Stronger, fitter, and back in the Bermuda national cricket team, Ryan Steede is a prime example of hard work paying off.

The St George's bowler has been rewarded for a winter of long hours in the gym, and hard work in the nets, with a place in the 14-man squad that leaves for South Africa and Namibia this evening.

And Steede, who missed out on the 2007 World Cup through injury and has suffered his fair share of disappointments in the past, is ready to grab this latest opportunity with both hands.

"I put in my work, put in the hours in the gym, I think I'm in the best shape that I could be in," said Steede. "I've had my injuries in the past, I've done a lot of strength training over the winter.

"Once I got called into the national team, which was the late part of September, the minute I found out, the first thing I checked into was the membership at the Olympic Club, and I put in my time there. I didn't do any heavy, heavy lifting, not getting all bulky and out of control, but just strength training that's going to help me in the long run.

"Basically I'm going to grab the opportunity with both hands. I've had my fair share of injuries and it's been disappointing.

"I missed out on the World Cup through injury, I missed out on the last qualifiers, I've missed out on too much, and right now I just want to take the opportunity and make the most of it."

If Steede has his way making the most of the opportunity will mean this tour is just the first step on a journey he hopes will take him to the World Cup qualifiers in two years' time. And he doesn't plan on letting injuries get in the way this time around.

"I feel as I've gotten older my game has improved a lot more, I feel a lot stronger, I feel a lot fitter," he said. "The problems I had before, I was carrying a bit of excess weight, but now I have slimmed right down. I've been doing a lot running which has helped.

"My goal personally is to push for a spot in the 2012 qualifiers, that's my goal. I'm not the youngest person in the team, and I'm sure as hell not the oldest neither, but if I can keep myself in some sort of shape, and some condition, and have some good showings internationally, as well as domestically, I'm quite sure I stand a chance."

Steede's place in the squad isn't just down to his desire to work hard in the gym. An improvement in his batting went a long way to convincing the selectors he deserved another chance.

"One of the things that was talked about in the meeting (with the selectors), was that last year I had a couple of good knocks under my belt, and that was one of the things that they were looking for in the national squad," he said.

"They don't want bowlers who just bowl, they want bowlers who can bat a little bit as well, and when I had my one-on-one with the selectors, and vice-captain (Stephen Outerbridge), that was one of the things they mentioned, they want all-rounders.

"He (Outerbridge) was telling me how he saw one of my knocks up at Bailey's Bay last year in the Twenty/20 (Steede top scored for St George's with a quick-fire 28), and that was something that made them sit down and give me another chance."

Like his team-mates, Steede is looking forward to the week in South Africa, and the challenge of playing Namibia. And while he thinks the current crop of players have the potential to be a good side, he warns against expecting instant success.

"The Bermuda public are going to have to be a bit patient with the team because they are new, the team is pretty much starting all over, and we are trying to go forward, as our main goal is the (World Cup) qualification in 2012," he said.

"The public need to be patient with the team, not look for instant success, but it's a team that's young, it's got a lot of quality players. There is still room for improvement, as there is with any team that ever gets picked to leave this country.

"There is good camaraderie among the players. As for myself I am just getting back into the national squad. It feels good to be back and I feel a little bit more confident this time around than I did before, and I'm looking forward to the challenge."