EVERY picture tells a story.

And anyone who saw the photo published on the front page of the sports section of this newspaper yesterday would have immediately recognised that story.

A glum looking Bermuda Cricket Board president Reggie Pearman sat beside national coach Gus Logie, pointing his finger as if to demonstrate his frustration.

This much anticipated press conference to announce the final squad for the World Cup qualifying tournament in South Africa next month was supposed to be an occasion when the media could engage in discussion with cricket's governing body, to assess the merits of the various players selected, to analyse the recent successful tour of the Caribbean where Bermuda's young team performed so well and a time to question this country's prospects of reaching a second successive World Cup when the cricketing world would again focus on the ICC's smallest associate member.

It was anything but.

The BCB might have anticipated all of the above as they met with reporters.

Instead they had already loaded the proverbial gun and shot themselves in both feet.

Attitude and discipline – words that have blighted the Bermuda team both here and abroad – were the topics of discussion.

The omission of Delyone Borden, a player who only having a few weeks' ago seemed to be a certainty, didn't come as a great surprise.

The all-rounder would have known his fate long before Wednesday, having walked off the pitch in one game and failed to play in another because of a pay dispute. Indeed this newspaper already knew, but as usual the BCB shut up shop and refused to answer questions, their president even denying a dispute involving Borden ever existed.

Wouldn't it have been so much better if the Borden issue had been thrown out in the public domain via the media when it happened, rather than let it fester, and allow the players, coaches and the Board to concentrate on the success of the tour, even celebrate how much the side had improved?

Wednesday's press conference might have been allowed to continue in a far more positive mood.

Unfortunately, the BCB have a terrible habit of sliding unsavoury matters under the carpet, hoping they'll go away.

Rather than confront them head-on, they ignore and deny.

We know that from experience. They talk to the media, thus the public, when it suits them.

They rarely return calls or answer e-mails – the exception being Logie and when those players, muzzled by the terms of their contact, are allowed to talk.

'Transparency' is a popular word these days. But it hasn't yet made its way into the BCB dictionary.

And the irony of all of this is that outside their reluctance to communicate, the Board do an admirable job – they organise tours, send players to overseas academies, develop a youth programme which works, and generally are efficient in the way they govern the sport.

But the impression of those reporters who attended the press conference this week was that Logie had had enough. He needed to get it all out in the open and be allowed to concentrate on what he does best.

Borden's actions were inexcusable. No matter what the grievance, a player can't walk out on his country.

Even if his complaints were valid, there was a time and a place to express them – and that time and place wasn't in the middle of a cricket field.

Hopefully, he'll regret his actions which may have cost him the chance to feature in another chapter in cricketing history.

If he doesn't, then he had no place in the squad anyway.

And Delyone might want be reminded that 'real men don't eat quiche'. Nor do men in their 20s rely on their mothers to fight their battles.

Yet if it's true that the Board have reneged on the terms of his professional contract, as alleged, then they have an awful lot to answer for. If they haven't, then let the public know exactly what has transpired, whether he has been paid in full and if not, why?

Not to excuse his actions, but it would have been difficult for Borden to concentrate on his game if his bank account remained empty with no income forthcoming.

It was just four years' ago that Government agreed to pump $11 million into the sport – a decision which angered those who believed the money could be better spent elsewhere. And having received this massive donation, as well as money given by the under-investigation Allen Stanford, money should be the least of their worries.

If players haven't been paid on time as Borden claims, it's a disgrace.

The BCB cry out for commitment and passion. Yet if they aren't fulfilling their own obligations, what can they expect?

Borden's big mistake was that he chose to interrupt what was otherwise a confidence-building tour with results that totally revived the team's spirits and brought applause from the Bermuda cricket fans who follow their every move.

He should, of course, have waited until the tour was over to express his disappointment.

But shouldn't the Board have nipped this issue in the bud long before it became so disruptive? If they were aware of the problem, and even if they inisisted it was an issue that had to be resolved with Borden's employer, the Department of Works and Engineering, as has been alleged by a top BCB source, why not say so?

Whatever the circumstances, they still had to ensure their players on contract were compensated in full and in timely fashion – no matter what that entailed.

Last summer a respected Barbadian journalist, Philip Spooner, arrived in Bermuda to start work on this newspaper as a senior sports reporter.

Much to our disappointment, a day earlier he had received a call from the West Indies Cricket Board asking whether he would accept the vacant post of WICB press officer. It was an opportunity of a lifetime. We wanted to retain him, but knew there was little chance and wished him well.

Almost every week since, in his role with the WICB, he has released statements on behalf of that Board, the Windies skipper, various players, and explained incidents, in order that the cricketing world could be kept abreast of cricket in the Caribbean. If controversy erupted, he was quick to offer his employer's side of the story.

His updates are sent to newspapers and electronic media not only within the Caribbean but throughout the world, Bermuda included.

That's his job. And he does it extremely well.

How the BCB could do with a Philip Spooner!

After three extremely frustrating years, Bermuda cricket seems to have got back to where it belongs with a thoughtful, sometimes underestimated coach and players who have the ability take us to another World Cup.

But the topic of conversation this week hasn't been about their success and the make-up of the final squad, it's been about a disruption that should never have been allowed to occur, or at the very least dealt with swiftly and efficiently.

The guilty parties include the player, the Board, and the Department of Works and Engineering, the Minister of which, Derrick Burgess, admits to being an avid cricket fan.

Between them this dispute could have been resolved long before it even started. Instead it mushroomed into a row that has overshadowed everything accomplished on the field in the last month.

Should we be surprised? I think not.

– ADRIAN ROBSON