Bermuda First Team to Arrive for ICC Cricket World Cup 2007

A tired but very happy Bermuda Team touched down last night at the V C Bird International Airport in Antigua and they were met by a delegation led by the Minister with responsibility for ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 and Chairman of the Board of World Cup Antigua Inc., Local Organising Committee (LOC), the Hon. John Maginley.
The 15 man squad, management and coaching staff were escorted to the VIP lounge by volunteers and staff from the Antigua and Barbuda LOC. Minister Maginley presented to the team’s Manager, Mr. Lionel Tannock a gift from the LOC and wished them well in the upcoming Tri series.
Maginley also expressed that the team’s arrival concluded a series of events that took place on Monday that marked the start of the ICC CWC 2007: “Monday, February 19 is also the day that the three official venues, the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, the Antigua Recreation Grounds and the Stanford Cricket Grounds were handed over to the International Cricket Council (ICC). For us this signals that the tournament has started and we are delighted to welcome Bermuda, the first team to arrive for the tournament to Antigua and Barbuda.”
It is a year of first’s for this team as it is the first time that they will be playing as one of the final 16 and although they are in the same group as Sri Lanka, India and Bangladesh, they are looking forward to the experience: “We have been trying since 1979 to qualify and we are very excited about the tournament,” explains Clay Smith, a 17 year veteran of the National squad.
The team’s head coach is former West Indies player Gus Logie and the team’s first match in the Tri series will be against Bangladesh on Sunday, February 25 at the Antigua Recreation Grounds. Admission is free and open to the public.