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8/19/06 - "Kickin' It" with Greg Barkey
 In its newest edition, D3Kicks is pleased to be �Kickin� It� with United States official Greg Barkey. Barkey, who was one of the three assistant referees selected to represent the United States in World Cup 2006, first developed his love for the game in Argentina, where he lived until he was ten years old. Barkey continued playing through college, where he attended D3 Bethel University (MN). Barkey still holds several Bethel scoring records to this day. After graduating from Bethel, Barkey decided to pursue soccer officiating. In 1995, Barkey became an international referee, when he was selected by the United States Soccer Federation, and approved by the international board, the F�d�ration Internationale de Football Association, or FIFA. Since 1995, Barkey has taken part in officiating MLS, Gold Cup, World Cup Qualifiers, and countless international matches throughout Central America and the Caribbean. While at the 2006 World Cup, Barkey was a referee for the Croatia vs. Japan match, France vs. Switzerland ,and Croatia vs. Australia. When Barkey is not refereeing, he serves as a substitute teacher at Roxbury High School, and also has been a volunteer soccer coach at Roxbury for the past four years. Barkey is married, Kristina, and has three children ; son, Brent, 18; daughters, Marissa, 17 and Jenna, 13.
D3Kicks: First of all, we at D3Kicks just want to say thank you for taking time to answer a few questions for the D3 soccer community.
D3K: What was it like to represent the United States at such a prestigious event as the World Cup?
Greg Barkey: Of course it is an honor, especially when you know that there are 130,000+ referees who would have loved to have been chosen. The United States is slowly gaining more respect around the world as a soccer nation and it is important that we be represented at all the major events. It is an especially great feeling to be in one of the meetings, and as you look around the room you realize that you are sitting amongst the elite of the world�s referees.
D3K; There is always talk about the nerves and butterflies that the players experience at the World Cup, but how about the officials?
GB: There are certainly nerves and butterflies leading up to a match. Each referee handles them differently. During the WC I saw different ways that the referees prepared for their matches. Ivanov was very quiet and serious, Debleekere closed his eyes and meditated for � hour, and Poll likes music and a light atmosphere in his locker room.
D3K: Many believe that the officials at this year�s World Cup were a little out of control when it came to calling fouls and handing out cards. As an official what do you think?
GB: The referees were following the instructions given to them. I don�t think anyone will argue that the cautions for time wasting helped speed up the game and got rid of an annoying habit of players standing over the ball or kicking it away before the opposing team�s free kicks. If soccer really wants to get rid of shirt pulling, lunging tackles and tactical fouling there will be more cautions. Granted there were matches where cards were given that could have been dealt with in another matter, but in the daily de-briefings they showed very few examples of where FIFA thought that a card was unwarranted.
D3K: What do you think of Zidane incident and how it was handled by the officials and FIFA?
GB: The incident was disgraceful, but the referee�s handled it as well as could be expected. As a referee can you imagine sending off one of the world�s greatest players for something that you did not see? Disregard what you heard from the ABC announcers, they did not show a replay in the stadium for the fans to see. The journalists see a different feed from the large screens inside the stadium. I spoke (by e-mail) with one of the assistant referees, the Zidane incident was seen by the fourth official, the referee went to his AR right before showing the red card to Zidane to confirm if there was any other disciplinary actions to be taken.
D3K: How much do you accredit your development as a soccer official to your time spent in the D3 soccer system?
GB: It was my first taste of professional level soccer and my first failed assessment. Coming from the amateur game to a match where there is a crowd, players and coaches that are more serious about their game, meant that I also needed to prepare more seriously I wasn�t ready the first time. I think my experience refereeing the Long Island Rough Riders, NJ Barons, Rochester Rhinos and many of the other D3 tier teams prepared me for MLS and FIFA matches where your mistakes are amplified. Of course, that is the idea, don�t make mistakes.
D3K: It seems that in today�s world, players often move on into the coaching field, but you chose the route of the referee. How did you make this decision?
GB: I like coaching young players, but refereeing just fit my style more. I like the challenge of controlling 22 players and the satisfaction that you get when you finish a match and know that you have done well. We need more ex-players as referees because they come with a good �feel� for the game, however once they stop playing most are too old to keep their fitness and gain game experience to make it to the pro level.
D3K: We at D3Kicks want to thank you once again and say good luck with all upcoming endeavors.
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