Removal of the temporary motocross track at St.George's Cricket Club has finally resumed - according to relieved club president Neil Paynter.

Earlier this month, the east end club announced that its Wellington Oval ground would be closed indefinitely as a result of the 500 truck loads of dirt which was dumped on the field.

Delays in removing that dirt are believed to have resulted from a pay dispute involving local promoters Bluegrass Management, organisers of November's Bermuda Motocross Open, and a local construction firm.

While there were unconfirmed reports that the local promoters couldn't afford to pay workers to remove the dirt, last weekend the five buses used as a ramp by the motocross daredevils were finally removed.

Efforts to reach Bluegrass promoters Mike Jones and David Green have proved fruitless this week.

In the meantime, St. George's soccer players have been forced to train at Garrison Field and play their matches at neighbouring Lord's.

With the east enders are still very much in the reckoning for promotion to the Premier Division, Paynter admitted that having to play away from home had robbed his team of a big advantage.

He said he didn't expect the field to be ready before the end of the football season.

"Basically that's it as far as football is concerned," said Paynter yesterday. "But yes, we definitely miss playing at home, without a doubt.

"The buses have been removed and hopefully work will continue. Some of the soil has also been removed."

Paynter revealed that workers from Island Construction began removal work last week and were expected to carry on this weekend. He said that despite the temporary setback, spirits remained high at the club.

"The guys are feeling pretty good. It's still early and the match is won on the field, not in the paper," added Paynter, who had previously been reluctant to shed more light on the stand-off between the promoters and workers.

"We are not even looking towards soccer at the moment. We are just looking to get the field back in shape and once we get all the soil off, then we will just do what we have to do as soon as we possibly can."

Wellington Oval has been closed since mid-December and is the venue for this year's annual Cup Match Classic in July.