A camp in which New York Giants hero Antonio Pierce was going to pass on his knowledge to Bermuda's youngsters has been put in jeopardy in a row over funding.

Pierce and four of his Super Bowl winning team-mates had arranged tocome to the Island to pass on their expertise and to raise money to help send students to university in America.

Several companies, including the New York Giants themselves, are understood to have backed the venture, with Bermuda's Department of Tourism originally offering to contribute a significant amount.

However, yesterday, the Ministry is understood to have tried to pull out of a legally-binding contract that it signed with Pierce and his representatives, believed to be for $35,000, agreeing to help fund the camp.

The threat of legal action from the American end of the operation forced the Ministry to perform another U-turn. However, their offer to provide $10,000 towards the full costs is still way short of their original obligation.

Negotiations are believed to be at a delicate stage with neither side willing to comment on the current situation.

The Royal Gazette understands that this has been made even more difficult by the fact that Pierce was in the process of developing a deeper relationship with Bermuda, that amongst other things involved expanding the size and scope of the camp.

At the moment the camp is going ahead as planned, with a suggestion that local companies might be asked to help make up some of the $25,000 shortfall.

It is a row that could potentially be embarrassing for Premier Dr Ewart Brown, who has a much publicised connection with New York, and has been the driving force behind the increasingly close ties that the Island has developed with the city.

Only last month there was a Bermuda Day at a New York Mets game when the Premier was given the honour of throwing out the first pitch.

With that in mind Dr Brown is believed to be ready to broker a deal that would ensure the camp could procced.

"The Premier has been briefed on the sponsorship request to the Bermuda Department of Tourism for Antonio Pierce's Bermuda Football camp," said the Premier's spokesman Glenn Jones.

"It would appear the discussions of this request have suffered from miscommunication and that miscommunication has now spilled over to the press. Nonetheless, after talking with senior civil servants, the Premier is optimistic that a mutually agreeable resolution can be reached that will allow the Antonio Pierce Football camp to proceed."