Young Bermudian John Barry Nusum has been rated as one of the top strikers in United States college soccer by his coach.

The 18-year-old is likely to figure strongly in Clyde Best's plans for the Bermuda under-23 side to contest Olympic qualifying matches in the US next March.

And since joining up with his college side Furman in South Carolina last year, Nusum has made quite an impact.

Furman coach Doug Allison said the 6-foot-1, 200-pound Nusum -- nicknamed The Bear -- had used his size well to terrorise opposing defences.

"He attracts a crowd,'' said Allison. "There's not one man that can mark him out of a game. He's one of the best target players in the country.'' Quoted in the US magazine Soccer America , Allison recalled how he first saw Nusum on a recruiting trip to Bermuda.

"He was wearing a blazer and tie, like the other schoolboys, and he looked like an impostor,'' said Allison. "He was bulging out of his uniform.'' Nusum took a while to settle in after joining the side last year, but eventually the goals started to flow and he finished the season as top scorer with 10 goals, plus 11 assists.

This year, he has already netted seven goals in nine games, with two assists.

But Allison did see an area where Nusum could improve. "He needs to be hungry for that second and third goal,'' said the coach.

"I wish he would get angry sometimes, a bit more intense, but I don't want to change what he brings to the table.'' Bermuda Football Association technical director Best, who was a big, bustling striker himself in his heyday, agreed that Nusum could have a big future in the game.

"John Barry definitely has lots of potential,'' said Best. "To say he's the best target man in the US is a big statement to make, and as his coach, I hope he plays that well in the Olympic qualifiers! "He has definitely got the potential to become a pro if he really wants it.'' Best suggested that the lack of anger in Nusum mentioned by his coach was probably a consequence of being brought up in peaceful and beautiful Bermuda.

"As a striker, you really need that killer instinct, and if he could develop that, it would certainly help him as a player,'' added Best.

A young Bermuda goalkeeper has been named as the shot-stopper of the week in an American magazine.

The honour was the culmination of a number of rave reviews that Nigel Burgess has been getting in the US press.

Burgess, 18, who attends Howard University in Washington DC, was named in the men's college team of the week by Soccer America magazine after making seven fine saves to give his side a 1-0 win over Jacksonville.

Burgess also recorded eight important saves in a 4-1 victory against George Washington.

The goalkeeper, formerly with Wolves and now on the books of Hamilton Parish, was on Tuesday named in Best's initial 44-man under-23 training squad for the Olympic qualifiers.

He is on a soccer scholarship at Howard.