Baltimore Blast midfielder David Bascome faces a frantic race against time to regain match fitness ahead of Bermuda?s upcoming involvement in the Copa Caribe Cup late next month following his inclusion yesterday in a new-look national squad.

Bascome, 34, was among a host of new players named by recently-appointed national coach Kyle Lightbourne in an initial list of 37 invited to train with the Bermuda squad.

And according to Lightbourne, Bascome ? overlooked by former national coach Kenny Thompson for World Cup selection earlier this year ? was the first player pencilled on that list.

?Once I knew I was given the job he (Bascome) was the first person I called,? said Lightbourne, whose appointment was confirmed by Bermuda Football Association earlier this week.

?And providing David is fit, he?s stated he will be up for the challenge.?

However, the Baltimore-based player?s availability remains up in the air as he recently underwent surgery to repair a slight tear in his left knee and is currently undergoing rehab in the US.

Bascome reckons he could be sidelined for at least the next two to three weeks and rates his chances of participating with the national team as ?very slim?.

?It?s going to be very close,? Bascome told yesterday. ?I don?t think I will be back playing on the field until October 5 and so basically all I can do now is wait and see.

?At the moment I can?t do any running and when I do get back out on the pitch I?ve had instructions (from doctors) not to have any contact until the tenth. So that?s really pushing it.?

Bascome plans to return to the Island on October 26 to receive his MBE award at Government House and hopes to rejoin his Baltimore team-mates for an away fixture against St.Louis Steamers on the 29th ? around the same time Bermuda are scheduled to compete in the Caribbean Cup tournament in hurricane-ravaged Cayman Islands.

The gifted player?s omission from Thompson?s national squad created a furore among local football circles at the height of the World Cup campaign.

But Bascome says he now feels ?privileged? to be back in the national team set-up.

?It feels great to be back . . . obviously having represented my country before. It?s always a great feeling and there?s no doubt about that. Obviously there were some situations going on before but that?s all in the past now.

?However, it is a bit unfortunate the chance of me being a part of the team (national) remains slim at the moment. But again, it?s always a privilege to be called to national team duty.?

Meanwhile, in the 48 hours since being announced as Thompson?s successor, former English pro Lightbourne has wasted little time settling into his new role.

The former Coventry City striker yesterday unveiled in his list 13 players new to the national team programme.

The full training squad is as follows: Tim Figuerido, Troy Hall, Jay Smith, Calvin Augustus, Dennis Russell, Aljame Zuill, Kevin Richards, Torry Davis, Blenn Bean, Kofi Dill, Jahmal Samuels, Logan Alexander, Stanton Lewis, Robert Richardson, Damon Ming, Bascome, Meshach Wade, Ottis Steede, Chris Moulder, Lionel Furbert, Jahnai Raynor, Jared Peniston, Thomas Watson, Taurean Manders, Tokia Russell, Kaiwon Dill, Jemeiko Jennings, Domico Coddington, John Barry Nusum, Shaun Goater, Stephen Astwood, Lamaul Crofton, Antoine Russell, Khano Smith, Clevon Hill and Ralph Bean Jr.

Of those invited to train, a total of 19 players were involved in Thompson?s World Cup squad.

Surprisingly, however, Bermuda captain Kentoine Jennings was not named along with two other former skippers, Shannon Burgess and Dwayne (Streaker) Adams.

?Kentoine declined to train with the national squad because of his heavy involvement as player/coach at North Village while I don?t think Shannon (Burgess) has been training lately with Devonshire Colts,? explained Lightbourne, who has been busy scouting local talent in recent weeks at club grounds.

?And Dwayne has been involved in cricket lately . . . though he did play for Rangers (Southampton) the other night (Tuesday).?

Two other players the former star striker hopes to insert into the national programme are Devonshire Cougars forwards Heys Wolfe and Raymond Beach ? currently serving out a BFA suspension and also overlooked by Thompson during the previous World Cup campaign.

And according to Lightbourne ?the door is still open to everyone.?

?I initially had them both (Wolfe and Beach) on my list but since they have been suspended I thought it only appropriate not to include them in the squad,? he added. ?Obviously I would like to speak to them in person and have them come on board.

?But this is the initial squad that I have chosen and it is subject to change at any moment. So I don?t want people to be discouraged at not being selected the first time because the door is still open for others to join in the future.?

The squad will resume training this Saturday at Saltus Grammar School, beginning at 9.30 a.m.

Bermuda are scheduled to take on hosts Cayman Islands, St.Vincent and the British Virgin Islands in the cup competition but so far attempts by Bermuda Football Association to contact the Caribbean island via e-mail or telephone have proven unsuccessful. The islands have been badly hit by hurricanes Charlie and Ivan in recent weeks.

Three local senior coaches recently joined an elite group of company.

Wendell (Joe) Trott, Vance Brown and Troy Harvey all successfully completed the UEFA International B Coaching Licence course at Lilleshall Sports Centre in the UK late last month.

Over a three-week span, the local trio?s individual practical and theoretical abilities to coach were closely scrutinised and later assessed by staff at the Sports Centre.

The course also entailed watching three professional matches and later providing personal analysis.

Both Trott and Harvey are currently coaching at North Village while Brown is coach of Lady Cougars and the Bermuda women?s national team.

The trio?s successful completion of the course now brings the total of local coaches possessing UEFA B Licences to 33.

?I think obviously that one of the main things we at Bermuda Football Association can do is to provide our local coaches with both the expertise and the knowledge so they know where they stand on the international playing field,? explained Jon Beard, chairman of BFA?s technical committee.

?What we are trying to achieve is to get our coaches more qualified and hopefully we can help to energise football that way.?

Beard revealed plans were already underway to have another local group of coaches attend the course in the near future.