REAL SALT LAKE 2, COLUMBUS CREW 1
COLUMBUS CREW HEAD COACH SIGI SCHMID
On the first RSL goal:
"A little mistake. And we had made a substitution and one of the things we had said to the substitute was 'they are throwing an extra forward up so Ritchie (Kotschau) is getting caught with somebody so you have to mark (Chris) Klein. He wasn't anywhere close to him. I guess from entering the field, to those 10 seconds I don't know what happened. Thought went away."
On the game:
"I thought we started to give it away at the start of the second half. They started putting more pressure up front so that left them exposed in the back. Instead of clearing the ball we kept trying to play it to guys' feet in the midfield and then the ball turns over and comes back down at us. Sometimes you just got to clear the ball over their midfield line. For me, the major disappointment was - there was a situation where we had a corner kick and the ball gets cleared out to Ritchie Kotschau and instead of putting the ball back into the box he plays it back to our own goalkeeper. You have to want to score goals. I can't run out onto the field and tell them. You have to want to go forward. I have talked to them about it until I am blue in the face. Same thing, Jacob Thomas is having a good game and we lose him. Frustrating I guess is the best word."
On the team's playoff chances:
"We might still be in the hunt until the last game but if I were going to Vegas I wouldn't bet on us."
REAL SALT LAKE HEAD COACH JOHN ELLINGER
On the difference between the first half and the second:
"We just played better in the second half. In the second half we played the way we have played the last three to four games. I think that is what helped us."
On winning on the road:
"Last year we didn't win a road game and this year we've won four. We've won more on the road than we've won at home. For us, we've turned the corner a little bit. Another big test for us is at Houston on Saturday. For us, three points, battling Colorado, L.A. and Chivas trying to get into the playoffs. Every time we go out we need a result. You want to play well and play exciting soccer, but sometimes you just have to get over the hump and win ugly if you have to. We weren't impressive in the first half, but the second half we did a much better job."
REAL SALT LAKE MIDFIELDER CHRIS KLEIN
On the game:
"We came out at halftime and we were not real satisfied in how we played, but with how we have been going lately we had confidence that we could forget about that and move forward and we needed one and we knew we could push for the second one.
On his goal:
"Andy (Williams) did a very good job pushing the ball past their pressure and played it to me. That's one you just try to hit hard and put it on goal. Keep putting pressure on them, putting pressure on them, putting pressure on them. It's no coincidence. We have worked from the first day of preseason on our conditioning."
