REAL SALT LAKE 2, KANSAS CITY WIZARDS 1
REAL SALT LAKE HEAD COACH JOHN ELLINGER
On getting the result:
"We did a better job at keeping the ball with a lead at the end of the game. We can keep the ball. We kept the ball most of the time and under pressure. Then, at the end there's that little bit in the back of your mind that says, 'We did whatever it took this time to get through.' A win is a win, so that is good."
On the performance of rookie goalkeeper Chris Seitz:
"He played well throughout the game. He came out well a couple of times, and made his presence known. Chris did well."
On the play of Andy Williams:
"Andy did exactly what we expected him to do. We needed to hold the ball a little more and he was doing that. He created some opportunities for us to get some additional chances and had that bomb that went off the crossbar."
"Then, it was a great sequence. Jeff [Cunningham] lays it off to Andy and he had a very good finish. In this game Andy came in and did a job, and that is great. Andy is a good player -- we know that."
On Danny Torres' stop on Eddie Johnson in the first half:
"That defensive play may have been the play of the year so far. Just the fact that he chased back, cut Eddie off and won the ball without fouling him is a credit to how he has been playing all year. Johnson was thinking he had plenty of time, next thing he knows there is Danny shoulder to shoulder with him."
On gaining the win:
"I think it's a confidence thing. The guys in the locker room, the first couple of them said, 'still unbeaten,' so you take the wins any way you can. It is confidence, it is a habit. Just like we have found in the past losing is a habit, winning is a habit, so it is good to find a way to get a win against a good team. It is not a USL team, it is an MLS team who won their opening game, and they played most of their guys."
On the importance of the Open Cup:
"It is prestigious to win the Open Cup. You don't go to the Champions' Cup anymore, but it is still prestigious. They would like to get to that point and win it."
REAL SALT LAKE DEFENDER DANNY TORRES
On what this does for the team's confidence:
"If we are playing at home, we can not leave this many points behind. Even when you play well, you always think that you could have done something else. Winning gives us a lot of confidence for what's coming, our game in Saturday [against Chivas USA] in Los Angeles. We're going to try and learn from our mistakes and keep improving."
On his penalty area steal from Eddie Johnson in the first half:
"On that play, at first I thought Eddie fouled me because he grabbed my jersey and stepped in front of me. Chris Seitz did a great job of delaying him and that gave me a chance to get in a good position and take the ball away from him."
REAL SALT LAKE MIDFIELDER CHRIS KLEIN
On the team's focus toward playing in the U.S. Open Cup:
"I think for this organization, we need to get in the habit of winning games. We talked a little before the game about trying to win trophies and trying to collect these things and there's only one way to do it, and that's win these games. This has tremendous significance for us because it's a league tournament."
"You look over in England at Manchester United and Chelsea and they take everything very seriously, and they're still in the hunt for three trophies. If they can do it and put that out there it gives us something to strive for and that's to be good every time we step on the field, and I think we're learning to do that."
On how the busy week will affect RSL:
"Three games in eight days is not a big deal. It's when you put those on top of each other week after week that it starts to wear on you. We'll have a few guys that will be a little nicked up and a little tired because of the overtime, but it's part of what we do."
On what RSL coach John Ellinger went over between regulation and overtime:
"There was nothing really to go over. It was just keep doing the things you're doing and you're going to break through. It's a war of attrition at that point and it comes down to which team gives first. At the end of the day it's good for us to win a game, no matter if we gave up a lead - that's going to happen. You're going to see us get those late points ourselves this year, so it goes both ways."
REAL SALT LAKE MIDFIELDER FREDDY ADU
On the team's resiliency in overtime:
"Andy [Williams] came in and made a difference like that. That's the one thing about this team, we never let down. We always come back and keep playing. You never know what's going to happen in soccer. You keep doing the same things you're doing, and that worked out great for us."
On the setup of the first half penalty kick:
"Willis [Forko] gave a great ball. He saw the run, he saw my eyes and right when I took two steps it was bam, turn and go. He hit a perfect ball and I controlled it and from there it was a foot race, one-v-one between me and Kevin Hartman, who was quicker to the ball. I beat him to it and he didn't mean to clip me, but when you beat him to the ball and you take a touch and he hits you, you go down and that's a PK, and that's just what happened."
REAL SALT LAKE FORWARD JEFF CUNNINGHAM
On his connection with Andy Williams for the game-winner:
"Andy and I, we have this thing ... it's kind of like a playground, Jamaican-style football. It's like, I know where he's going to go and before he even gets the ball I know what he's thinking and vice-versa. He's a quality player, he finds ways to make other players look good."
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS HEAD COACH CURT ONALFO
On the Wizards' tactics in 2007:
"You know we're very organized we talk a lot about how we move and touch the ball and we feel like we have good soccer players and so just a combination of all that."
On trying to challenge Seitz:
"You think when a guy's got a rookie debut you want to put him under pressure. He showed that he's going to be a very good MLS goalkeeper; I thought he was very good today. For the most part Real Salt Lake is a very good team and, to their credit, they found a way to win the game."
KANSAS CITY WIZARDS MIDFIELDER SASHA VICTORINE
On how the artificial surface affected the team's play:
"It's really fast, that the biggest thing about it. I was telling the guys that when you hit long balls, once it bounces it's gone. That's basically the difference, if you don't put it on the guy's foot the ball is gone."
"The bigger adjustment is when you're trying to dribble you beat a guy, if you take a bad touch the ball just rolls away. It's definitely an adjustment, but the good thing about it is the ball moves quickly, so you can play quick and it speeds the game up and makes the play faster."
On the play of Seitz:
"He did well. He's a big guy, he comes off his line during crosses fairly well, and he's a young guy. Get him more experience and he'll be a good 'keeper. He's got the size and the build to be a solid goalkeeper."
