Soccer technical director Clyde Best has hit back at criticisms over the selection of players for the national squad.

In a letter to this newspaper, he says he makes no excuses for the Island's failure to qualify for the next stage of the Shell Caribbean Cup but claims the selection policy is not one of "exclusion''.

He insists that success at international level will only come with "the commitment of players who not only say they want to represent Bermuda but are able to do so according to the criteria set by the coaching staff''.

But he stresses that the criteria does not include 100 percent attendance at the three weekly training sessions.

Best was responding to claims of favouritism by Southampton Rangers' winger Rohaan Simons, who was left out of the squad despite finishing as the First Division's leading scorer with 19 goals.

Simons, who was unable to attend two of the weekly sessions because of Regiment duties and his religious beliefs, told The Royal Gazette last week he was hurt by the snub after attending regularly on Tuesdays "when there were only three or four other guys there''.

He also cited what he called the "cliques of club soccer'', noting that seven Dandy Town players were in the squad but none from Rangers.

But Best countered: "(The article) leads one to believe there was a deliberate attempt to exclude certain players in favour of others. It must be stated that the following Southampton Rangers players were originally invited to train: Rohaan, Kwame Tucker, Janeiro Tucker and Corey Simmons, but for whatever reasons they did not make themselves consistently available for team practice.'' And he added: "No player is bigger than the game. And no player is greater than his team-mates. Therefore every player must conform to the training programme and have the ability to participate when it is necessary and not when it is convenient to them.

"Unfortunately, due to religious beliefs, Rohaan Simons was unable to participate during the critical first match against Cuba. Therefore it would have been unwise to take a player who could not be used when it mattered most.

His religious beliefs are respected by the Association. However, we must make decisions for the good of the team.

"...the national programme is not one of exclusion. We are happy that players want to represent Bermuda. We will do all we can to facilitate this opportunity ... but everyone must understand scoring goals does not qualify a player automatic status to represent Bermuda.'' Contacted yesterday, Best added: "We understand players have commitments. But if you have a good player who can only train one night a week and one who is marginal who trains three times I have to take the one who trains three times.

"But I have always said we are willing to sit down and work something out with players who cannot train every session. People who say otherwise have not really been listening.

"We have had players who have brought their children to sessions because they have no one to babysit -- where else in the world would that happen?'' But he admitted the squad he had taken to the Cayman Islands may not have been the best possible.

"It was the best we had available,'' he said. "We would have loved to have taken a player like Ottis Steede but he had family commitments. And Kenny Mills is a great talent but he has had an injury all year. So it is not just about footballing aspects.

"Obviously we want the best players but sometimes you have to make changes and hope the ones that come in can do a job.

"We're talking about amateurs. If these guys could just play soccer it would make it more healthy.'' See Sports Mailbox, page 34 CLYDE BEST -- `no player is bigger than the game'.