IT'S not often a Bermudian team heads off for an international sporting competition and returns with most of the medals.

But this was exactly what happened last year when the Old Colony Club (OCC) snooker team came back weighed down with silverware from the annual ten-day International Snooker League tournament in Spain.

This year a Bermuda team will join the OCC team in vying for honours in Montreal in May.

OCC member Stewart Greenslade, who is also President and Secretary Bermuda Snooker Association, proudly remembers last year's achievements with fellow players Robert Gaglio and Warren Harris.

"When we left here we were joking on the plane that we didn't really have much of a chance. We got there and got lucky and we came home with most of the trophies ? 12 out of 24.

"Robert won more than he lost, I won all nine of mine and Warren won one. But that one game was the one that put us over the top. That was definitely the best tournament we will have for a while. Now of course my handicap is shot to hell!

"There was the team trophy, I won the B division and the high break in the B division with 32. Tony Dawson, who is also from Bermuda, won the Doubles Competition with Robert and came runner-up in the Don Thomas Memorial Trophy. Robert also won the Handicap Singles."

Handicapped and scratch tournaments helped add to OCC's medals haul.

The International Snooker League consists of at least a dozen teams from North America and Europe. Bermuda have also won it once.

"The year before last it was here in Bermuda," said Greenslade. "That travels all around the world. This year it's going to be in Montreal on the 21-30th."

Bermuda will be represented by Steven Bremar, Matt Garrod and Paul Mathias while James Tatem will join Greenslade and Gaglio for the OCC team.

"Although it's a snooker tournament it's as much a group of friends getting together from around the world. Basically the directors of the ISL must approve anybody coming into the team. It all comes about from a tournament the OCC had with the New York Athletic Club. The following year we went there and a guy from England asked to get in on it and it's grown from there. For 30 years we have been doing that," said Greenslade.

Those who don't reach the standards of sportsmanship and friendliness won't be invited back said Greenslade.

"You might be the best player in the world but you are not going to come back to the tournament. It's all about having a good time and a good competition, it's not life and death. Because of the handicap situation it can be the worst guy in the world can win everything, it's that sort of deal."

Asked for his ambitions for Montreal Greenslade said simply: "We just want a good tournament. You could take that bunch of people and put them in the Sahara desert and we would make a great party. It's always a good time. It's not as much as pressure as one of these big tournaments."

Despite that it's rumoured former top pro-player Cliff Thorburn might be in Toronto's team this time around.

"That will be interesting. He's now playing exhibitions."

But the handicap situation could level the playing field.

Snooker is one of Bermuda's most integrated sports played by social clubs around the Island. The Association has been around for decades.

Thirteen teams compete in the Snooker league between September and April which features teams of a minimum of five people. There is also the Adventure Travel knock out league and the Snooker league play off trophy involving the top teams in both divisions.

Around a 100 players enjoy the sport, from teenagers to pensioners.

"We have two women players, one of them is actually quite good ? Freya Giffen," says Greenslade. "We would encourage more to join. No problem there."

He said Freya started out playing pool and crossed over.

Not as easy as you'd think, explains Mr. Greenslade.

"A lot of guys come over from pool. We had a guy come who plays in a professional pool league in New England. He came to the Island and wanted to play snooker. Our worst players were beating him on a regular basis. Even though he knew how to do things with the ball the strategy of the game eluded him for the longest time. Then he started to get it. It's not necessarily about potting the ball all the time. That's the easy part. The difficult part is working out whether to put it in the hole or do something else. There's skill as well as strategy. If you think of pool as playing checkers but if you want to move up to chess, snooker is it.

"The difference with snooker is it's not necessarily the points you score but what you do to your opponent. If you can force him to make mistakes and hide the ball from him so he can't get to it and cause him to foul ? that gives you points. Sometimes it's time to run, sometimes it's time to hide.

"It's knowing when to do those things and how to do those things ? put the white ball in a particular place on the table makes all the difference between whether you win or lose nine times out of ten."

OCC charges $150 to join per year which grants you full use of the snooker tables plus the benefits of a very cheap bar.

"If you drink at all by the first few times here you will have paid for your membership." The OCC pays the league dues.

Membership fees vary across the Island with Warwick Workman's Club and Watford Sports Club offering a particularly good deals. More teams are welcome providing they have a table. "It's not an expensive sport to get in to. It's really about getting on the team."

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Warwick Workmen's Club - $40

Watford Sports Club - $40

Queen's Club - $75

Old Colony Club - $150

St. George's Dinghy and Sports Club - $150

Spanish Point Boat Club - $275