I keep a short record of every game that I ever officiated so I know that Mitchel Athletic Complex in Uniondale, Long Island, is the field complex where I have refereed the most. It was the home to the Long Island Rough Riders and now hosts the New York Cosmos' training field.

On the day I observed Tony Lepore, the Director of Scouting for the U.S. Soccer Development Academy, he had a lot to accomplish at the U.S. Soccer Training Center session. He had 36 players in from across the Northeast for a two-hour training. In that time his goal was to run a practice that developed the skills at the core U.S. Soccer's approach to the game, short controlled passing and possession.

Last month I co-hosted a workshop at U.S. Youth Soccer's annual gathering in Philadelphia with longtime referee and National Instructor Barry Towbin titled: "Coaches and Referees Improving Relations for the Good of the Game."

Listening to my twin brother tell me about the local soccer club scene in the San Francisco Bay Area, I realized this was a problem not restricted to his family. With AYSO, Cal North, NorCal, ECNL and the U.S. Soccer Developmental Academy, parents are overwhelmed with where to place or what to do with their aspiring little Messis, Ronaldos or Donovans.

There are seven reasons for cautioning a player. I don't believe that I cautioned anybody for one of the reasons -- persistent infringement -- during my first three years of refereeing.

Here's what I know after coaching girls and women for 25 years, and coaching our nation's best female players for the last 15 years:

The kids wear bibs with numbers and the coaches walk around with clipboards jotting notes.