no repeat of the Stephen Astwood case, the player's advisor has declared.

Questioning the point of Bermuda being a British dependency if soccer players were not allowed to ply their trade in Britain, Barry McIntosh said it was time the Government intervened.

Astwood's bid for a work permit to play for English First Division side Preston North End was rejected yesterday because Bermuda does not rank in the top 70 of the world's soccer nations.

But McIntosh felt this requirement should not come into the equation because of the Island's links with Britain.

"Somebody needs to get in touch with Downing Street, with the Government and the relevant department and get something done,'' he said.

"I'm not sure what the work permit requirements would be for an English person coming to work in Bermuda but I think it would be very doubtful that they would be rejected.'' McIntosh said the decision from the Department of Education and Employment sent a negative signal to the Island's soccer talent. Players looked to go abroad because the league in Bermuda was not professional and they could not make a career by staying here.

If they could not now go to England there was no incentive for them to work on their ability because the best avenue to achieving their dreams appeared closed.

McIntosh said the alternative of playing in the Major League in the USA was not attractive because it did not have a lot of worldwide respect and players would still encounter work permit problems if they later wanted to move to Europe.

"To transfer a player from MLS to England later would be just as hard as transfering him from Bermuda in the first place,'' he said.

The Government's director of Youth and Sports, Brenton (Tony) Roberts also criticised the way player applications were dealt with in the UK.

"Some young people have their sights on a professional career in soccer. If they cannot go to the mother country, the country to which we are associated, and ply their skills, or at least try, where might they go?'' he said.

"To have the requirement that the country must be in the top 70 is ludicrous.

When you look at small countries like Bermuda with 58,000 people how are we expected to go up against those who have a far wider base from which to choose?'' Mr Roberts went on: "Their vision is clouded somewhat, they are not giving the opportunity for smaller countries to develop their athletes to the standards that are required in that league -- probably one of the toughest in the world and therefore why so many young Bermudians aspire to enter it and compete.'' Mr Roberts said though Bermuda did not have a professional league it was no reason to leave the Island's players out in the cold.

"We are not a professional league so we don't have full-time players to draw from but that does not mean that talent does not come up.

"I think they (the British Government) are denying themselves the opportunity to expose more people to the game of football and are narrowing their talent search to a very, very narrow focus indeed.'' Neville Tyrrell, president of the Bermuda Football Assocation, said he did not want to comment in depth on the Astwood case, but said he believed there were lessons to be learned. "I am disappointed because there was a lot of work that went on behind the scenes to assist Stephen in this exercise. I really cannot comment further other than to say I am totally disappointed,'' he said.

Calling for more contact with players seeking to go abroad, he said: "I believe if we were brought into the picture at an earlier stage maybe we could be a little more successful.

"When we got into the (Astwood) situation the ball had already started rolling. I'm not saying we would have been able to speed it up or slow it down, but as I say we came into it after the fact.'' Bermuda's assistant national coach, Mark Trott, instrumental in getting Astwood to England for trials, said he believed the case was not beyond rescuing.

"I think it's an issue that quite conceivably can be pursued from my end. I refuse to concede defeat because Stephen went abroad and proved his ability -- he has done what he had to do,'' he said.

"It is a matter at this point in time that you cannot say is absolutely dead.

I think Government officials in Bermuda, without speaking for them, would still be prepared to look at it,'' he said.