A "shocked and disturbed" Shaun Goater has questioned the desire of Bermuda's national team players after just a handful turned up for a recent training session.

Despite the 2010 World Cup qualifiers looming on the horizon, just 10 players from a 66-strong party attended last weekend's practice at PHC — one of the first sessions overseen by newly appointed national coach Keith Tucker.

The Bermuda Football Association (BFA) are now contemplating scrapping Saturday training sessions altogether, blaming work commitments for the poor showing.

But Goater, who won 36 caps for his country, believes the 'no show' batch must take a long hard look at themselves and has urged the guilty party to show more pride and passion to pull on their country's jersey.

"I was shocked and a little disturbed when I heard just ten players turned up for training," said Goater. "There's no reason why only ten guys out of around 60 should make a national team training session.

"A new coach has been appointed and these sessions should be seen as an opportunity to impress him and win a jersey for the upcoming World Cup qualifying matches. There should at least be 20 guys at a training session, it's a bit concerning.

"Maybe some need to ask themselves whether they have the commitment to play for their country. It's an honour to represent your country and sometimes it's a question of pride. Ten players turning up for a national team training session looks amateurish."

Bermuda are on a collision course to meet Concacaf powerhouse Trinidad and Tobago should they progress past the Cayman Islands in the first round of the qualifiers in February — with preparation at a premium for new boss Tucker.

Goater believes the Cayman Islands will be no pushover and has urged national team members to commit to the challenge with a chance to test themselves against 2006 World Cup veterans the Soca Warriors at stake.

"There's not a lot of time for Keith Tucker to prepare and the players need to get behind him and show their commitment and support," added Goater. "People talk about the Bermuda Football Association (BFA) needing to be accountable now they have all this money, but the players must be accountable also. Hopefully now the World Cup qualifying draw has been announced it will encourage a few more of the guys to make that commitment. The Cayman Islands will be no pushover that's for sure. If we do progress then we have a huge game against Trinidad and Tobago who will of course be favourites and we would need nine or ten of our players to be at the top of their game to threaten an upset.

"I certainly wish Keith Tucker all the best as he begins his reign and hope he gets plenty of support."

The BFA are in discussions with three countries to arrange friendly matches between December 14 and16. A press conference has been called for 1 p.m today regarding the team's upcoming plans in preparation for next year's qualifiers.