OXFORDSHIRE referee Sian Piret has been called up by UEFA to officiate in an international tournament which starts tomorrow.

The 30-year-old, from Marston, who is the county’s senior female match official, will act as an assistant referee in Group 7 of the Women’s Under 17 mini tournament in Serbia.

Despite having only qualified in 2007, Piret becomes the first female Oxfordshire FA referee to receive such an appointment.

“I was totally taken aback,” she said. “The FA called me out of the blue and said they wanted to send me. It was the last thing I expected.”

The tournament is a qualifying stage for the UEFA Under 17 finals next summer, and will see Piret officiate three matches involving Denmark, Greece, Serbia and Turkey.

Piret, who works at the Churchill Hospital, refereed the 2010 OFA Women’s Cup final between Oxford City and Oxford United.

She was also fourth official at last season’s Oxfordshire Senior Cup final at the Kassam Stadium.

“I didn’t start refereeing until five seasons ago,” she said.

“I would never have believed that I could get to this level so quickly.

“I was a useless player, and I referee at a much higher level than I could ever have played at.”

She will be on the line for the Denmark v Greece match tomorrow, followed by Denmark v Serbia on Saturday and Turkey v Denmark on Tuesday.

Piret added: “There aren’t many Level 4 female referees, so that stood me in good stead.

“I’m really looking forward to it.”

Oxfordshire FA referee development officer Nigel Saverton said: “We are really proud of Sian’s appointment – it’s an outstanding achievement. She is an excellent referee who has worked hard to progress through the levels.”