The current cricket format hinders the improvement of Bermuda's top clubs and likely will have to be altered, according to Bermuda Cricket Board of Control president Ed Bailey.

Speaking at a recent press conference Bailey, while stopping short of confirming a shift to a Super Eight layout, insisted that the scheduling committee would be studying methods for further improving the league's structure.

He added that these assessments should be finished before Christmas at which time the clubs would be given the opportunity to object before any proposed changes are ratified.

"It's difficult running 16 to 18 teams at one time and I think that it doesn't do anything for the stronger teams,'' explained Bailey of the system which this year witnessed a last-minute scramble at the beginning of the season with the withdrawal of Hamilton Parish which caused scheduling headaches.

"I think that some will argue that having the current format the weaker teams benefit, but it doesn't do very much for the stronger teams.

"As you can see the weaker teams, as long as you're playing against stronger teams, it increases the potential of you improving your cricket. So overall, we have to sit down and look at it and do a postmortem of what happened this year and how we can improve it next year. I'm quite sure next year we will be thinking very seriously about rearranging the structure.

"I wouldn't say for certain that we're going to go to Super Eight...it depends on what the committee comes up with.

After a league season that contained few defaults and was vacant of and serious incidents, Bailey said he was pleased with how the "organisational machinery'' had performed and looked for further improvement next season.