NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION 1, CHICAGO FIRE 1
FIRE HEAD COACH DAVE SARACHAN:
On the match:
"You want to win these at home and get three points. One point is a little disappointing. I was pleased with the way we competed tonight. The final third could have been a little bit cleaner in terms of just being patient. New England sat back and made it a little bit hard on us to find some space, but we tried to make the game tonight. It's a point; it's not three, but it's not zero. We'll take it and get ready for Wednesday, a quick turnaround."
On New England's goal:
"Right after the penalty we couldn't gain momentum and come after them with the free kick they earned. Credit to [Steve] Ralston, he hit a good ball. He hit a great free kick. There's nothing you can do when a guy hits it over the wall like that because Henry can't protect that corner, that's what the wall is for."
On the Fire's difficulty finishing chances:
"It's not an easy science in the final third. We need to exhibit a little bit of patience ad some good combination play. With Ante [Razov] now out and Dipsy [Selolwane] in there, we've had some different faces, and it's still developing a relationship with your partner up there and that's probably going to be a big part of it."
On the "double duty" of DaMarcus Beasley:
"I heard DaMarcus telling the guys he was playing 180 minutes in both games. We did talk, DaMarcus and I, and we played it by ear depending on how the U.S. game was going to go. He played 94 minutes in the U.S. game and when the game ended I asked him how he was feeling because he was listed for us and it was typical DaMarcus. He said, 'I want to play.' We felt he certainly wouldn't start, but we'd see if we could get him into the game and he gave us a good 30 minutes. He put a lot of work in today."
FIRE GOALKEEPER HENRY RING
Overall thoughts on the match:
"Besides a few breakdowns I thought our defense played very well, they kept me bored for a long time. In the second half there were a few plays where they got through and got a few shots off, but I thought we dominated play. I thought we played well and attacked well, it's just that final play, we weren't able to put it in."
On what differences the Fire may see on Wednesday in Foxboro:
"They may come out a little more aggressive. It's tough coming in here, especially with the crowd here, I can see them coming out a little faster."
FIRE DEFENDER C.J. BROWN
On the Fire's stingy defense:
"I thought everybody played real well. Defensively, the four of us stayed together and we got some help from our midfielders. Overall a pretty good job."
On whether the Fire should make changes heading into Wednesday:
"No, I think we should play the same way. The ball needs to move quickly like it did today, this was probably one of the quicker games we played in awhile."
REVOLUTION HEAD COACH STEVE NICOL
On the result:
"We didn't play particularly well, but we continued to make chances. Whether we knock the ball well or we don't we seem to make chances. I think it probably would have been an injustice if we had taken three points tonight, but at the same time the opportunities happened where we could have deserved it."
On the struggles of the Revolution offense:
"People have to make better decisions. Hopefully once we break the ice and get it going hopefully they'll just come."
On the difference between the two halves of play:
"We never got close to anybody in the first half and staying off of them didn't work, so we just changed. That worked until Beasley came on and gave them a lift and opened it up for them so we had to change again and try to turn the pressure up."
REVOLUTION FORWARD PAT NOONAN
On his chances tonight:
"It was poor finishing and the first couple didn't even hit the target, which I've got to do better with. On the last one, [Fire goalkeeper Henry Ring] made a great save. I thought it was in; I was getting ready to celebrate, but he made the stop. It would have been a nice way to end it, but it didn't work out."
On the result:
"It's good to get a point. The first half wasn't so good, Chicago had all the possession and they were moving the ball around and we weren't putting any pressure on them. We changed up in the second half and started pressuring them more and getting more chances and creating up top."
On the second game of the home-and-home series this Wednesday:
"Same two teams going at it again. We know each other and we know what we'll be facing. We're at home, we need to find a way to win the game because that's going to be a huge three points."
REVOLUTION FORWARD TAYLOR TWELLMAN
On how it felt to get back into the New England line-up:
"It felt good. It's just nice being out there. For the first half I wish we would have played a little better, but the second half we came out and had some chances right away. Obviously it was a heck of a free kick."
REVOLUTION MIDFIELDER STEVE RALSTON
On his free kick goal:
"It felt good. Once I hit it, I knew I hit it pretty well and got it over the wall. I saw it heading towards the corner and I knew it had a chance and I was praying that it was going to go in there. Fortunately I got a good bounce of the post; I was surprised that it didn't hit the post and come out."
On breaking his goal-scoring drought:
"I was eventually going to get one. This was the longest streak I've had without scoring a goal, so it felt good to help the team get a point."
