Five Devonshire Cougars players opted against boycotting the national team and turned up for a national squad meeting and training session at BAA Field on Tuesday night.

Joshua Butterfield, Ricky Brangman jr, Kwame Steede, Aljame Zuill and Domico Coddington were all included on Kyle Lightbourne's initial list of 30 players that went before Bermuda Football Association's (BFA) technical committee.

But earlier this week Devonshire Recreation Club secretary Ellsworth Christopher had urged those players to withdraw their services from the national programme in a protest of the ban currently imposed on team-mate Raymond Beach.

Christopher yesterday apologised for putting any "undue" pressure on his players who subsequently ignored the club's stance over Beach and showed up for Lightbourne's first training session ahead of next month's incoming tours by New England Revolution, Jamaica's Under-23 national squad and Costa Rican side LD Alauelense.

"I think my comments might have left the players a bit perplexed but in terms of me speaking nobody is going to tell me what to say on behalf of my club. And my first and foremost obligation is to my club," said Christopher.

The long serving administrator was due to meet with BFA officials last night over the matter.

"They never had any obligations from the club and perhaps my statement was a hasty one," Christopher admitted.

"However, this matter has become a double edged sword for the players in that they don't want to be seen as abandoning their team-mate (Beach) because they are all a very tight unit. And the fact that I said something drew a lot of attention to them and this is why I am making a statement to relieve them of any undue pressure."

Beach is currently serving a three-year ban for contravening Bermuda Council for Drug Free Sport (BCDS) policies.

The player's case has been in the hands of the Ministry of Sports Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) arbitration panel since last June.