Assistant Referee Natasha Trott Blazing A Trail
[Written by Stephen Wright]
When Natasha Trott agreed to attend a Bermuda Football Association [BFA] referee course almost four years ago, little would she have imagined becoming the island’s most decorated female official.
The 28-year-old’s unexpected journey as an assistant referee has been nothing short of meteoric.
Trott, who played for Hamilton Parish’s youth teams as a youngster, playing against the boys, had never even contemplated becoming a match official until being encouraged to attend the course by a family friend early in 2020.
“I was having a regular conversation with my aunt’s friend at the side of the road when she asked me if I’d like to do a referee course,” Trott told Bernews. “I was like, ‘Sure, yeah, sign me up!’”
Her suitability for the role was identified by Kelesha Antoine, a FIFA and Concacaf elite fitness instructor hosting the course and whose words of encouragement took Trott by surprise.
“She was like, ‘You’re going to be Bermuda’s first female official on the FIFA International Referees List’,” Trott remembers. “I was like, ‘What?’”
After serving as an assistant referee in three local matches, Trott’s foray into officiating came to an abrupt halt due to the global outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.
She had to wait until the following summer for her international break as an assistant referee at a Caribbean Girls’ Under-14 Tournament in the Dominican Republic.
A few months later, she became the first Bermudian female to officiate at a Concacaf competition in an Under-17 Girls’ Tournament in Bradenton, Florida, and named as one of the top three assistant referees.
“It wasn’t long before the BFA received an email to say I’d made the FIFA International List as an assistant referee,” said Trott, who has to pass a fitness test each year to remain on the list.
“It’s fun to be the first Bermudian female on the list – I’m not usually the first at anything! It still seems surreal.
“It’s presented so many opportunities to meet new people and travel for free. You certainly get stamps in the passport!”
Trott, who has been retained on the FIFA list for next year, has since travelled to Antigua, Barbados, Curaçao, Suriname, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and Turks and Caicos for international women’s and girls’ tournaments.
She also keeps her skills sharp as an assistant referee in local men’s and women’s football, insisting she has received nothing but encouragement and support from coaches, players and supporters.
“I don’t get yelled at too often during games,” said Trott, who also hopes to officiate men’s international matches in the future. “I try to make calls that make sense and are correct.
“Things can get intense and heated during a game, but it’s all good after the final whistle.”
Trott, who works in restructuring and insolvency at Deloitte, said her ultimate ambition is to serve as an assistant referee at the Women’s World Cup in 2027.
“I’ll need lots of help from the people involved, but I’m willing to put the work in to get there,” she added.
“Crenstant Williams [the BFA second vice-president and referee committee chair] has been a big help and the driving force behind all this.
“I’ll need a few small wins first [to reach the World Cup], like the Under-20 Women’s World Cup and Concacaf W Gold Cup.
“It’s been an amazing journey. It’s all happened so quickly. This was never my dream – it just happened to me.”
