Brian Lara Stadium behind schedule

With 200 days to go before the start of the 2007 World Cup in the West Indies, all 12 stadiums in the region are looking in good shape - except one.

There are great doubts over the readiness of the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad and Tobago, and officials have put authorities there on notice. The facility - which will host pre-tournament matches - is behind schedule. A Cricket World Cup (CWC) inspection team will visit the ground on September 7 and a decision is expected by mid-month.

Organisers are looking at several options as backup in case the ground cannot meet the required standard for a global event the size of the World Cup. As it stands, the ground will now only be used for the four scheduled matches. It will not be used as a back-up venue as part of the contingency plan.

It is understood that the problems are not with the actual development, but that the powers-that-be in Trinidad took a long time to decide on the scope and size of the project. As part of the rush to get ready, GL Events, the French firm contracted to build temporary facilities at all 12 venues in nine countries, might take on a major portion of the work at the stadium.

In recent weeks Don Lockerbie, venue development director of the CWC, repeatedly expressed concerns over the proposed 15,000-seat facility.

When asked about the situation, Lockerbie was direct. "It's the one stadium we have concerns over as we reach 200 days to go", he said at the Hilton Barbados. "The stadium will not be complete in legacy format. We are doing everything we can to get ready.

"We want to make sure that pre-tournament matches remain in Trinidad and we are working with the local organising committee and the government to get it done. We are considering all options. It took some time to get the master plan in place to have the stadium ready in its most effective state. The time span affected the CWC schedule, but we are confident that with GL Events coming in, all will be ready."

Lockerbie added: "We have some issues in every territory, as we are still not precisely where we want to be with pitches and fields, but that's one area we can catch up on."