POTCHEFSTROOM, South Africa (CMC) – Bermuda Cricket Board president Reggie Pearman has given his backing to coach Gus Logie despite the failure of the island’s national team to qualify for the 2011 World Cup in Asia.

Logie’s contract with the board expires in September and Pearman has made no secret of the fact that he wants the former West Indies player and coach to remain in the post.

“I admire Gus because he’s stuck with it and personally I would like to see him stay on,” he told reporters after Bermuda failed to reach the Super Eight but thrashed Oman and Uganda in the playoffs to claim ninth place overall.

Bermuda were eliminated from the tournament and also surrendered their One-Day International status after they lost their opening matches against United Arab Emirates and Afghanistan, and then suffered heavy defeats to Kenya and the Netherlands.

They scored a single win in the group stage, a nine-wicket victory over Denmark before closing off impressively.

“I think Gus has done a yeoman job working with what he has to work with. He’s not always going to get it right, but I can sympathise with him,” Pearman continued.

Logie has faced his share of criticism with some calling for the ex-West Indies batsman to be axed.

Pearman, however, has backed the Trinidadian to the core and believes his comments in a recent article on the cricket website Cricinfo scolding his team’s lack of “desire” and “professionalism” in South Africa were justified.

“I think he is justified in saying what he did because who else would know the team better than he? Gus could see that those guys could do better,” he said.

“Gus has played the game at the pro level and so our guys should try and take a page from his book.”

Logie is a former West Indies coach who led the regional side to the capture of the 2004 Champions Trophy in England.
He played 52 Tests and 158 ODIs between 1981 and 1993.