If I know it and I feel it, I must write it.

It is well known that over the course of the last ten years and perhaps longer, there have been many talented footballers in this country who have not been included in the national team because of social drug taking.

How many times have we watched as our national team took to the field, knowing that there were other players not even at the game who on talent alone deserved to be out there shedding blood, sweat and tears for the Bermudian cause?

Far too often we haven’t been able to select the best player for a certain position because they have proved unwilling to give up their illegal social habit or have just not been prepared to work hard enough.

I’ve heard it so many times since I returned home and I’m fed up with it. Are you the player that says, ‘I was better than Kyle Lightbourne when we were growing up, but I just didn’t want to be a professional’? How sad is that? Why can’t there be more people saying ‘I wasn’t as good as David Bascome but because I wanted it enough I played at a higher level’? As somebody who cares passionately about the development of football in this country, I find this whole situation enormously frustrating and want to use this platform and the support that I have to to state categorically that now must be the time to act.

The growth of the international business sector in Bermuda had challenged us as Bermudians to raise our standards if we want to remain competitive in the workplace.

We’ve been challenged to be more disciplined, more ambitious and more dedicated. We’ve been challenged to seek further education and training so that we are capable of filling the countless of posts and job opportunities that this economic boom has created. Now, with the advent of the Bermuda Hogges, the Island Soccer League and the injection of $15 million into the sport, the same is true of football.

Success, I once read, is when preparation meets opportunity. I would like to refer this quote to all aspiring professional footballers in Bermuda.

If we are truly serious about being the best we can be, then we must be prepared to make sacrifices to succeed in this game and in life.

The Bermuda Football Association, the owners of the Bermuda Hogges, interim national coach Kenny Thompson and ISL Commissioner David Bascome are singing from the same hymn sheet.

Let me make this very clear right now: the Hogges will be a drugs-free zone. Those signed up on contracts will also, like our World Cup bound cricketers, being subjected to an extremely rigid Code of Conduct. We are entering a professional league and nothing other than the highest standards of professional behaviour will be expected at all times.

If the players wishing to get involved with the Hogges think they’re going to be going off on a bit of a summer holiday touring around the United States, well, they’re going to be sorely disappointed!

Our season will stretch over five months and include some 20 games. In that time, each player will be screened for drugs on eight separate occasions. Extreme, I know, but we feel it’s the appropriate approach.

Now I’m well aware that out strictness when it comes to behaviour and drugs might be a bit of a turn-off for certain players. Some might look at the criteria we’ve laid out and say ‘well, I do like football, but I don’t like it that much’.

Well, if that’s the case, we’d rather know from the outset who is thinking like that so we cast them aside and work with the players who are prepared to make the sort of sacrifices we’re asking for.

With the Bermuda Hogges we are looking to set the standard when it comes to professionalism and dedication. We’re all looking forward to working with the players who share our vision.

I leave you with this.

The reason many talented amateurs are not professionals is because they are not willing to do what is takes to make the grade.

If you really want to be professional players, now is the time. The opportunity has been created for you. But are you prepared to grasp it with both hands?