the Board?s overall programmes with funding which I can assure you will be used in the appropriate manner.?

Underlining some of the challenges Bermuda?s youngsters face when competing overseas, Richardson stressed: ?What has happened in the past is that our young players tend to freeze up whenever they were away competing in international competitions. So it?s important they become accustomed to playing overseas and be able to maintain their natural game without that element of fear or nervousness.?

And given the 2007 World Cup is only two years away, Richardson says there is no time to waste in terms of preparing the Island?s youngsters for what promises to be a bright future and exciting era for local cricket.

?We would like for our younger cricketers starting with the Under 15s to branch out to the Under 19s and eventually to the senior level so that when they reach the senior level they would have already have had much international exposure and experience,? he explained.

?There?s still a lot they need to learn about the game like the basics at a very young age and this is one of our main objectives in the years to come.?

Richardson is also pleased to see the Board?s Under 13 and 16 youth leagues up and running, though not without their share of shortcomings.

?This has been a teething year for us although for one reason or another all of the matches were not completed. But our main goal was to at least get some sort of cricket being played and this is something we achieved and are now looking to build upon next year,? he said.

?I think there are many areas where we as a Board can work together with the assistance of our national coach (Gus Logie). At the moment we are in desperate need of voluntary help because a lot of coaches are forced to do multiple tasks.

?In some instances coaches have also had to umpire or score and even provide transportation for their players to and from matches, and this is not fair to them. This is just too much to place on our coaches.

?We we can put the infrastructure in place but we need others to assist us in delivering the services. And so we encourage teachers, parents the corporate sector and the clubs themselves to come together to help youth cricket thrive in Bermuda.?

Somerset Cricket Club will host the annual Harris Bay versus Somerset Old Boys charity match at Somerset Cricket Club on Thursday, September 1, beginning at 11 a.m.

Proceeds from the match are to go in aid of local charity De Boys Day Out Club.

A church service will also be held at Wesley Methodist Church Church in Somerset on August 28, commencing at 11 a.m. B.Brangman (capt), J.Bremar, J.Simons, R.Hunt, C.Russell, L.Smith, K.Saunders, C.Saunders, C.Fubler, K.Simmons, D.Richardson, L.Hunt, L.Smith, C.Frazier. M.Smith (capt), M.Musson, A.Jenkins, D.Smith, R.Woolridge, N.Walker, A.Simons, D.Wainwright Jr, M.McGowan, B.Smith, E.Simmons, L.Smith, H.Smith, T.Smith.