Vincentian FIFA accredited trio relish big occasion

It was nothing more than superlatives for the three FIFA accredited Vincentians, who officiated in friendly international Football matches earlier this month in the USA.

The trio of referee, Moeth Gaymes, and assistant referees, Kenran Daniel and Denroy Barker, were among the appointed officials in matches involving Mexico, Switzerland, and Türkiye.

Gaymes was the man in the middle in the Mexico and Türkiye encounter played at the Kenan Memorial Stadium, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on June, 10,2025. Gaymes had Barker as one of his assistants on the line.

Before them, Daniel carried out duties in the game between Mexico and Switzerland, on June 7, 2025, at the Rice- Eccles Stadium, Salt Lake City, USA, before more than 41,000 spectators.

Recounting his episode of a dream outing, Gaymes called it his biggest match in his 11 years as a FIFA Referee.

“I was extremely grateful to have been granted the opportunity for such grand appointment. Whilst I was previously appointed twice to handle international friendlies, to officiate in that match involving Mexico, ranked 17th in the world ,and Türkiye, at 27th , will go down as my biggest match,” Gaymes told SEARCHLIGHT.

“It was special for me as it was the first time that I had refereed with an attendance of over 25,600, but I was physically and mentally prepared for the occasion, knowing the passion of the Mexicans and their large following in that area.”

Gaymes revealed that he also experienced two brief pitch invasions as enthused fans wanted to get up close to their “idols.”

Relishing the momentous and memorable outing, Gaymes said he is looking forward to again being involved on such big occasions.

Like Gaymes, Barker was equally moved by the outing, noting that it helped him build his reputation as an assistant referee.

“I would say that it was a good experience officiating at this high level. I feel proud of my performance. It is my wish that we can get more matches like these, to show the world that not because we are from a small country, we have the ability to be among the best Football officials in the world,” Barker said.

Barker, first appointed to the FIFA list in 2014, said it is such experiences that fuel the fire and desire in him to train continuously, in the event that he is called up.

Meanwhile, Daniel believes that he is a better official as a result of the experience gained from the big match.

“I would say that I am better from that sojourn, as it called for a lot of mental strength. It was a bit overwhelming for me in front such a large crowd which was raucous at times, but I dug deep and embraced the occasion,” Daniel remarked.

Paralleling the international friendly to a world cup match, Daniel said he understands what it takes to prepare for matches of that nature.

The trio, whilst lauding their engagement in the USA, also highly rate the pluses of the evaluation they receive when officiating in local matches, and the reviews they get from assessors- Lorson Lewis, Clemroy Francois and Caswell Cambridge, among others.