FOXBOROUGH, Mass. – Darrius Barnes is one of the most versatile players on the New England Revolution’s roster – he can feature comfortably anywhere across the backline – and after this past Saturday’s stand-in performance against the Montreal Impact, he can add yet another role to his ever-expanding resume: nighttime sleep aid.
“Darrius is the kind of player that helps a coach sleep at night,” said Jay Heaps. “You can put him anywhere and you know he’s going to be up for the game. He brings it every day in training and he brought it today in the game.”
Barnes, who made his first start of the season filling in for the suspended Jose Goncalves in central defense, proved once again to be Mr. Reliable in helping the Revs shut out the Impact.
While many Revolution fans know Barnes as a center back – he played every minute of his 2009 rookie season in central defense – the 28-year-old actually hadn’t started a regular-season game in the middle since 2012 prior to this past weekend.
But Barnes needed little to no time to re-acclimate, looking strong from the opening whistle.
“It’s a position that I feel comfortable with,” said Barnes. “It’s a position I’ve played all my life. When I got to New England I kind of moved all across the backline, but I love it in the middle, being the aggressor a little bit. Being back there felt very comfortable.”
Barnes said he spent much of the week leading up to the Montreal game forming a partnership with Andrew Farrell and working on defensive shape – the Revs were wary of the Impact’s ability to counter and focused on taking up smart positions even when in possession.
The preparation led to an assured performance as the Revs limited the Impact to just two shots on target.
“Farrell had my back and I had his back,” said Barnes. “Me and Chris Tierney had a good tandem going on the left side. It’s something we can keep working on, but I think today was a good step forward.”
Goncalves will be available to return from his one-game ban this weekend when the San Jose Earthquakes come to town, meaning Barnes’ stint at center back may be short-lived. But with Kevin Alston still dealing with a hamstring injury, Barnes could be called upon to fill in at right back.
Should Barnes be needed, the Revs know exactly what they’ll get from the steady defender.
“There are a lot of minutes out there for Darrius,” said Heaps. “Whenever he gets them, he does well.”
