SAN JOSE EARTHQUAKES 2, COLUMBUS CREW 1
Earthquakes head coach Dominic Kinnear
On the game:
"I am real proud of the guys tonight. It was great that they came back and scored right away just like last week in Dallas and we played better in the second half. Columbus played well and put pressure on us but I think that we adjusted well and we were very efficient in our finishing today."
On his adjustments:
"I told the guys to try not to play high balls into the forwards. I also told Ricardo (Clark) to push a little closer to the forwards so we could win some more of the knockdowns. I felt like our passing was better when we did that and we started working the ball a little bit more. Ricardo did a good job for us in there."
On Eddie Robinson:
"It was a great response by Eddie. He felt bad after Chad Marshall scored while he was marking him, so it was great to see him come back and score. He has been playing great for us this season."
Earthquakes midfielder Danny O'Rourke
On his return to Columbus:
"My family was definitely excited and I was looking forward to coming home. I grew up here and it is great to be back here. I think the team is playing great and we are climbing the table. We have a big game against D.C. next week that we need to be prepared for."
Earthquakes midfielder Ricardo Clark
On his contributions and the team's play:
"It feels good to contribute, but it has really been a team effort. Everyone is going out and laying it all out there. If we keep doing that, good things will happen for us."
On assisting on the winning goal:
"Wade played a ball into me and I saw Alejandro in front of me, so I flicked it on. He played a good ball into space past the defenders. I took it down the line and I saw Ronald out of the corner of my eye and I put it in a good spot and it was a good finish."
Earthquakes forward Ronald Cerritos
On the goal:
"As a forward, you are always happy to score, but I am so happy because the team is playing well. Getting the result at the end is what is most important for me and we did that tonight. Everyone deserved these three points."
Earthquakes defender Eddie Robinson
On the goal:
"I love scoring goals, but I don't do it enough. I didn't know what to do. It was just a great ball by Ronald and I was able to get on the end of it."
Crew Head Coach Greg Andrulis
On San Jose's first goal:
"The guy can't be that wide open. We have our best header defending him and he gets beat, but what can you do. He scores a great goal on the first one and gets beat on the second one. Clearly was an issue in the first half.
"You can never question the guys' effort, their heart and determination. They leave it out on the field for everybody. They give it their absolute best. It seems even when we play decently we can't get a break.
"We went to a 3-4-3 to try and apply pressure on their backs and try to play in their half a little bit more. I thought the pressure worked. We had some chances and got the goal. We had an open goal that we missed that would have made it 2-0. But again 16th game, 16th different lineup. I thought the guys did well with that. It's just unfortunate."
On the start of the second half:
"We got soft in the middle a little bit more than the guys up front. We gave the guys in the middle a little too much space."
On Knox Cameron subbing on at halftime for Edson Buddle:
"His Achilles were acting up again and he just couldn't go.
"I thought the first five minutes we did well, but I agree. We were about to make a change when they scored the goal because the game had dropped off a little bit for us there in that 10 minute stretch and we ended up paying for it. It's unfortunate to have a goal scoring chance that gets called offside and then three passes later their up 2-1. It's a bit of a tough stretch for us that we end up paying for."
Crew defender Chad Marshall
On getting his first MLS goal:
"It would have been nice to get my first goal in a win, but we didn't. Obviously I would have liked to have had it last season, but it's nice to get it. We worked on it yesterday in practice, and he was hitting them well. He (David Testo) served in a good ball and I was able to get on the end of it."
On San Jose's goals:
"They were both me. First one I lost my guy on a corner kick. I miss-judged the ball, and I lost it in the sun. I thought I was going to get to it, and then when I saw it was way over my head and he was wide open and headed it in. Second one I get beat down the sideline. Ricardo (Clark) crosses it back and gets an easy finish. So I get my first goal, but I'm the worst player on the field."
