Bermuda?s national cricket team should be fitter and healthier than ever for this summer?s critical ICC Trophy battle in Ireland.

In keeping with now-accustomed global sporting practice, the Bermuda Cricket Board (BCB) have for the first time recruited a physiotherapist, Daniel Morgan, and a nutritionist, Arlene Andrews.

These two are busy whipping captain Clay Smith and company into shape, ensuring the Island?s players are physically prepared to seek untold glory for their country in trying to qualify for the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

Morgan has been working with the team since November and together with Andrews ? who came on board last month ? has devised specific workouts and dietary plans for each player in the national training squad based on their fitness profiles.

?We did individual fitness profiles ? height, body fat and weight ? and we have projected what everyone should be ideally based on what they originally were. They are realistic targets,? explained Morgan.

?One of the big issues is to try to be objective. We didn?t want to have one standard for all players in terms of fitness gains. We wanted it to be an individual process because everybody does not have the same body type.?

Every month, players undergo vigorous exercises to track their progress or regression. Among the things which these tests monitor are: their aerobic capacity (12-minute run), anaerobic capacity (sprint, recover, sprint over 15 minutes), upper-limb strength and abdominal strength. Their weight and body fat are also measured.

Regarding the programme?s nutritional component, Andrews has been educating players about the necessities of proper, healthy eating habits and pointing out the relationship between their dietary intake and physical output.

?We had a meeting with them and we discussed the basic guidelines of healthy eating and the importance of proper nutrition in relation to peak performance. We went over the proper components of a sports diet in terms of protein, carbohydrate and fat percentages and also pre-exercise and post-exercise nutrition,? said Andrews, who also lectured on limiting dietary components in terms of moderation, balance and variety as well as limiting post-match alcoholic consumption.

Given the diversity of players summoned to training, she noted their fitness goals vary widely from those who want to lose weight to those who want to increase lean body mass and others want to convert body fat to lean body mass.

Andrews, 31, has been asked to work specifically with five players, giving one-on-one consultations. This decision resulted from the fact that those persons? fitness profiles highlighted a need for ?more specialised input? than the other players who were ?closer to an ideal standard?.

Both experts applauded the positive mindset which players have adopted to improve their physique and fitness ahead of the July qualifier for the 2007 Cricket World Cup.

?They are very keen and they ask lots of questions. They have been given specific targets by the BCB which they have to meet. Some have already made certain changes and I?m now instructing them about whether or not those changes are the best they could have made and where to go from here to make further improvements.

?I?m quite impressed with the changes some of them have made so far. Since January they have made some pretty significant changes to their dietary intake. They are definitely on the right track,? said a pleased Andrews.

One of her concerns is that, in altering their diets, players continue eating enough and not overly restrict themselves.

?I want them to be making nutrient-dense choice so that not only do they have the energy to do their training sessions well but also when we start coming to competition that they stay at their peak.

?They obviously have the skill and, if they want to win, they need to beef up their fitness and part of that is the nutrition plan.?

The current focus, said Morgan, is on fat burning and cardiovascular work and will move progressively towards specific areas such as more track work and sprints to sharpen the cricketers.

However, the physiotherapist who noted that the squad ?enjoys us taking an interest in them?, underlined that the programme is ?a loose plan? which can be adjusted to players? requirements.

He stressed the nutrition-fitness plan ?is about Bermuda being professional? in their approach to the tournament and therefore it must be somewhat flexible.

?It?s about doing everything we can to get them fit and ready. Healthy individuals will have a better chance of attaining our goal to make the Cricket World Cup,? declared the 31-year-old.

Given the number of older players in Bermuda?s squad, Morgan ? himself a batsman for Warwick ? said fitness and recovery were crucial with the Island?s agenda of back-to-back matches.

BCB official Neil Speight stated the team?s challenging schedule will see them playing five games in the first week and seven games in the first ten days.

?It would be nice to see the players be at their best in all the games and the Board is pleased with the input and professionalism which Daniel and Arlene have brought to the players? preparation,? he said.

At present, the squad train three days per week at Olympic Club, run four miles on Fridays and have cricket training on Saturdays and Sundays with interim coach Wendell Smith.