Catlin Bermuda have signed a ‘solid five-figure’ deal with Bermuda Football Association.The one-year agreement, which also has the option to be extended for the 2012-13 season, will see the reinsurance company help pay for uniforms for the Association’s National Academy teams.“It’s a significant investment and of a multi-year nature,” said Graham Pewter, president and CEO of Catlin Insurance Company Ltd.“We have committed for the first 12 months with an undertaking that we will sit down at the end of year one as we go into the 2012-13 season to look at exactly what the needs are rolling forward.”Devarr Boyles, the BFA’s National Youth Director, said the deal was the tipping point for the Academy and dismissed any suggestion that new kit was mere window dressing.“The most important thing is developing a national identity,” said Boyles. “Bermuda doesn’t even have a national colour that I am aware of. The National Academy doesn’t have a colour, it didn’t have kit, so now we’re saying that kit is white.“It is a tipping point, when you don’t have a uniform . . . uniform is identity, and it says ‘we’re Bermudian’.“Now you see some of our kids walking around in the old shirts, you see a lot of that, that’s national pride. Now we’re hoping the same thing occurs with the new kit, it represents everything for us.“We have the training, we have the structure in place but if there was one thing that was missing, it was the kit. It’s far more than window dressing.“The kit is everything for us, everything for me, this kit is significant. I could go on and on about how important the kit is.”For the BFA the new uniform, which has been designed and will be produced by Score, will be seen as a symbol of honour, pride and responsibility.The hope is that players outside the squads are motivated to improve their own games so that they can earn the right to wear the new kit.“When you look at the best programmes in the world, such as Barcelona, we’re following best practice,” said BFA general secretary David Sabir. “You know that identity is very important but also on top of that we have to start looking at the honour of being involved, and wearing, the Catlin National Academy unifiorm.“It’s not a right, it’s a responsibility, a privilege, this is the point we have to make very clearly on this Island. The National Academy is not just a passing phase, we would be insulted by anybody trying to water down the intent and production that is coming out of the Academy.”