Andrew Bascome, the Bermuda head coach, wants to build a squad with a strong local base of which the Island can be proud.

Bascome last night began the process of selecting his squad for the World Cup qualifiers in March, and said that he wanted players with good character as well as ability.

A game against the Bermuda Under-19 side that largely featured players who are away at school, will be followed tomorrow night by an inter-squad match, and Bascome is challenging his players to produce the kind of performances that will fill the National Sports Centre.

“I’m looking for character, which should be displayed in their hard work,” Bascome said.

“I’m looking for intelligence, good decision-making, good technique and a good understanding of the game. They need to know this at this level, and that will determine if they get picked or not.”

Bascome is adamant that talent alone will not be enough for a player to win a place in his squad. The willingness to work hard and maintain an acceptable standard of behaviour are all being reinforced over the next couple of days.

“I would like to see, and I challenged the team, if we can fill that stadium [National Sports Centre], with our people, and that’s our challenge,” he said.

“The only way we are going to do this is if we have good character. People are not going to come watch players that argue and swear and don’t work for one another. Fans understand that it’s a sport, you’re going to be up, you’re going to be down, but it’s about how well you bounce back.

“So, their character should reflect the character of us as a people, and that’s the challenge, and I know they can do it.”

The other challenge for Bascome is combining local players with more than a dozen who are either away at college or playing professionally and semi-professionally in England and elsewhere. The likes of Nahki Wells, Dale Eve, Freddy Hall, Roger Lee, Jonté Smith, Taurean Manders, Reggie Lambe and Rai Simons could all reasonably be expected to walk into Bermuda’s team.

Bascome though is keen to have a strong local base from which to work as well, so that his players can operate in, and get use to, his preferred tactical system.

“It’s challenging because we have a lot of kids away in school and they are good kids, so the problem is learning the system,” Bascome said.

“We have to have a local base, that is so important, because we have to understand the system, we have to understand the principals in the system, and that’s going to take time.

“So, it’s going to be challenging if the kids are away and coming back, and they have to understand if the kids are here and working hard, and they understand the system [they’ll be ahead].”

Bascome recognises the talent he has at his disposal, and said that Wells had been enthused by the upcoming qualifiers when he last spoke to him.

While World Cup qualification is a mere pipe dream, the Caribbean Cup in 2016 is a more realistic goal in terms of success, and Bascome wants to build a side that will fire the country’s imagination.

“The challenge for me is to try and build a team that I think Bermuda would appreciate, and respect, and it’s not just about results,” he said.

“It’s about the winning ways, being good citizens, being responsible, because that’s what people will pay to see.”