Bermuda gave their fans something to smile about when they defeated Italy 6-2 to finish fifth in the International Street and Ball Hockey Federation Masters World Championship at Pembroke Community Club on Saturday.

After missing out on a spot in the semi-finals when they lost 4-1 to Portugal, Bermuda ensured their last match in the eight-team tournament counted for something when qualifying for the fifth place play-off after thrashing Great Britain 10-0 on Friday.

Shannon Gosse, Tom Duggan, captain Jeremy Estey, Andrew Bonner, Jean-Michael Tremblay and Robbie Bailey scored in the victory over Italy, with the European strikes coming from Johnny Russo and Marco Del Gaudio.

Christopher Merritt, the Bermuda MVP against Italy, was pleased with the team’s effort.

“We had to come out here and play against a tough Italian team,” Merritt told The Royal Gazette.

“The bottom line is that we wanted to come out, put our best foot forward, show our talent, represent Bermuda and come out with a win.

“The match was great. We had a game plan, which was to come out and create some chances, and we executed well. We got up early, we continued the momentum and it worked in our favour at the end.

“Ultimately we wanted to be a top three team. After we failed to do that, the goal of finishing fifth was the next best.

“We’re really proud of our accomplishments. We’re a small country doing big things for ball hockey and competing against the world’s best, so coming fifth was the icing on the cake.”

Merritt is the oldest member of the team and has represented the island in international competitions since 2007.

“I’ll play as long as my body allows me,” the 52-year-old said.

“I just love the sport, it’s international, we love to represent and put Bermuda on the map. We’re extremely happy to continue playing in these major tournaments around the world.”

Bailey, the tournament top goal scorer with six goals, felt that they held their own against the larger countries.

“It’s a disappointing finish because we thought we were playing better than against some of the bigger teams,” he said.

“We played really well against Team USA and they have 342 million and we have 63,000, so you’ve to take your wins and losses.

“I feel the team came together in the last two games, stepped up and made sure we gave our fans a good show.

“We brought this here for the fans and Jeremy Estey and Mathieu Desjardins worked so hard to put this together. It was a great time to showcase our skills in front of everybody.”

Jean-Michael Tremblay, scorer of four goals against Great Britain, was content with Bermuda’s finishing position.

“We wanted to finish better by reaching the semi-finals, but we finished strong and we’re happy with that,’’ he said.

“We played a really good game and we’re proud of the way we played. I think we were not ready for the intensity and speed for the first game as reflected by the score.

“After that we came back and in the games afterwards we played better. We had to adjust because we’re not used to playing against teams that are this fast.

“We managed to show that we’re not that far behind and we really played well. We have 110 players to choose from and we lost in the shoot-out against the United States, a country with 10,000 players to select from.”

Estey was glad that they ended the tournament with back-to-back victories, following a tough start which saw the home team lose 9-0 to Canada Saskatchewan on the first day.

“We were happy to get the wins in the last two games,” he said.

“We just kept hockey simple. We got the ball deep, won our battles and had a lot of shots at the net.

“Ultimately, we wanted to play for a medal but we got fifth place, which is the best finish for Bermuda in the Masters. It’s a really good accomplishment and the team is really happy because it was a great team effort.

“We are very thankful to the sponsors that helped make it happen. Bermuda Tourism Authority, CG Insurance, XIB Asset Management, Anchor Investment Management, AI Tide, Positive Image Dental and Alexandra Mosher.

“We also thank the fans that came out to support, it’s been a great week and a great event. Playing at home in front of our family and friends was amazing, it’s a rare opportunity that we got in 2018 and then 2025. Now they are hinting that we might host again in 2031.”

Meanwhile, Canada defeated Saskatchewan 2-1 to win the tournament. Portugal overwhelmed the US 4-2 in the bronze medal encounter.