Bermuda 185-7 Bermuda's national team enjoyed their best weekend on home soil for several years when they completed a two-game sweep of the visiting Leeward Islands at Lord's yesterday in front of the biggest crowd of the tour.

But it wasn't until all-rounder Janeiro Tucker, quickly grabbing a spot for himself in the Bermuda team, and wicketkeeper Dean Minors came together for a seventh wicket stand of 75 that a second straight win over the Red Stripe champions became a reality.

Before then the local team were running out of luck, quite literally, after three run outs in the middle order looked like spoiling the day.

Despite the early setback of losing Glenn Smith in the fifth over when the score was 19, there was no need for panic as Clay Smith and his captain Albert Steede added 27 for the second wicket.

That was when Smith departed for 33 of the first 46 runs, having smashed Troy Mills for four fours in his fifth over to keep the score ticking over at around four runs an over.

But the pendulum swung between the 11th and 22nd overs when, in tandem, visiting spinners Ronald Powell and Earl Waldron tied up the Bermuda batsmen.

Suddenly runs were hard to come by as Waldron bowled six straight maidens when just 14 runs came in a 12 over period.

A wicket also fell during that time when a mixup between Steede and Charlie Marshall resulted in Steede's dismissal. Marshall failed to respond to a call after he played the ball to a fielder in the covers.

So far down the crease was Steede that the throw to the bowler's end still beat him back even via the wicketkeeper at the other end.

However, a tactical move three overs later by captain Dave Joseph allowed the pressure to ease on Bermuda's batsman, when he decided to save Powell and Waldron for later. Their replacements, Alex Adams and Carl Tuckett, did not bowl as tidily and runs started to come again.

Marshall was then run out in the 27th over when he called Jeff Richardson for a single behind the wicket but failed to beat the throw to the batsman's end.

That made it 78-4 which then became 93-5 when, after some fluent shots, Richardson was trapped lbw for 33 by Powell in his first over back. Richardson hit six fluent fours off 36 balls in 36 minutes.

Arnold Manders went in the next over, also run out after bad communication, and Bermuda looked in deep trouble at 100-6.

But the batting was even deeper and Tucker and Minors launched a brave fightback with a partnership that contained sensible running between the wickets and some crucial boundaries. They batted together for 13 overs and took the total to 175 by the 44th over when victory was all but assured with just 10 needed off six overs.

Tucker scored 41 from four sixes and two fours off 45 balls and Minors 37 not out off 52 balls in 70 minutes at the crease. He hit three sixes and two fours.

Waldron eventually finished with two for 24 from his 10 overs while Powell had one for 30 from 10.

"I saw some things in the middle that looked pretty positive, and we bowled to a plan,'' said coach Allan Douglas afterwards. "But there are some things to iron out with the batting. The first thing I noticed is we really need to work on running between the wickets, and there are a lot of things we're going to be working on this week.'' Earlier the Bermuda bowlers did a good job of containing a Leewards team that was missing key opener Stuart Williams, who departed yesterday for a West Indies Cricket Board function in Jamaica this week.

Waldron, promoted to opener, fell to spinner Bruce Perinchief in just the third over and further wickets fell in the 11th and 15th overs as the Leewards were in early trouble at 29-3.

Their run rate also must have been of some concern as they had 17 runs after 10 overs, 43 after 20 and 86 after 30 before 98 runs were scored off the last 18.2 overs.

Opener Merlin Liburd was their top bat with 59 in 137 minutes from 101 balls while captain Joseph scored 40, Ridley Jacobs 31 and Alex Adams 20 in the middle order to repair the early damage. First change Janeiro Tucker took four for 35 from 9.2 overs to finish as the best Bermuda bowler.

CLEAN SWEEP -- Leewards opener Merlin Liburd sweeps this delivery on his way to a top score of 59. Wicketkeeper Dean Minors, who led Bermuda to victory with 37 not out, looks on.