MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER QUOTE SHEET
SATURDAY, AUGUST 27, 2005 - NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION 2, D.C. UNITED 1
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION HEAD COACH STEVE NICOL
On the game:
"I think, as normal, it was a battle royal out there between us and D.C.,
because it always is. I think the truth of the matter is that we were
fortunate to get the win. As far as the football we played we can play far
better than we showed tonight. But, as usual, we showed that as far as guts
and courage and passion, we have it in abundance. That's what won us the game."
On the Revolution's attacking play:
"I wouldn't say that we didn't look dangerous. We were inches away a lot of
times from getting good connections. I certainly didn't feel as though we
were ineffective. We were fortunate enough that when someone like Clint
(Dempsey) isn't available that we can bring other people in and they'll do a
good job for us."
On the first half:
"I think at halftime, basically we were second best. Whether it was winning
balls or whether it was playing soccer or passing the ball or whatever, we
were second best. The one thing we had to make sure we did in the second half is make sure at the very least that we were standing in the corner and
making it hard."
On Taylor Twellman and Pat Noonan playing together at forward:
"Well, obviously Pat's been out for five or six weeks, so he certainly had
enough strength to get through it. But obviously some more training and some
more games and he'll sharpen up, but the two of them did well. You can't complain. We scored in the last minute. I think, like the rest of us, as a
team and as individuals we can all be better than we were tonight."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION GOALKEEPER DOUG WARREN
On communicating with the defense:
"With the crowd you have to be a lot louder so that your defenders can here
you. Starting with (Michael Parkhurst) in the middle we keep a good shape,
which helps us out. I didn't really to do too much screaming even though it
felt like it."
On his first recorded save with the Revolution:
"I think the first shot that I had against me, the first real shot, was the
goal. Santino had a great shot, and then to come back and have a great save
against (Ben Olsen) kind of got me going again. Just staying sharp and
really concentrating on the game, it definitely helped."
On his confidence after recording the win:
"It was big for me, because it's obviously against one of the better teams in
the league. So to come in and get a game right away and get a win, it does
well for anyone. It definitely helps; it gives me a little bit more
confidence. Going in, this wasn't a bottom of the table team."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION DEFENDER MICHAEL PARKHURST
On winning the game in added time:
"We like to keep the crowd in it until the 90th minute and we are having a
lot of success right now at the end."
On the difference between the first half and the second half:
"I think we just did a better job staying together. In the first half,
they took it to us a little bit. They obviously took advantage of their
opportunities. They didn't have too many even though they had a lot of
possession. The second half we really concentrated on keeping the ball more
and getting it wide to (Steve Ralston). We felt like we didn't go to 'Ralley'
enough in the first half. He is one of our best players, so we got the ball
wide and that's how the goal came. Taylor (Twellman) is great in the air.
Pat (Noonan) is great in the air. So we just wanted to whip it in the air
and they'll get on it."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION FORWARD TAYLOR TWELLMAN
On the goal:
"Obviously just trying to get on the end of things and Andy (Dorman) played
me a good ball. It was the same one as the first half when I was called
offside, so I just tried to get on the end of it."
On scoring the goal in added time:
"We just keep fighting along. The first half was kind of ugly. We
tried to come out and we had good spells, but to get a win is big because
it's a little cushion."
D.C. UNITED HEAD COACH PETER NOWAK
On what the loss means for his team:
"I think it is going to affect everyone, because we talked at halftime and
then came out. And then after three minutes we gave up an own goal. We make
mistakes and we pay for it and we lost the game. That's twice in a row."
On the decision to bring on Freddy Adu:
"I was thinking that Freddy (Adu) was going to give us a little spark,
especially up front because we didn't really have Jaime (Moreno). Santino
(Quaranta) moved back, so we didn't really have anyone up front to keep the
ball and to provide a little bit of offensive power. That's why we decided
to go with Freddy in the last (few) minutes."
D.C. UNITED GOALKEEPER NICK RIMANDO
On the own goal:
"The ball was in the air. I said, 'Away.' I don't know what happened after
that. When I talked to (Bobby Boswell) after the goal he said he heard me
screaming. That's it. When you hear somebody screaming, get the ball out. I
wouldn't say it's poor communication because I clearly said, 'Away.' Maybe
he just misread the ball or something."
On the final minutes of the game:
"There was a lot of pressure on us. We've got to be smart. In the last three
games we've made mistakes and good teams capitalize. We've got to do a lot
better. Especially coming to the end of the season. We're killing ourselves
right now. We could have easily won that game if not tied it. Losing three
points - I think everyone needs to be accountable and fix it right away."
