NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION 2, KANSAS CITY WIZARDS 0
REVOLUTION HEAD COACH STEVE NICOL
On the Revs attacking form in the game:
"We really did right from the word go; we went at it. And I think there were periods in the game where we gave the ball away too cheaply. But, I think overall we really went after it the whole time, we tried to go at them. We created numerous chances. Matt (Reis) obviously made a great save at nil-nil putting it onto the post. I think we were disappointed that we didn't come in at halftime ahead. We had some good chances and never took them and we continued going forward in the second half."
,b>On Kansas City's team and getting a victory:
"They're a good team. They're real dangerous on the break. They pass the ball well, they look to pass and get people in behind you, so I thought it a was real good game. I thought it was a really good 'advert' for the league tonight. And obviously we're pleased we came out on top, and I think we deserved to come out on top. Certainly, Eddie (Johnson), we said before, is dangerous. If you back off on him and let him run at you then you're in trouble. I think we handled him pretty well. So, yeah, it's good to get a clean sheet, and good to win the game."
On Pat Noonan:
"When you get Pat in the box, he's a handful, you don't know what he's going to do. We've had him four years and we're still not sure which way he's gonna go generally. Usually you know your players inside out. So he's a handful in the box."
On getting the first win at home against Kansas City since 1999:
"(Steve) Ralston brought that up before we left the dressing room, and it's not a record you like having. You know we're glad to put that behind us and hopefully we'll continue to do well."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION GOALKEEPER MATT REIS
On the Marinelli shot that hit the post:
"It was a situation where it took a deflection off (Michael) Parkhurst. I just had to get back and try to get a touch on it. At first I didn't think I got enough of it, but it hit off the post and we were able to clear it."
On bottling up the K.C. offense:
"Then there was a shot by (Jack) Jewsbury in the first half that I had to punch wide, but outside of that, we really bottled them up and contained them really well, as opposed to last game when we played them and it was pretty wide open and there were chances all around us. This game we really limited their chances and limited their services."
On the win being a momentum builder:
"We've been a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde team this year. We've put in performances like tonight but we've also put in performances where we've just given the game away and given away points. It's important for us in this stretch of game coming up to get maximum points and get some separation with the rest of the teams."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION DEFENDER JAY HEAPS
On being excited for the rematch against the Wizards:
"I think we came ready to compete tonight. I think we were disappointed in the last time we played them how we finished that game, so it was a little extra motivation."
On the Marinelli shot not going in:
"That (shot) not going in will hopefully be a little turn in luck for us, because this year we've had very unlucky opportunities go against us. That was nice to see that not go in. It came off our guy and Matt (Reis) just got a finger on it and it hit the post."
On defending the home field:
"I think for us, any team at home that comes in here like they did in the first game and beats us at home adds a little motivation to defend your home turf. We haven't really been great at home. We've had great games at home but we haven't been great consistently. It's more important for us to have efforts like this when we play at home."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION FORWARD PAT NOONAN
On his goal:
"It was a great ball by Khano (Smith) just getting it in the box. Obviously Taylor (Twellman) does what he does getting on the end of it, and he put it in a dangerous spot, which is all he could have done with that ball. I just tried to attack and put something on it and I was fortunate it bounced in."
On building confidence for the rest of the season:
"There's no question (this win) is a confidence builder, but that's what we expect to do. We're not used to giving up goals like we have been in recent weeks, letting teams back in the game. Tonight we didn't do that and Adam (Cristman) came in and had a pretty big goal for us to put it away."
On his more consistent play in the past few weeks:
"(It's) just getting minutes and getting my legs back. I feel good out there and confident. It's just bouncing the right way right now. Hopefully it stays that way, but goals come and go. Right now they're coming but it would be nice to keep that going."
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS HEAD COACH CURT ONALFO
On losing 2-0 to the Revolution in a tight contest:
"It was a very tight game. Both teams had chances to put the ball in the back of the net. They happened to get their chance in the first half, and we pushed the game at the end to try to get a goal and got denied several times. It's certainly a tough one. We felt like we had a pretty good performance. Quite frankly, I think the Revolution was a little bit better tonight, and that's basically what it boils down to."
On playing on the road:
"We're a team that tries to push the game on the road. We don't sit back. We put a lot of effort into the game, and then when you get scored upon on the road it's pretty exhausting."
On the play of both goalkeepers:
"Both goalkeepers had excellent games. I thought Kevin Hartman came up with a lot of very good saves for us. He kept us in the game. I thought Matt (Reis) did the same for New England, so it was a solid performance. I think (Hartman) was excellent, that's what we brought him here to do and he had a good game."
On the upcoming 17-day rest:
"We give our guys four days and we come back with a new energy to make sure we hit the last part of the season the right way. Sure, it would've been better if we had a point or three points, of course."
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS DEFENDER JIMMY CONRAD
On the losing result versus the Revolution:
"I have to give New England credit. They've played a long time together. They're used to the ebb and flow of their team, and when we were ebbing, they were jumping on it and making sure we got punished for our mistakes. They created a lot of good chances and put us more on our back foot. We couldn't do what we wanted to do. Whatever they talked about at halftime clearly worked on their end. They were the better team in the second half."
On falling behind on the road:
"We seem to make a habit of falling behind in every game this season whether we're on the road or at home. It's not something we're uncomfortable with, but at the same time New England has a lot of experience led by Matt Reis and Shalrie (Joseph), and they do a good job of making sure to keep everybody tight and limited our chances tonight. They did a good job not making us as dangerous as we usually are."
On the tone of the game:
"I thought the game was wide open; there was a battle of the midfield, a battle of loose balls. Some went our way, some went theirs, but in the second half I think they had more of it. I thought we were scrambling a bit. In the second half, we couldn't really get our composure because every time we had a chance to breathe, we'd lose it again. We didn't do ourselves any favors and credit to New England for punishing us for it. It's a long season, though. There've been games this year where we've played great and lost, and games where we've played [poorly] and won. I think this game was kind of in between.
On heading into a 17-day break:
"I think (the long break) is pretty good. It's a time to kind of reflect, and kind of see what we can do a little bit better. At the same time, get our legs some rest, and get us focused for the stretch run, which we all know is the most important part of the season for Major League Soccer."
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS GOALKEEPER KEVIN HARTMAN
On his team responding after Pat Noonan's goal:
"We started taking risks, trying to catch a goal back and unfortunately, we didn't really do a good enough job defending numbers down. So they were able to get the second. With that being said, I think they had the majority of the real chances in the game. I don't think Matt (Reis) was really threatened too often. So we might've possessed the ball fairly decently. I thought today that we played pretty well. Unfortunately, I don't think we've threatened as much as we could have. They have a great team; the guys won't quit working. I think a lot of players after scoring the first goal would quit. It shows how hardworking they were. They got a ton of shots, and they did a lot better with their shots than we did."
