Agent believes Bermuda is ripe with talent

Bermudian project: Chapman, left, hopes to discover more players such as his Lambe, one of four Bermudian players he represents, who made his debut for Mansfield Town last week



Dan Chapman, an FA-licensed agent, and his team of talent spotters are looking to unearth Bermudas hidden gems and provide them with the opportunity to shine in English football.

Chapman is a senior partner at Full Contact  a specialist sports law team in Britain  and already represents four of the Islands top players in Reggie Lambe, Freddy Hall, Jonté Smith and Rai Simons.

Considering that Bermuda has a population of only 65,000, Chapman is impressed by the number of professionals that the Island has produced, with Clyde Best and Shaun Goater, in particular, leaving an indelible mark on the English game.

Through his contacts on Island, including Paul Scope, the Bermuda Hogges owner, Dennis Brown, the Somerset Trojans technical director, and Richard Todd, the Bermuda Football Association academy director, Chapman is determined to add to that stable by discovering the next big thing.

Im looking to build a bit of a specialism with players in Bermuda, said Chapman, who got engaged during his visit to the Island this month.

As a youngster, I saw a lot of Shaun Goater and Kyle Lightbourne and, statistically, for an Island of this size to have produced the players it has is not a bad return at all.

[Full Contact] have done this kind of thing before. We have several Dutch players and several players from Guinea-Bissau [including Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Eusebio Bancessi].

The difficulty with that project is the language barrier, as well as bringing players into the country. Those issues obviously wont apply to Bermudians.

Despite Bermudas proximity to the United States, with several players gracing Major League Soccer in recent years, including Khano Smith, Lambe and Hall, Chapman has no interest in re-establishing that particular pipeline.

He is of the firm belief that the top five tiers of English football provide the perfect environment for Bermudian players to flourish.

From my point of view, I unashamedly have no interest in pushing players to America; I want to persuade players to come to England, Chapman said.

I passionately believe that club football in England is the best. In what other country can you go to the fourth or fifth league and still be playing in front of 5,000?

I want to get the best 14 or 15-year-olds in Bermuda over to England, have trials and hopefully win scholarships. The great thing about the league system in England is that if you do well, you will get picked up [by bigger clubs].

Chapman played a pivotal role in Lambes return to England, with the winger completing a move to Mansfield Town last week, making his debut in the Sky Bet League Two sides 3-2 home win over Carlisle United at the weekend.

Lambe had previously spent two seasons at Toronto FC, where Chapman suspects some of his clients natural attacking instincts were slightly curbed by the conservative, defensive style of play favoured in the MLS, as opposed to the more gung-ho approach adopted in England.

Reggie is a fantastic player, but he just needs to get some momentum going, said Chapman, who expects goalkeeper Hall to sign for another Vanarama Conference side soon after his short stint at Chester this season.

If Reggie can get 30 games at League Two, I believe he will destroy it. I really think that English clubs suit Bermudian players more than American teams, which tend to be very disciplined in their style of play.

When I watched some of Reggies games at Toronto, it was all about getting the ball and playing it inside; it was all very safe.

You can see that Reggie is very good technically and you would always give him a six or seven out of ten, but there wasnt a wow factor.

I told Reggie that a manager in England would rather him give the ball away five or six times, but then go and beat the full back, get a cross in, and create a goal.

Chapmans burgeoning relationship with Bermuda players started when a scout informed him of an unknown talent at Ilkeston, the Evo-Stik League Northern Premier side, who have several local players in their ranks through a link-up with Scopes Hogges set-up.

That unknown talent was Bermuda striker Simons, who promptly become Chapmans first Bermudian client.

It was Simons who then introduced Chapman to Scope, who in turn initiated a meeting with Lambe, Hall and Smith, who is playing for Kemi Kings in the third tier in Finland.

When Chapman returns to Bermuda, his trip will be strictly business, with his focus on running the rule over the Islands most promising teenagers with the help of his team of scouts, who include Fred Barber, a former Bolton Wanderers and Northern Ireland goalkeeping coach, and Lee Payne, a former scout in Europe for West Ham United.

With the greatest respect to Reggie and Freddy, they are both probably at a stage of their lives where they should be the finished article, Chapman said.

Theres only so much you can do with a 23-year-old player.

My real interest is making sure that we are aware of the next Nahki Wells on the Island because he is here, theres no doubt about that.

I want to give that player the opportunity of going to England and signing for Derby County, Coventry City, or whoever else.

The scouts who work for us know that they wont be comparing like for like with a 16-year-old at Liverpool who has had the benefit of six years of top coaching.

What were looking for is raw potential and that might not be the player who is grabbing all the headlines; it could be the left back, who is not catching anyones eye.

These players are out there and they will be on this Island.

History would suggest that it is only a matter of time before Bermuda produces another Best, Goater or Wells.

And it certainly appears as though Chapman will leave no stone unturned in his pursuit of that discovery.