With Reggie Pearman’s four-year term as president of Bermuda Cricket Board (BCB) nearing completion, at least one potential candidate has shown an interest in leading Bermuda cricket into a promising and exciting new era.

It emerged yesterday that former BCB vice-president Keith Wainwright is eager to run again for the Board’s top post at the next AGM, the date of which is expected to be announced sometime soon.

Wainwright opposed Pearman in 2002 for the BCB presidency after president El James decided not to seek re-election, but he came up short by two votes.

The veteran Southampton Rangers batsman, set to retire from Premier Division cricket at the end of the 2007 season, said he was more than keen to have another go for the top post — but only with the full support of Board affiliates.

“I would definitely relish the opportunity to run for the presidency of the BCB because I’ve always been interested to see development and improvement of the game in Bermuda after the World Cup,” said Wainwright, the man responsible for introducing coloured clothing to the sport locally.

“Now is crunch time and it’s important that we continue giving our cricketers as much exposure as possible and on a broader level, trying to get buy-in from local employers to strike a balance that would allow our cricketers time off from work to travel or play. I think this is one of the biggest challenges facing Bermuda cricket right now.”

Wainwright believes the much publicised contract dispute between the BCB and national team cricketers in the lead-up to the World Cup could have been quickly resolved through a combined effort involving Bermuda Employers’ Council, Bermuda Industrial Union (BIU), Government and cricket’s governing body.

And he also underlined the importance of building on Bermuda’s World Cup experience for the future, both from an administrative and player perspective.

“There are a lot of exciting times ahead for Bermuda cricket and so we need to begin preparing now for the 2009 ICC Trophy. Therefore we need to be on the move right away and I think therein lies the challenge,” Wainwright said.

Pearman, meanwhile, told The Royal Gazette in Trinidad last week that he might seek re-election at the Board’s next AGM, while it is also understood that former cricketers Allen Richardson and Allan Douglas are considering challenging for the post.

Richardson currently resides on the Board’s executive while Douglas is coach of Bermuda’s national women’s cricket team.