Bermuda's cricket coach, Mark Harper, says the significant number of drop-outs in the national training squad could be a matter of "daily bread" versus "national pride".

In the wake of at least six players making themselves unavailable for national duty in next month's Americas Cup, he noted "times are different" and that perhaps some players do not think there's enough incentive for them to represent their country in cricket.

"At this time in the world, people are more concerned about their daily bread and looking after their families than about representing their country," Harper said.

"If they don't see they are getting something tangible out of it they tend to devote their energies to something else. It's something that has to be addressed. I am not sure if people understand that.

"I am not saying that you must forsake national pride but times are different from before. The welfare of the players is an area that must be looked at."

The recent cricket scholarship for Chris Foggo in South Africa and those being organised by the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) for Bermudian youngsters at the Shell Cricket Academy in Grenada are steps in the right direction, he stated. Incentives for local coaching and related development could be examined as another option, he suggested.

Harper conceded that the increasing number of players unavailable for the Argentina-held tournament had been "frustrating" but he was not "totally surprised" as this had been a trend in Bermuda cricket.

"It's no secret that Bermuda has a history of not being able to put its best team on the field. This has been going on for years for several reasons. It has contributed to the decline in performance of the Bermuda team in recent international tournaments to the extent that some teams which Bermuda defeated comfortably years ago are now beating Bermuda or giving us a good fight."

However, now nine months into his job, the coach is confident that the squad chosen to represent the Island can do Bermudians proud.

Training is going well and team spirit is high, he said, adding that "if we focus on what we have to do we will give a good account of ourselves".

The squad has been paying a lot of attention to fitness, technique and match play, he added.

Harper hailed the return of veteran Charlie Marshall, who will lead the squad, as " a big boost" and he threw out a challenge to the senior players to guide their younger counterparts like O.J. Pitcher and Stephen Outerbridge. The latter - both teenagers - he noted, had a golden opportunity to showcase their potential.

Asked about Bermuda's goals for the Americas Cup, he replied: "Obviously going into any competition you would like to win it but I think our goal will be to make sure we give 100 percent and that we are very competitive."

The competition, he said, was a demanding, round-robin format which would see Bermuda play five one-day matches in about ten days.