WESTERN Counties cricket gets underway tomorrow -- for the first time with players decked out in coloured uniforms -- and just like the Central Counties before it, cricket followers will be able to hear every ball, every boundary and every dismissal courtesy of VSB radio.

That might be a good deal for the ardent cricket supporter, but for the majority of sports fans in Bermuda the sound of Jim (Voice of Summer) Woolridge signals another Saturday without BBC's Sports World.

In the winter, in particular, the Beeb's Saturday morning presentation is hugely popular, not only with expats keeping tabs on the fortunes of their favourite soccer team, but more recently with many Bermudians as they seek to follow the progress of Shaun Goater and Kyle Lightbourne, as well as the clubs they support.

But Sports World's three and sometimes four-hour live coverage isn't just about football. Presenter Martin Fookes and his crew bring reports on every major event around the world as they unfold. Tomorrow, no doubt, will focus heavily on Wimbledon.

It is perhaps one of the most informative and slickly produced sports radio programmes to be heard anywhere, and to VSB's great credit they bring it into our homes without interruption.. until the arrival of the cricket season.

Then, all of a sudden and without explanation, listeners are cut off. It's local cricket or nothing.

And judging from the number of calls we receive on the subject, that decision isn't too popular.

Most want to know why Kenny DeFonte's station can't accommodate both local cricket and the BBC's service, using different wavebands.

With a new English soccer season a little over a month away -- but still in the middle of our cricket season -- and Goater about to debut in the Premier League, VSB might want to reconsider their options.

BBC's Saturday morning show will never be more in demand.

*** OPPORTUNITY knocked for Steve Astwood and Tokia Russell this week as they set off on the same journey on which both Goater and Kyle Lightbourne embarked many years ago.

These days securing trials with an English soccer club -- in Astwood and Russell's case it's Preston North End -- is no small achievement with players from all around the globe vying for a chance to prove their worth in what is arguably the toughest and most competitive league of any country.

And as agent Barry McIntosh was at pains to point out this week, their ultimate success -- and that of other young Bermudians with the same dream -- may hinge as much on how they perform off the field as they perform on.

The two youngsters should be under no illusions about their responsibilities.

Talent, as Goater and Lightbourne quickly discovered, can take a player only so far. Hard work, patience and a willingness to learn are all part of today's soccer apprenticeship.

And in Astwood and Russell's case, as McIntosh explained, their roles as Bermuda ambassadors could determine just how many more local youngsters will be offered the same chance.

-- ADRIAN ROBSON