Bermuda Football Association competitions committee chairman Shannon Burgess defended the Dudley Eve Trophy format at the semi-final draw yesterday.

At the draw, which pitted Devonshire Cougars against PHC and St George’s with Dandy Town, Burgess took the time to respond to North Village coach Cal “Patches” Dill, who hit out at the format after his side won two of their group games but failed to progress, losing out on the best runner-up spot to PHC.

Dill was angered that his side’s points from the victory against Boulevard Blazers did not count because points garnered against the team that finished bottom of the only four-team group are discounted.

In response to the criticism, Burgess backed the format, which he feels is the best way to determine the semi-finalists within the available three-week window.

“The first match is the day after the Charity Cup and the last match is a week before the start of the Premier Division,” Burgess said.

“If you think about the fact that there are only so many matchdays and the window in which we have to play the group phase, this is the best structure.

“We needed four teams to come out of three groups into a knockout phase and this is the best way to do it.”

Burgess said different formats had been considered, including converting the points into a percentage.

“There are probably two ways to do it,” Burgess said.

“One is to eliminate the score of the lowest-ranking team in the group of four and that is customary in our region.

“The other is looking at points average. So, for instance, in a four-team group a team would play three matches with nine points on offer. You could tabulate the amount of points won, come up with a percentage and put that up against the second-place teams in the other groups.

“I’ve done that maths and if we had used that format this year, PHC and Village would have finished level with 66.6 per cent. But PHC’s goal difference was better, so no matter which way you looked at it, PHC were the best second-place team.

“They didn’t lose a match and didn’t lose to the team that won their group, so from several different angles, PHC deserve their place in the semi-finals.”

Dill suggested that two groups of five teams, with the top two in each going through to the semi-finals would be his preferred format, but Burgess discounted that as an option.

“I’m not sure how we do it with the amount of matchdays that we have,” Burgess said.

“Patches suggested two five-team groups and someone else suggested the same.

“But then you’re talking about four matchdays in a three-week period during a tournament in preseason, so you’re putting a lot of minutes on legs of players that are not fully fit.

“I’ll have a conversation with Patches, as we’re good friends, but this format has been in place for several years and as with all competitions, affiliates have several avenues to talk with the association and the competitions committee if they have issues with the rules.”