NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION 1, COLORADO RAPIDS 0
REVOLUTION HEAD COACH STEVE NICOL
On the game:
"The first half was pretty poor. They came in and closed us down real early and worked hard. We just couldn't get going. Both teams were poor with the ball. You put that with them closing us down and it was pretty ugly. But, I think in the second half you saw how hard they worked in the first half. I've never seen so many people going down in a game. But, we showed we were strong and we kept at it and we really put them under pressure in the second half ... I think we got the reward for pressing; we got the reward for pushing the game and trying to win the game. It certainly wasn't silky smooth by any stretch of the imagination, but, with a couple chances and us putting them under pressure and putting the ball in the box, I think we got the just reward in the end by getting the winner."
On the goal:
"I think we just wore them down to be honest, just with sheer physical effort and presence. But I don't think we played particularly well. I think with just what they put into the first half to close us down and then the pressure we put on them second half paid off."
On Taylor Twellman's absence:
"There was a possibility he could have played, but there's no point in taking the chance on him. I'm more than happy that Adam [Cristman] and Pat [Noonan] are up top, so why take a chance when you've got two guys up top like that."
On the absence of Shalrie Joseph for Wednesday's Open Cup Final:
"It's not going to change anything. We're going to try and do what we normally do. Obviously there'll be a change of personnel, but we're not going to make radical changes and all kinds of things. We're going to do what we did."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION GOALKEEPER MATT REIS
On the win:
"It's real important. I thought we had control of the game. I thought we were the team that was trying to get a goal and trying to score. It seemed like they were just trying to hold on on the road. It was coming; we had some chances. We obviously didn't play the best that we could have, but we definitely battled and we were fortunate to get the point."
On Wednesday's U.S. Open Cup Final:
"We're just going to approach it like another game. Even though it's a final, it's still another game. We're going to try and get our rest in on Sunday and then on Monday rejuvenate and then leave Tuesday."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION DEFENDER JAY HEAPS
On his team's performance:
"We were competing - obviously that's good - but we were disappointed in the way we possessed the ball. It changed a little bit in the second half, but you have to give them credit. They came here to disrupt more or less then play, so Stevie (Nicol) told us at halftime, or even before the game, to limit their chances, which we did, and the goal would come and I think we wore them down. I think that was our goal. They didn't have any opportunities. It was important for us to be smart and not give them that sloppy goal. We stayed smart and opened up and Kenny (Khano Smith) scored."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION MIDFIELDER STEVE RALSTON
On his second half:
"I was trying to be positive. I kept telling guys 'C'mon, let's go. We're gonna get one, let's keep going, its gonna come.' I just had a feeling we were going to get one. I didn't know how it was going to happen, I just knew we were going to get one. I just felt like it was a matter of time and I thought we were going to get one. I thought the chances were going to come and Khano (Smith) did a great job, he didn't give up on the ball and snuck it in there. Stevie (Nicol) kept telling us to stay patient. Sometimes you feel like if it's not going well, we start getting a little bit anxious and start throwing guys forward instead of just keep going with the way we normally play. We stayed pretty composed and didn't get too out of bounds all over the field, so I thought it was pretty good."
On going into the Open Cup final with a win:
"It's good. Three points is huge right now, at this point in the season. I feel like we can build on something and try to roll into next week, into Wednesday, on a positive note. Hopefully we'll find out what it feels like when we win. Hopefully we don't have to worry about the other way. We want to go down there and bring home a trophy. We have to break our little curse in Dallas. It's not going to be easy playing against Dallas at their stadium. It's going to be difficult, but we feel confident we can go down there and play with anybody."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION MIDFIELDER KHANO SMITH
On winning late in the game:
"Both teams were getting tired ... I mean, we've got match-winners all over the field, so if it wasn't me tonight, I'm sure it would have been somebody else. It's time for us to get in our groove. We didn't play well, but its still a win."
On his game-winning goal:
"(The Colorado defender) stalled the clearance, so I saw I had a chance to step in front and win it, so I did...I could have used my right foot into the side netting, I could have used the outside of my foot to the side netting too, but I saw him coming out with his legs open too. That's going to be pretty hard for him to stop with his legs open, so I tried to put it through his legs."
RAPIDS HEAD COACH FERNANDO CLAVIJO
On the loss:
"It's disappointing. It's not what they did; it's what we didn't do. There were just a lot of mental mistakes. We didn't clear the ball, we didn't see the dangers in 88 minutes and we paid the price for it. Unfortunately, we played well. I thought that it changed the momentum a little bit when Tony Sanneh came out. We had to adjust and it took us about 10 minutes to get back into rhythm. But, after all, they attack better when they have really that many clear chances and I thought to be honest that we should've escaped with a point."
On the Revolution gaining momentum in the second half:
"They tried moving people forward, they tried to counteract with one, but some men were attacking more and never really created clear chances. They moved forward but never really created any quality chances to score. The one goal that they scored is not what they do, if we just cleared the ball out of bounds nothing would've happened. Just one mistake cost us the game, unfortunately."
On Omar Cummings entering the game as a substitution in the 62nd minute:
"Omar scored when we played New England before. Every time he comes in he creates something. He has a lot of energy, and is a change of pace. Unfortunately, our game plan was altered when Tony (Sanneh) went out. We just couldn't secure the midfield and that's what happened in the second half...the defensive midfield was left alone there and they're fighting three guys so it was kind of hard. Even then, we managed well to minimize quality chances and at the same time create some of our own."
On the Rapids playoff chances:
"We need to win. Forget about the points right now. We just need to win. At the same time, if Chicago doesn't do their part or Columbus doesn't do their part, but there's nothing we can do right now so its going to be a dogfight all the way to the last game of the season. There's nothing that we can do. We were in it for 88 minutes. Concentration is to be for 90+ minutes. Just one silly mistake, but I can't complain with effort."
RAPIDS DEFENDER UGO IHEMELU
On losing on a late goal:
"It's tough. I thought we battled. That's the game. We had a few opportunities early on, but they just didn't go in for us. That's the game. One mistake and you're down a goal late, it's hard to recover on a good team like this at their place."
On Khano Smith's goal:
"He played a ball into a space. I was expecting it to be a little bit wider, then it kind of died and I just misjudged it and (Khano) Smith made a good adjustment to get inside me. He was strong to keep coming off with a good finish. Just got to give him credit. I've got to take responsibility. If I reacted quicker, judged better, the goal probably wouldn't have happened."
RAPIDS MIDFIELDER PABLE MASTROENI
On losing the game in New England:
"This is a difficult place to play. But, I think this is a good team. They're playing pretty well, and with a lot of confidence. Playing on turf is a whole different beast. So we just came in here with the mindset of trying to get three points...We felt like the longer the game went on the better chance we had of getting three points. It just didn't go our way tonight. I think the effort was good, but it just didn't go our way."
On losing Tony Senneh in the 13th minute:
"I think Mehdi (Ballouchy) did a good job coming in and bringing the good attitude and finding the ball, and controlling it. It's tough to lose the subs early, but more importantly, Mehdi came in and did a good job of finding the game early and getting involved, so we can't make excuses. But we didn't capitalize on our chances, and there were a few mistakes defensively that they eventually capitalized on."
On the team's chances of making the playoffs:
"We need to find a horseshoe and a little leprechaun. I don't even know if three wins will get it. It's so easy to sit here and say three wins, but that's why we're in the position we are, because wins aren't easy to come by. We need a lot of luck. We need to keep working. We need to keep the same mindset, where we're coming in and working hard for 90 minutes. Like I said, we need to find a horseshoe somewhere on the field, if not, we need to find a pot of gold."
