BERMUDA'S Under-19 cricket team lost to Namibia by 102 runs in another warm-up match yesterday ahead of next week's World Cup in Malaysia.

Earlier this week Bermuda were thrashed by Nepal in a warm-up match and cricketing Development Director Arnold Manders knows that the island's youngsters face a tough task in their first World Cup.

Bermuda will take on Bangladesh on Monday in their opening round game and then will face England and Ireland in their Group D matches. And while many in Bermuda were shocked by the Nepal defeat, it came as no surprise to Manders. "Nepal had in the past beaten some very good teams and I told our guys that.

"I don't know what happens to Nepal at the senior level but they are very good at the youth level ¿ they field well and bowl well," Manders said.

In fact, Nepal have appeared in every Under-19 World Cup since 2000 and have beaten a number of Test countries along the way.

Manders bemoaned the fact that Bermuda's young players have had to fight sickness since leaving the island and training in India. And he hit out at those in Bermuda who have been slamming the island's players ¿ particularly since Bermuda's senior team were humiliated at the Stanford 20/20 tournament in Antigua on Sunday.

"We are one of the youngest teams in the tournament. People (back in Bermuda) just want to criticise. They should come out here and see what we are up against. We have been to two World Cups within the space of a year and we only have a population of 60,000 whereas many of these countries have over 60,000 cricketers! This is all new for our guys.

"When we were in India they all saw (kids their age) playing full time. While we get them for six hours a week, those players play for six hours a day. They don't go to school ¿ all they do is play cricket."

Manders said he expects the spinners to play a major role in next week's World Cup.

"The wickets here take spin. The spinners here are doing all the damage except early on when there is a little moisture and it swings around. The spinners will play a major part in this tournament ¿ that was one of the reasons why we went to India."

And while nearly all the players have been sick at one time or another adjusting to the food, Manders said that he believes they are settled now.

"They struggled with the food. We have had someone sick every day since we left ¿ mainly stomach problems. And also had a couple of guys run down from a fever from all the travelling but I think we have recovered from that now," he said.

Manders has been very unhappy with the state of the wickets in Malaysia during the warm-up matches but he was not making any excuses for his young charges who went down to Namibia by 102 runs yesterday. Namibia scored 224 and Bermuda could only respond with 122.

"Despite it not being an easy wicket a lot of the guys got themselves out. Hopefully when we play Bangladesh on Monday it will be a better wicket," he said.

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