Born in Easington, County Durham, Trotter served in the Royal Garrison Artillery during the First World War.
[5] Trotter joined Torquay United in 1930 and scored 26 goals in his first season at Plainmoor before losing his place due to a knee injury.
Charlton played most of the match with 10 men after their captain Derek Ufton was injured, and Huddersfield were leading 5–1 with just 27 minutes remaining.
At that point, Johnny Summers began an extraordinary passage of play in which he scored five goals and assisted with two others to allow Charlton to win 7–6.
The remaining seasons under Trotter's charge saw finishes of eighth, seventh and tenth before he was fired in 1961 after just one victory in twelve games.