“Lucky undies”? “Listening to music”……….these are two of the pre-game rituals WA based Rookie umpire Trent McPhee follows before taking the field each week.
It obviously works, given his success in recent years. Trent joined the WAFL panel in 2012 and made his WAFL debut in 2013 in round 13. He umpired in the AFL National Under 16s in 2014/15, the AFL National Under 18s in 2017, including the Grand Final curtain raiser, was the WAFL Brett Rosebury medallist for most improved in 2017 and umpired the last year’s WAFL Grand Final.
2018 looms as an exciting and challenging year. Inspired by the success of Nathan Williamson, Trent is looking forward to 2018 and accessing the additional resources and coaching available as part of the rookie program to continue his journey.
Trent, known as Trenta on the track, is motivated by a challenge and says he becomes really competitive when it comes to achieving them. For up and coming umpires, his advice is don’t be afraid to make mistakes and learn from them and believe in your ability to achieve what you have set out to achieve.
Trent rates Grant Vernon, a former AFL umpire who officiated in 203 games as being the most influential person on his career as an umpire to date. His most admired umpires include Brett Rosebury and Matt Stevic as they both make umpiring seem so effortless. They are both so consistent and professional in their demeanour on field.
Away from umpiring, Trent is a Physical Education Teacher, enjoys art and draws in his spare time. He lists a number of hobbies including tennis, cricket, golf, volleyball, spikeball, fashion, coffee and bike riding.
We welcome Trent and wish him all the best for season 2018.
Article written by: AFLUA Marketing and Communications Coordinator, Peter Kelly