"Oh, you're a natural".
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Those four words after Bec Rogers' first time refereeing a touch football game just over four years ago sparked a drive to referee which is sending the Orange-born ref to take the reigns at the 2019 Touch World Cup in Malaysia which begins on Monday.
After filling in as a referee in Perth, where she was living at the time, a friend's encouragement combined with an off-the-cuff mention of the 2019 World Cup pushed Rogers to set a goal of refereeing at the sport's highest level - and she got there.
It was no mean feat, either, gaining the six levels of accreditation required in just four years - it normally takes 12 months per level - but she made it.
She'll be joined by five other referees from the Central West, Alanah Sinclair from Orange, Amanda Draper and Chris Reynolds from Parkes, Tim Ah See from Bathurst and Mudgee's Ben Harris.
At that sort of level your mental capacity to keep pushing through is tested more than anything.
- World Cup referee Bec Rogers
"You have to get an upgrade every year, got to level 6 in four years, it was a hard process," she said.
"You go to all the tournaments, get coached every tournament, what I've got to work on now to improve."
Rogers began her touch career as a player, albeit at a "very low level".
"I wasn't a great player and a friend needed a ref one night so I said 'I'll help you out, one game' and came off and they said 'oh, you're a natural'," Roger said.
"Looking back now I would have been no good at all but she gave me that push to do this and it went from there."
She moved to Orange in the middle of 2018, and was quickly blown away by the level at which City of Orange Touch Association's juniors were tearing up the Central West.
Her first tournament in the region was the Don Green Championships in Mudgee, where the Orange juniors won 11 of 12 divisions on offer.
"They're formidable," she said, adding the chance to blow the whistle in the Central West gave her more opportunities, and has been great for her development as a referee.
She's "super excited" for the chance to hit the World Cup, but it's not her first time on the international stage, heading to Malaysia - the host of this year's peak event - last year.
"I went to the Youth World Cup last year and that prepared me to know what I was in for - an average 35 degrees and 100 per cent humidity," she said.
"I looked at the weather the other day and it was 36 and 92 per cent humidity."
Rogers said the level of play on the world stage was a step above anything else she'd seen.
A lot of good refs were all players so hopefully some of them will make the jump across at some stage.
- Bec Rogers on Orange's young referees
"It was hard but at that sort of level your mental capacity to keep pushing through is tested more than anything," she said.
"In Australia I've reffed at nationals but no trans-Tasman or State of Origin."
While she's enjoyed the handy hits of cash on the side from refereeing over the years, Rogers has had to pay her own way to the World Cup, and has had the help of sponsors in Orange to get her to Malaysia, whom she thanked.
Rogers' success is every chance to inspire younger referees in Orange, with the gun referee saying juniors in the city have potential, not just on the field as players but as referees.
"A lot of the younger refs are still playing and most want to play over reffing, but a lot of good refs were all players so hopefully some of them will make the jump across at some stage," Rogers said.
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