new Hammers Academy in front of Bermuda's young soccer players yesterday.

Lampard, on his fourth visit to the Island to conduct an after-school clinic, said players who showed great promise could be signed up to attend the new academy, which is being built on land next to the club's training ground in London.

And with academies springing up at Premiership clubs around England, he predicted one success from the Island could open up even greater opportunities for Bermudians to follow in the footsteps of Kyle Lightbourne and Shawn Goater.

The academy, due to be up and running within a year, would take children on a live-in basis, with school studies taking up the mornings and footballing education the afternoons.

Lampard said: "Most Premiership clubs -- and a few First Division ones -- are creating their own academies. It's a big thing, it's Government-backed. It enables us to bring in kids as young as 12 and they virtually live at the club. "If anyone did well enough here we'd think about bringing them over.'' He also agreed having former team-mate Clyde Best at the forefront of soccer in Bermuda was useful.

"He sees the players here week in week out, so from a West Ham point of view that's ideal because if somebody did outstandingly well he'd be in touch, I'm sure.'' A precedent has been set with Bermudian Adam Connolly, spotted at last year's camp and invited to train with the Hammers, moving to England. "He's with our under-12s now,'' said Lampard, "And he's doing very well. He found the standard was a lot higher than what he was used to but he's adapted well.'' A similar institution has already been established in Australia, home of Hammers' winger Stan Lazaridis.

"Our chief executive, Peter Storrie, has just been over there putting the finishing touches to it. We have a chief scout for England and a chief scout for Europe. It's getting to the point now where no boundary is too far.'' So what is it about a 10- or 11-year-old player that makes him stand out from the crowd? "We look for a good first touch,'' said Lampard without hesitation. "A natural touch.

"I mean, everybody can pick the outstanding player from a group. It's picking out the ones who don't show up at such an early age but who may have something about them that will stand them in good stead at a later date that's more difficult.

"You're also looking for an appreciation of the game. Obviously, they're only kids so you've got to be a bit careful, but invariably the ones that aren't so outstanding at 11 or 12 can come through at about 15 or 16.'' Lampard has spent much of his coaching life working with youngsters and it began to pay dividends this year with the re-emergence of a West Ham side that used to boast players with the passing pedigree of Trevor Brooking, Alan Devonshire and Stuart Robson.

Youngsters such as Frank Lampard Jr. have come through the ranks to the fringes of the England squad, while the classy Rio Ferdinand was yesterday named in the final 22 for the World Cup.

Add to that the goalscoring prowess of costly signings John Hartson and Paul Kitson, and the solidity of David Unsworth and Ian Pearce and you have a team who were close to clinching a spot in Europe just one season after narrowly avoiding relegation. "When I was out here last year I picked up a London paper and saw we were second favourites for relegation,'' said Lampard. "That motivates you because it's making a judgment ahead of the time.''