Longtime Arizona Referee, Neil Grecu, suffered a mild heart attack while officiating a State Cup match on Sat. May 3rd.

Happily there was a neurosurgeon watching the match. He quickly examined Neil and realizing the problem, called 911. Neil went home from the hospital today and hopes to be back on the pitch soon. He thanks everyone for all the well wishes.

Congratulations to Matt Stewart, who has been selected as the 2008 male youth referee of the year.

Matt is a graduate of Shadow Mountain High School, where he played varsity soccer. He has been officiating for seven years. In 2005 Matt attended the ODP camp in Moscow, Idaho, and was then invited to officiate the Region IV Championships in Boise, Idaho. After regionals he returned to ODP camp for a second tour.

Recently Matt has started officiating high school soccer, and was recognized by being an AR for both a quarter final and semi final match.

As Arizona’s referee of the year, Matt will be part of the delegation officiating the regional championships in June at Honolulu, Hawaii. He will compete for the title of regional referee of the year, an award that has been won by Arizona referees in 2006 and 2007.

Location: North Phoenix Baptist Church, Family Life Center Building, 5757 North Central Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona, 85012, room 100.