Chad Barrett: "As soon as I heard the crowd, I just went crazy"

Much has been said about Chad Barrett's late equalizer against the LA Galaxy on Sunday, but what caught many fans' eyes was the forward's "Lambeau Leap"-esque celebration when he jumped into the arms of the crowd. When asked if the routine had been planned, Barrett denied any forethought:

"I never plan anything," Barrett said. "Whenever I do plan something, it goes completely away as soon as I score. As soon as I heard the crowd, I just went crazy in my head and started running over. I kinda saw two people in the same section gesture towards me, and just thought 'sure, why not?' It was a pretty cool moment."

The Seattle Sounders forward has been rather full of signature celebrations lately, and readily admits that his favorites are the recent fake hamstring injury and last season's teacup dance in Portland.

Barrett wasn't even supposed to be available for the match against the Galaxy. In fact, when the call came in that he was going to be in the bench after Nelson Valdez's injury in the warmup, Barrett was relaxing in the press box and drinking a soda. At age 30, Barrett recognizes that he won't always be the first face in the starting XI, sometimes even in the 18-man matchday squad. But always the consummate professional, Barrett keeps his head down and does the work required of him:

"That's the job, you know?" he said. "I've been a starter, I've been a sub. I was a sub a lot early in the beginning years, and now I'm kind of back to it. On this team, it's understandable; there's so much talent, how does Sigi find a spot on the field for you? My job is to make it tough on him. My number was called, and I was happy to answer."

Seattle suffered an early mistake to allow the Galaxy an easy goal earlier in the match, and Barrett's late goal turned zero points into one for Seattle. When asked how the goal happened, Barrett shows again why he's so respected in Major League Soccer:

"I saw that nobody was crashing into the back post, so I decided that would be my job," Barrett said. "I would try to crash in there at least one time. The time I picked worked out. It was just one of those times where I had the right place, right time, right ball and then, a perfect moment."

Barrett knows that even with such a crucial goal, that he's not a lock for the squad going into the final games of the season. The Sounders have two weeks to prepare for the Houston Dynamo on October 18th, including a weekend off that Barrett plans to use to relax but also stay fit and make the manager's decision as hard as possible.