BERMUDA received good news and bad news yesterday.The good news came yesterday morning when the Caribbean Football Union announced that Bermuda would host the triangular play-off matches of the Digicel Caribbean Cup later this month.

Bermuda will play host to Haiti and the Dominican Republic in the Caribbean Cup play-off matches and this will be the first time national head coach Kyle Lightbourne will see his side play a competitive match on local soil since he took over the team in October 2004.

If Bermuda come out on top they will head off to Trinidad early next year to further their goal of getting in the Gold Cup finals.

Mr. Lightbourne said yesterday: "It will be good to have home advantage. It has been quite some time since our fans have seen the team (in a competitive match)."

Head of the Bermuda Football Association Larry Mussenden said: "We are extremely thrilled that the CFU have found it fit for Bermuda to host the matches," adding that he hoped the Bermuda fans come out and fly the flag.

Assistant coach Paul Scope added: "What we have found in this competition is that national pride makes teams play out of their skins."

Bermuda take on the Dominican Republic on December 12 and Haiti on December 16 at the National Sports Centre.

The bad, but unsurprising news, came a little later in the day when Bermuda's national cricket team lost yet again to Canada in a One Day International at Willowmore Park, Benoni in South Africa.

To put it bluntly, Bermuda have been awful in the ODIs they have played during their five-week African tour.

They suffered a 3-0 whitewash against the Kenyans in Mombasa earlier in the tour and then lost the first ODI against Canada in the Tri-Series this week. They followed that up with another ODI loss to Holland and then yesterday Canada beat Bermuda by three wickets. Their final ODI will be against Holland this weekend where Bermuda hope to salvage a victory before heading home next week.

The fact that Bermuda lost their ODI matches against ICC Associate members Canada, Kenya and Holland where the game of cricket is hardly in the forefront of sports in those countries makes the prospect of facing the likes of India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh at next year's World Cup in the West Indies even more frightening.

Yesterday Canada won the toss and sent Bermuda into bat where they scored 178 for nine with South African-born player Saleem Mukuddem again being top scorer for the second straight match with a knock of 57. Canada scored 179 for seven for the victory.

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