Bermuda’s tennis team may not have won anything at the NatWest Island Games but Gavin Manders believes the experience in Jersey is “exactly what they needed” heading into the Davis Cup on Saturday.

Manders and David Thomas, who was also in Jersey, join Jensen Bascome, Neil Towlson and coach Ricky Mallory in the team leaving for Panama City today to compete in Group Three of the Davis Cup.

“Island Games was a bit of a disappointment for us this year, but on the other hand, was exactly what we needed in preparation for Davis Cup,” Manders said. “It allowed us to play against a wide range of playing styles, and practice under pressure situations.”

It was Manders who lasted the longest, reaching the quarter-finals before being knocked out by sixth-seeded Stuart Parker, from Jersey.

“There is no excuse for not bringing home medals in our minds, but everything that could have went wrong, went wrong,” said Manders of travel delays that made just getting to the games hard.

“But at the end of the day, we represented Bermuda well and I’m proud of our team for overcoming all the odds, and just leaving it all out there on the courts.

“We were commended by the director and officials for our play under the circumstances, and we left with our heads high.”

The team have been training at Coral Beach and Tennis Club, trying to get re-accustomed to playing on clay courts before heading into the Davis Cup seeking promotion.

“Our team is a close knit group, and under the leadership of Ricky Mallory, we are ready to grind it out on the red clay,” Manders said. “There is some really tough competition this year, with quite a few ranked professional players. All we can promise is that we will leave everything out on the court, with the goal of promotion on our minds.”

The team’s Davis Cup bid would not have happened without a generous sponsorship from Seacrest Capital Group.

“The Bermuda Lawn Tennis Association would like to thank Seacrest Capital Group for sponsoring our Davis Cup team for a second straight year,” Manders said. “They have played a vital role in making this year’s Davis Cup campaign possible. We greatly appreciate them believing in us, and committing to being our title sponsor again in 2015.”