Last Sunday John Barry Nusum scored a crucial goal in San Salvador to keep the Island?s World Cup hopes alive.

Tomorrow the Toronto Lynx striker hopes to go one better and deliver the killer blow against El Salvador at the National Sports Centre.

Nusum has enjoyed a stellar World Cup campaign so far, banging in seven goals in the opening two-match qualifying series against Montseratt in February. He also bagged an equally impressive brace against Nicaragua at the NSC in early April in a World Cup warm-up match.

Now the professional striker, who says he has recovered from a slight groin injury, finds himself carrying a heavy load in the absence of fellow frontman Shaun Goater ? the hopes of an entire Island.

?I suffered a slight pull in last week?s match. I couldn?t take off or sprint and so I figured it would be better to come off,? recalled Nusum, who limped off injured 11 minutes after notching Bermuda?s crucial goal.

With Goater ruled out through injury, Nusum will be heavily relied upon to deliver the goods in front of goal ? something which he has become accustomed to in the build-up to Sunday?s match.

?I just take things one game at a time and the goals seem to keep coming,? he continued. ?I think everyone (public) is up for this match because I have experienced a different vibe for this particular game since I returned home. I think the Island are really backing us for this one.?

Nusum says playing before the home crowd will provide his team-mates with an added incentive to go all out.

?I think the crowd is going to be really good for us,? he said. ?I expect to see one of the biggest crowds we?ve ever had. And so I think that will be good for us because they will be like a 12th man for us, keeping us upbeat when times are down during the game. In El Salvador we didn?t have any of that.?

As for the groin, Nusum said: ?It feels good and I am ready to play regardless.?

Nusum arrived in Bermuda on Wednesday and had a light run-out at the Stadium the next day.

?I don?t intend to do anything different . . . just go out there and play my natural game and hopefully we will get the desired result. I just hope I can be in the right position at the right time to score,? he added.

By his own admission, Nusum has endured a disappointing start to the new season among the professional ranks, scoring only two goals since his move from the Atlanta Silverbacks.

?We?re (Lynx) not doing as well as we would like to at the moment as a team and personally I?m not playing as well as I would like to ? especially in terms of scoring goals. I have scored more goals for Bermuda this year than I have for Toronto,? said Nusum with a smile.

Now having had a good look at the opposition?s defence, Nusum is confident he and his team-mates in attack can rise to the challenge.

?They aren?t as tough as I previously expected,? he stated. ?They only really have one big player in their defence. And as a team, I think we are faster on the ball.?