Victorious St.George?s skipper Herbie Bascome yesterday denied claims that he hurled xenophobic taunts in the direction of Somerset?s South-African born all-rounder Saleem Mukuddem during last week?s emotionally-charged Cup Match at Wellington Oval.

Bascome, who announced his retirement immediately following his team?s 27-run win over Somerset, said Mukuddem?s claims, published in yesterday?s , were completely unfounded.

And he accused his rival of making excuses for his team?s demise.

While Bascome admitted ?sledging? did occur in the heat of the battle, the veteran described it as all a part of the game and something that had been going on before his arrival in the classic in 1997.

?I don?t know what allegations he (Mukuddem) is talking about but whatever he has said has nothing to do with me and there are two sides to a story. Whatever allegations have been put against me I really have no control over. All I can do is come to my defence. And allegations of me directing anything at Mukuddem are simply untrue,? a perturbed Bascome told .

?There were a lot of things being said over Cup Match but why target me? Is it because I am the captain or I have dreadlocks? I don?t know. Maybe he has something against me. But I have never said any bad words or had any altercations with Mukuddem. If he felt that I had attacked him then he should have come to me personally. But no, he runs to the papers and tries to make a situation worse than it really is.

?All I did was motivate my players and if he wants to take that as a personal attack on him then that?s his issue. But I did not direct anything on him and it seems as though he is just trying to make my life uncomfortable because we have won the cup.

?I have heard many things said over the years but not once has someone gone running to the papers. I don?t know why he feels he has the right to run to the press and try to make me feel as though I am a bad person because I could repeat the things that he said. But I have absolutely nothing to say to Mukuddem and it?s obvious he is trying to make himself look good.?

During his stay at the crease in Somerset?s first innings, Mukuddem claimed Bascome, fielding close to the bat, repeatedly hurled verbal abuse, much of it related to his South African origins.

But the St. George?s skipper said yesterday that wasn?t true.

He added: ?Mukuddem comes into the match having not been dismissed before and then gets out and makes excuses about me saying something to him. If he felt hurt in any way he should have come to me. But don?t use me as a scapegoat for your benefit.

?Whenever you have a fielder right up in the batsman?s face, of course he is going to feel pressure. Mukuddem was walking away when the bowler was running up only because he felt the pressure . . . that?s why he was walking away.

?When I batted I got abused about things I can?t even mention in the press. But I have to be tough and not allow it to distract me from batting.?

Bascome also addressed the issue surrounding his colt, George O?Brien Jr., who landed a blow to the face guard of Somerset?s Stephen Outerbridge upon the latter?s dismissal late on the second day.

?There seems to be more interests in George hitting Stephen rather than Stephen spitting on George,? he said. ?So George is made out to be the villain. But if you were to ask anybody what is one of the the worst things in the world somebody could do to them, they would probably reply spit in their face. But you don?t hear nothing about that do you?

?It seems as though everybody is making St. George?s out to be the villains when there were a lot of things Somerset did on that field which have not been discussed. But because we won, everything is directed at us. The year I captained St. George?s up in Somerset and we lost the cup I was called so much names.

?However, I have learned to deal with it and I actually got two ducks the year I lost the cup in Somerset. But I didn?t go running to the press claiming this or that. Now the minute these guys fail they go looking for excuses.?

Responding to allegations of match-fixing, Bascome stated: ?I don?t see where St.George?s got any advantages because some decisions went our way but how many went against us? There were a lot of decisions that went both ways for both teams. It was a very aggressive game and Lee Raynor (former St.George?s player) even described Cup Match as war last week in the papers. Now you have an aggressive match and everybody gets upset.

?Nobody was influenced and that is a lot of craziness. Umpires make mistakes but it now becomes a big issue because St.George?s won the cup.?