Bermuda?s Digicel Caribbean Cup hopes suffered a severe setback over the weekend.

Inspirational midfielder Keith Jennings, playing for his beloved North Village Rams, chipped a bone in his upper spine and has now been ruled out for the remainder of the season.

Jennings? dilemma is somewhat of a double whammy as the 28-year-old footballer was also due to return to US Indoor side Baltimore Blast this week for football trials after his initial run out last October was cut short by injury (a broken toe).

And there?s absolutely no doubt Jennings? services will be missed next week when the senior national team attempt to secure the eighth and final Digicel Caribbean Cup finals berth when they compete in a triangular play-off against Haiti and the Dominican Republic at the National Sports Centre (NSC).

Jennings? troubles began playing for Village on November 26 when he collided with Somerset Trojans? ?keeper Adrian Burrows ? two days after returning from Barbados with the national squad.

And after taking several knocks during the Reds? drawn league match with Paget Lions at White Hill Field on Sunday, Jennings was rushed to hospital after having difficulty breathing. A CAT scan at the hospital later revealed the footballer had fractured a bone in his upper spine ? an injury that has robbed the national team and Village of one of the Island?s top attacking midfielders.

?My football is finished for the year and this is too serious of an injury to try and race back onto the pitch,? Jennings told yesterday shortly after being released from the hospital.

Jennings entered Sunday?s match harbouring ?slight? pains from Village?s previous outing with Trojans. ?I thought it was basically a little bit of bruising. But I pretty much injured myself during the last ten minutes of the match pushing to get the equaliser,? last season?s MVP added.

Jennings eventually headed home to level the scores and save his team from what would have been an embarrassing loss to Lions.

?It just got worse and worse as the game went on,? continued Jennings, obviously disappointed to be ruled out of Bermuda?s Digicel Cup campaign next week.

?It?s a big disappointment, not being able to play in the Digicel Cup and more of a disappointment not being able to continue my pursuit of a professional career,? Jennings lamented.

?This (Digicel Cup) is a big step for the country for us to get across this hurdle and move onto the next stage. And the team has become one big family all working towards a common goal of qualifying for the finals.?

Yesterday a visibly disappointed national coach Kyle Lightbourne Jennings? absence next week will be a blow to the team. ?Obviously Keith is going to be missed,? Lightbourne said. ?He was outstanding for us in Barbados and I would like to wish him well.

?He will definitely be missed because he?s a ball player, he likes to handle the ball and at that level you need guys who really want the ball who are not afraid to put their foot on the ball and slow the game down or pick the tempo up when needed.?

Lightbourne, however, stressed that there are others in the squad capable of filling the void left by Jennings who was also the chief architect in many of the national team?s set pieces.

?We had a few guys who really didn?t get much playing time in Barbados, guys like Jelani Scott,? the coach added.

PHC?s Blenn Bean and Somerset Trojans? and former national team captain Meshach Wade are others who could be given the nod to play in the middle alongside Devonshire Cougars? supreme duo Kwame Steede and Domico Coddington.

?Obviously this opens the door for others as well. But I guess we?ll just have to wait and see although without a doubt I do feel a bit disappointed about Keith?s injury,? Lightbourne said.

Ironically, Jennings? injury comes at a time when elder brother and Bermuda national team captain Kentoine Jennings is fast recovering from a calf strain he suffered on the eve of the national team?s crucial second round qualifying Group G match with hosts country Barbados in the Caribbean late last month.

Jennings, who has returned to national team practice at the NSC, sat out the first match against St. Vincent and the Grenadines through suspension, while team officials decided the veteran?s services were not needed in the second match against Bahamas which Bermuda won convincingly 4-0.

l Caribbean Football Union (CFU), meanwhile, announced the draw yesterday for next January?s Digicel Caribbean Cup finals in Trinidad and Tobago.

Should Bermuda successfully advance from next week?s triangular play-off they will then square off against Martinique on January 12, Barbados on January 15 and host country Trinidad on January 17.

The tournament will take place between January 12 and 23 with the winner taking home $120,000, runners-up $70,000, and the third-placed team $50,000.

After 51 matches and 187 goals in 15 countries, 14 teams have now been eliminated, while six have qualified to travel to Trinidad for the prestigious Digicel Cup finale. Along with automatic qualifiers as hosts, Trinidad and Tobago are joined by Cuba, Martinique, Guyana, Guadeloupe, Barbados and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. Bermuda will be competing for eighth and final spot next week.

Bermuda take on Dominican Republic a week today at the Sports Centre and then Haiti on Saturday, December 16 in their final play-off match.

Bermuda topped their first round Digicel Cup qualifying group in the US Virgin Islands last September before finishing third in the second round of qualifiers in Barbados late last month.