If Gus Logie has his way there will soon be an end to the sniping and negativity that currently surrounds the Bermuda national cricket team.

Problems surrounding the squad have been well documented, but the solutions and the potential of the future, believes the national coach, could have been lost in the rush to condem the betrayal of the honour of representing your country by certain members of the squad.

That isn't to say that the problems aren't still there, Logie knows that they are, but he also thinks that they aren't as insurmountable as some people believe.

"We know what the problems are, now we are interested in finding solutions," he said.

"The reality of the situation is that life goes on, and we (the Bermuda Cricket Board) are here to help. We know that cricket can make a difference in people's lives. Yes we are criticised, and we have taken are fair share of criticism, but we know that some players need our support.

"But they have to let us know. We are in a position where we can afford to provide support, be it financial or social, and if we do, then we can get more out of the individual."

The problems surrounding the national squad have been played out in public, but there is enough going on behind the scenes for Logie to believe that the season can be a success.

"It's all about development, and helping the next generation of players become better cricketers. In the past couple of weeks we have run coaching courses, and the response to those was pretty enthusiastic.

"We now have coaches going back to the clubs, and to youth level, and hopefully that will improve the standard lower down.

"We are part of the high performance programme that the ICC have in place, and we are developing cricket in line with that. We're not doing everything willy-nilly, all that we put into place has to fit into our system, to work alongside the set-up that we have in place. All that we are asking is for the players to respond.

"And as the season gets under way I think it (the attitude of the players) will get better.

"It is always difficult in the off-season, but once you get cricket in the air, the attitude changes. Players want to play, they want to be involved, and the whole atmosphere changes."

The improvement in the attitude is only part of the problem. The focus on the one-day version of the game brings its own difficulties. To be part of the high performance programme, countries have to compete in a variety of competitions, including the four-day Intercontinental Cup.

At the moment, the Island's cricketers, observers say, are not mentally atuned to playing for that length of time. But Logie believes they can be, and if not now, then certainly in the future.

"The Island suffers from having a results oriented society," he said. "In the shorter version you can see an instant result. In the longer game you can have a draw, and sometimes that doesn't sit very well with some people. But you have to be mindful of what cricket is about, you have to appreciate the fundamentals of the game.

"Some of the older players can adapt, and some of the younger players can't. But if we can teach them to love the game, to understand it, then they will want to play in a longer game, not just get it over and done with.

"The players can be taught to play the longer version, it's just a case of repetition . . . constantly teaching them to concentrate, build an innings, and understand how to play for longer."