Former Bermuda Cricket Board (BCB) president El James has backed calls for Bermuda?s national team cricketers to become fully-paid professionals.

James, who recently announced he would not be travelling with the national team this week to Trinidad for official One-Day Internationals against Canada and Zimbabwe, believes that present measures in place are woefully inadequate and that at some point in time Bermuda will have to make the transition from semi to full pro.

?The way I see it if we continue this way heading up to 2009 (ICC Trophy) we are going to have to make some decisions because we can?t have a part-time team taking on a full-time professional type schedule,? said James.

?It?s not going to be fair to the employers, families or the players and there?s a lot of pressure on the players even to hold down a full-time job.

?They have to cope with the pressure and demands of rushing off to training every night or travel overseas for international commitments.?

In recent months several team members have been forced to miss overseas tours through work commitments, among them batsman Azeem Pitcher and most recently fast bowler Kevin Hurdle.

James added: ?It?s just too much and if we continue going down this path then we are going to have to look at full-time paid professionals to make it easier on the players as they prepare themselves for the 2007 World Cup and even 2009 (ICC Trophy).

?It?s a big demand. Maybe we are going to have to entertain 14 professional players and have them on the roster and not have them work because it is a strain on anybody in that position right now.?

During the national squad?s training exercise in Trinidad last month, team members demonstrated what could be achieved when they were provided with ample time to concentrate solely on cricket without any distractions.

?The fellows had access to the indoor nets virtually 24 hours a day and they took advantage of the facilities and it brought out a new level of enthusiasm,? James said.

?You had players such as Azeem Pitcher, Stephen Bremar jr, Daniel Morgan and Treadwell Gibbons jr who put a lot of time in because they are hungry. And if you watch these fellows now they are batting with so much confidence, it?s amazing.?

During the recently concluded 20/20 World Cricket Classic at the National Sports Centre, Morgan struck a robust half century (52) for Bermuda against the West Indies, while promising youngsters Pitcher (53) and Gibbons (55) hit half centuries for their respective league clubs this past weekend.

?To watch them now taking hold of the bowling is amazing and I think if we are going to continue to develop our youngsters and allow our seniors to remain at the top of their game then eventually I think going professional is going to have to be entertained,? James continued.

Only last week former West Indies Test bowler Colin Croft recommended that Bermuda?s national team cricketers should compete overseas on a more regular basis in one-day competitions either in England, Scotland and Ireland or the Caribbean, something being a full time pro would enable them to do.

Croft stated: ?Right now the ICC has done a good thing by giving Associate members more games, they have to do that and there?s a reason for that . . . they want to bring the standards up.

?And you can only get better by playing more so Bermuda have to get moving instead of sitting around and wasting time.?

Croft suggested Bermuda follow suit with Scotland and Ireland by gaining more exposure playing in one-day competitions in Europe or the Caribbean.

?You have to become associated with one of the bigger teams like England or the West Indies and play in their competitions because that?s the only way your cricket is going to get better,? he insisted.

?If I am a small country and I want to expand, then I have to put my house in order and become affiliated with one of the major cricket boards.?

Bermuda previously competed in the former Red Stripe Bowl in the early 1990s on an invitation basis.

?Bermuda right now have an ideal circumstance of playing in the next World Cup,? Croft added. ?And it would be ideal to have Bermuda playing in one-day tournaments in England or the West Indies until such time they can prove they can play four-day cricket, because Associate members such as Canada, USA and Ireland have developed to such a state that sooner rather than later they are going to gain Test status.?

BBC president Reggie Pearman stated: ?We are on a whole different stage right now and people must realise where we are.

?It is a strain on everyone involved, but we don?t set the criteria . . . the criteria is set by the ICC and either we want to play cricket or go back to where we were.

?And I don?t think we want to go back to where we were, but sacrifices have to be made.?