IT just wasn?t cricket. And it sure wasn?t Cup Match . . . at least not in the time honoured tradition to which most Bermudians have become accustomed.

Sadly for St. George?s fans, the 2005 classic won?t be remembered for what might have been a sensational victory by the challengers.

Instead, it will be recalled as the year when sportsmanship went out of the window, when the win-at-all-costs mentality crossed every boundary imagineable, and when a politician and his two-bit radio station tried to claim the most cherished of all local sporting events as their very own.

Riding on the euphoric wave of ICC Trophy success in Ireland, Cup Match 2005 wasn?t the sporting spectacle we had all anticipated. It was a reflection of so many of the social ills which seem to afflict modern-day Bermuda ? intolerance, violence and greed.

As one letter writer to this newspaper put it, the men who made Cup Match what it is, men such as Alma (Champ) Hunt, Ed (Bosun) Swainson and Alex (Cocky) Steede would have turned in their grave.

Men Behaving Badly had nothing on this catalogue of chaos.

Amidst spitting, punching, shouting and screaming, the game ducked and dived towards what should have been a terrific climax.

But when it was all over, nobody was talking about inspired bowling performances from the likes of George O?Brien, Gregg Foggo, Jacobi Robinson or Kevin Hurdle.

Topics of conversation instead turned to bizarre umpiring decisions, the unprepared state of the pitch, the disgraceful lack of sportsmanship, and not least the incessant sledging which, while having become part of the modern game, has rarely sunk to such depths.

If this is what it takes to win a cricket match, then let the players and officials get on with it. The rest of us can surely find better things to do during two days of summer sunshine.

All of the above, of course, was compounded by a decision to grant exclusive broadcast rights to a radio station which, for the rest of the year, ignores the game completely.

And that might have been ok had not the station owner?s delusions of grandeur prompted him to stomp around Wellington Oval like a man possessed with his new-found - albeit misplaced - authority.

Perhaps somebody forgot to tell MP Blakeney that broadcast rights don?t normally give anybody the right to tell the rest of the media how to conduct their business, least of all the print media, and they certainly don?t include clauses enabling henchmen to confiscate cameras.

As for his little, but well-publicised, spat with TV know-it-all Gary Moreno, well that might have been one of the lighter moments of this year?s classic.

Normally we?d extend a word of sympathy to a media colleague treated so shabbily. But given the Trinidadian?s record of trying to throw his weight around, particularly in the company of younger and less experienced journalists, it was nice to see him get a taste of his own medicine.

But back to the cricket.

Perhaps the time has finally come to do away with some of the long-standing Cup Match traditions, and allow Bermuda Cricket Board to play a much greater role.

As with the committees who run the Counties competitions, the two Cup Match clubs are seemingly a law unto themselves and don?t have to answer to the governing body.

They appoint their own umpires, who in turn are not obliged to submit reports to the BCB. Thus, any incidents of indiscipline don?t necessarily fall under the ICC Code of Conduct and those who act up, if not dealt with by the respective clubs, can escape any form of punishment.

As far as we are aware, not one of those who flaunted the spirit in which the game is supposed to be played has been hauled before any disciplinary committee, or is likely to be.

With the World Cup less than two years away, that state of affairs isn?t acceptable. Every senior player has to be accountable for his conduct and there have to repercussions for those who besmirch the game?s reputation.

Otherwise those coming through the junior ranks with aspirations of performing on the international stage will simply believe they can behave the same way.

Cricket has always been a gentlemen?s game, and by and large Bermudians have upheld the standards expected of them.

During the ICC Trophy in Ireland, team spirit and deportment both on and off the field was exemplary, and many observers made a point of complimenting the players on the way they played the game.

Certainly, the success they enjoyed wasn?t achieved with the help of sledging or any other underhand tactic.

Ahead of West Indies 2007, it would be a great shame if the antics witnessed at Wellington Oval last week were allowed to become a feature of local cricket.