Jamaica because of concerns over what he saw as a lack of preparation, Bermuda Football Association's controversial Technical Director of Coaching Burkhard Ziese yesterday decided to make the trip to the Caribbean after all.

Ziese on Thursday told The Royal Gazette that he was undecided as to whether he would go with the team, citing problems within the association.

"Right now it doesn't look like it. Why? because there are too many internal problems,'' Ziese was quoted as saying.

However, yesterday the German coach, whose tenure at the BFA has been speckled with with controversy, apparently decided he would accompany the squad, although he was not available for comment.

BFA general secretary David Sabir confirmed Ziese would be a member of the touring party which leaves today.

It is known that Ziese has become increasingly irritated with the poor attendance at training sessions by members of the squad since their return from a tour of Germany. He was also upset at the recent furore created by one club's attempt to rebuff the association's policy of releasing players for national commitments.

Ziese maintains that clubs must wholly support the national programme if the standard of soccer in Bermuda is to progress to the desired level.

Meanwhile, Ziese came under attack from another quarter yesterday, with Bermuda Ladies Hockey Association president Judy Siddle responding to his comments regarding the hockey players' use of the National Stadium.

The technical director was angered to find the stadium occupied by the hockey group on the same night a squad training session had been scheduled.

"There's a hockey tournament at National Stadium and we can't be on the field in our last week of training here,'' said Ziese. "This is supposed to be the highest commitment of Bermuda...So for goodness sake, why couldn't we have the stadium?'' However, Siddle shot back at these remarks, saying that while empathising with the problems, she could not accept his using hockey as an excuse.

"The football association does not have the sole rights to the use of the National Sports Centre, sorry that is a fact, we pay for lighting also!'' wrote Siddle in a letter to Sports Mailbox (see below).

"Let me also correct you on another point. This was not a tournament. The Bermuda Ladies Hockey Association was hosting two visiting school teams from the USA which the Bermuda Under-21 squad was playing against.

"Like you, we are trying to develop our national programme to its highest level.'' Siddle went on to note that there are many other fields available to soccer, while hockey has just one real venue, that being National Sports Club, where the field is shared with men's hockey players and rugby players.