THE Police Service is under mounting pressure to get its act together, or risk international embarrassment for the 2007 ICC Cricket World Cup.

TnT Mirror understands that local cops were given the thumbs down, following a security dry run on the evening of May 27, the eve of the sixth West Indies vs India One-Day International, which was the last match played at the Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain.

The report assesses 46 criteria of preparedness for hosting 10 World Cup cricket matches.

Points were awarded as follows:

* 5 – Very Good.
* 4 – Good.
* 3 – Fair.
* 2 – Below Average.
* 1 – Unacceptable.

Out of the 46 criteria, T&T received seven 1s, six 2s, eighteen 3s, fourteen 4s, no 5s and one “Not Admissible” (See compiled table on T&T’s poor performance).

Ironically, most of the areas found acceptable were in the realm of media relations, team management and transportation.

Major issues such as security and crowd control were among the sore points for the police in the security exercise.

The scenario for that exercise was for the security forces to “clear” and lock down the Oval.

The first phase, “clearing” involved the use of explosive-detecting dogs, co-ordinated by police.

The K9 teams systematically swept all areas of the Oval, making sure that it was safe, both on and off the field.

The next step was for the police to move in and lock down the sanitised area, preventing it from being compromised.

However, that’s where things fell apart, as the police team was nearly two hours late, and a mere four officers were given the responsibility of securing the entire Oval. High-level police sources tell us that a team of at least 35 well-trained officers would be needed to secure a venue of that size, after it is cleared by the K9 Unit.

It’s also reported that Deputy Police Commissioner Glen Roach was at the exercise and was visibly upset with the poor performance of his men, even as the K9 handlers were being commended for their professionalism in conducting their part of the job.

A report on the exercise was then sent to the international security firm Rushman’s, where Rory Steyn is the Director of Security for the ICC Cricket World Cup West Indies 2007.

Steyn is said to have enjoyed many successes in coordinating security for a number of high-profile events, including venue security for the 1999 Cricket World Cup staged in the UK.

However, Rushman’s final report was a damning one, that highlight-ed a “lackadaisical attitude” on the part of the police officers involved.

When contacted, Steyn referred out queries to Acting Police Commissioner Glen Roach.

Our investigation also led us to Gayle Alleyne, Media Relations Officer, of ICC Cricket World Cup West Indies 2007 Inc.

She said: “The organisation is not at liberty to divulge the security guidelines/protocols which have (been) requested,” and also referred us to Roach.

At last week’s meeting of the directorate in Barbados, Roach, Trevor Percival and Randolph Protain, represented Trinidad and Tobago on security matters.

However, Mirror’s insider on the security team says all the procedures and protocols are already in place, but that the real problem remains manpower.

“The framework for handling such security scenarios are in place, but the police need to get their act together,” says the informant.

“If they don’t, the country risks international embarrassment, because as far as I know, that test run may have been the ICC’s final look at security here.

“All that remains is for the police to examine the report and work on the problem areas identified.”

Mirror was also made to understand that when World Cup fever begins on March 5, 2007 -- with warm-up matches, including South Africa vs Canada in Trinidad -- security will be at a maximum. And there will be special emphasis on “terror risk” matches that feature England, India or Pakistan.

If local security seems incapable of managing the local leg of the tournament, it’s understood that the ICC may exclude them and install costly private security.