Hall of Fame cricketer Cal (Bummy) Symonds has thrown his support behind prominent lawyer Ed Bailey to take over the leadership of Bermuda Cricket Board (BCB) at next month’s AGM.Earlier this week The Royal Gazette revealed that the MCC member had been strongly urged to run for the presidency by a number of influential figures in the local cricket fraternity who have become increasingly frustrated with the current state of the sport.Symonds, one of the Island’s most decorated athletes, believes Bailey is the most suitable candidate to succeed Reggie Pearman and reckons his wealth of expertise and international contacts can be an asset at the BCB.“Ed Bailey is a good choice and is the better man because he has been there (BCB) before,” Symonds said. “Ed knows the ins and outs of cricket and knows how it needs to be run and how it should be run. When he was the president before he was running the show great and the standard of cricket was very high it was a good era for local cricket.”Bermuda cricket has not enjoyed the best of times since the Island appeared in the 2007 ICC World Cup and earlier this year suffered the humiliation of being relegated to the ICC World Cricket League Division Three.Symonds believes Bailey can stop the rot and turn Bermuda’s fortunes around on the world stage.“Ed can definitely turn things around because he has the experience and certainly has the passion for the sport,” he said. “Ed is still young.”So far Bailey has held his cards close to his chest amid speculation that he could make a comeback after Pearman stands down.During his previous term as BCB president, Bailey was largely credited for bringing top Test teams England, Australia and India to the Island to afford local cricketers the opportunity to measure up against some of the world’s elite players.He was also instrumental in having the senior national team involved in the former Red Stripe competition in the West Indies as well as paving the way for local umpires to officiate in first-class matches throughout the Caribbean.As it stands, BCB first-vice president Allen Richardson and former national team captain Clay Smith are the only men to declare their intentions to run for the association’s top post.While Symonds appreciates the contributions that Richardson and Smith have made to cricket, he believes that the task of taking the sport to the next level in beyond both men.“I don’t think they can be equal to the task and if anything I believe they may be able to work with Bailey,” he said.Symonds also feels that BCB second vice-president Lloyd Fray, who is contemplating running for the job, is too heavily involved as BTC CEO to be able to give full commitment to running the Board.“Lloyd can’t run cricket because he is too busy running the telephone company,” he said. “Cricket needs someone like Ed who can give the job their full commitment.”