The protracted saga of the much-maligned cricket square at the National Sports Centre took a fascinating twist yesterday as Bermuda played their first 50 over match on home soil since qualifying for the World Cup.

While it was anticipated that both games between a Bermuda Select XI and Trinidadian club side Clico Preysal would be played on the North Field?s artificial surface, the groundstaff caught everybody by surprise by preparing a turf strip which played reliably throughout the duration of the match.

While the search for a way to safely import foreign soil with which to re-lay the infamously poor square is reportedly ongoing, NSC head groundsman Trevor Madeiros and his staff have been busy experimenting with the soil they currently have ? trying to come up with a solution to a problem which saw the pitches crumble and balls fly repeatedly from a good length when Bermuda hosted the Americas Championship back in 2004.

The latest innovation has seen them use an extraordinary new technique becoming increasingly popular in English professional cricket, where PVA (polyvinyl acetate) glue is mixed with four litres of water and sprayed over the pitch.

PVA is a sealant used by builders for attaching tiles to roofs and walls and has been approved for use on limited over pitches by the England and Wales Cricket Board.

In general the results have been extremely positive ? holding pitches together for longer and producing greater pace and bounce on wickets which have been traditionally been a little on the slow side.

Madeiros proved reluctant to go on the record yesterday, but he did confirm that the PVA formula had been employed and that they would look to continue using it if it proved effective.

National coach Gus Logie was certainly impressed with what he saw, and has requested that tomorrow?s second match be played on the turf rather than the artificial wicket as planned.

The Bermuda Cricket Board have been adamant for some time that the Island needs a facility to host ODI cricket if it is make the most of the unprecedented levels of investment.

And while there appears to have been some progress on the pitch, the North Field still lacks the surrounding infrastructure required for ODI accreditation, which the Trustees have previously stated will only become available once the long-awaited Centre Core is built.