Life will carry on much the same as it did before for Bermuda's national cricket team.

There will be winter training, most likely a winter tour, and the dedication that head coach David Moore demands from his players will not lessen, even though the ICC's ruling earlier this month took some wind out of the Associate nations' sails.

In a statement headed 'Moving Forward' the Bermuda Cricket Board yesterday outlined their plans for the coming year, which now looks like including a regional Twenty20 World Cup qualifier.

"Further to the ICC's recent disappointing decision to reduce the number of teams able to qualify for the 2015 ICC World Cup, the Bermuda Cricket Board is continuing to follow its strategic plans to reach the 50 Overs World Cup," said the statement.

"However, the Board appreciates that with fewer countries competing, qualification will be much harder compared to previous years.

"The BCB is heartened by the increase in the number of member countries for the T20 World Cup in 2012 and beyond and we can confirm that the Bermuda Team will have a strong focus to perform well in the Regional T20 World Cup Qualifiers in 2011."

For Moore and his team that means their brief break from the game will end next month, when training starts again, and is likely to include a trip to Dubai in the new year.

Dubai will be the venue for the Division Two qualifiers in April and a winter trip will be a dry run for a tournament that is still important to the future of Bermuda cricket.

"Once we start again in November, it's not just going to be cricket skills, it's going to be strength and conditioning and fitness as well.

'We've really got to make a really strong push, and those guys that come up short with their work ethic and their commitment to the game leading up to December and April won't be on the trip no matter how skilled they are.

"There's no magic wand, there is no hidden formula for success in international cricket, it's more hard work than talent."

While the World Cup may have been reduced to 10 teams, there has been little change to the Intercontinental Shield or Intercontinental Cup, either of which Bermuda need to play in to be part of the ICC's High Performance Programme.

"From my point of view, if there was going to be a winter tour, it would certainly have to be about playing. The whole idea would be about getting our players who haven't been there across to Dubai, and giving them a feel for what it's like, what the conditions are like, and to make sure we are fully prepared (for the year ahead).

"We are trying to leave no stone unturned. Our results throughout the year haven't been what we would like, but we have to keep moving forward and work hard, and try to take every possible chance we can into the event in April.

"The bottom line for us for this winter tour is that we have focused on April as being a very important programme for us. We know that we have got to beat at least one or two of those sides above us to remain in the top league, because we are going to be threatened by the two below us. We are in a difficult situation."