MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER QUOTE SHEET
SATURDAY, JUNE 26, 2004 - NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION 2, METROSTARS 1
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION HEAD COACH STEVE NICOL
On the character of the team in the face of injuries and adversity:
"I think the team motivates itself. The stretch we've had. We got a win today, but I have been harping all the time about hitting the back of the net and that will make a difference. And today, absolutely that's what happened. We had some chances and we hit the back of the net. It makes such a difference."
On Felix Brillant's goal:
"I thought he was going down. I thought there was no way he was staying on his foot. He hasn't even a back swing to take his shot. He just bamboozled the goalkeeper and stuck it in the back of the net.
"Obviously when you have pace (like Brillant) there is always danger. If you are a defender and you are playing against a guy who has as much pace as that, you are always scared about the ball going behind you. And that is what happened with the goal. He did well, got it behind him and Felix just finished it off."
On how the team played:
"Today we probably didn't put together as many passes as we have in previous weeks. Sometimes you play well, and you lose; sometimes you don't play so well and you end up winning."
On Adin Brown's injury:
"When he made that save Joey (Franchino) caught him in the back of the head. He basically had a concussion. He was ... nauseous, so the doctor said at halftime that he had to come off."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION FORWARD PAT NOONAN
On the victory:
"It's just one win. We've got to be able to come out next week and put out the same performance. It was a big for us and I thought all 11 guys and (Matt) Reis when he came in, did great, worked their butts off and it paid off in the end."
On his part in the Dempsey goal:
"I was able to turn and he made a run and I was able to chip it over and I was able to sneak it through. He did the rest. He outran three guys and was able to beat the 'keeper. It was a great individual effort. (It was a) big goal for us. We needed it."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION FORWARD FELIX BRILLANT
On his first MLS goal:
"Pat (Noonan) got the ball and slid it to me. I just kept running ... I passed it by Eddie Pope, and then the other central defender (Jeff Parke), I could feel him breathing down my neck, and I just pushed the ball and I just closed my eyes and I shot it with my left foot."
NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION MIDFIELDER CLINT DEMPSEY:
On the win:
"It feels great. I think it gives the team more confidence, and hopefully it will extend to future games. That's all we're try to do right now, build on this and try to make a run."
On his goal:
"I just made a run into open space. (Pat) Noonan played a great ball. I saw a little bit of daylight and just did what I could to try to keep possession of the ball. I saw a little daylight, I had one player to beat and then the 'keeper, kind of just moved to the side and played it in. It felt great."
METROSTARS HEAD COACH BOB BRADLEY
On the team's performance:
"We didn't finish chances. With the number of opportunities that we had going forward, the game was there for us to score first, and they were able to take a loose ball play and turn it into a goal. And obviously that changed the game. Plain and simple, this was a game that we should win, and when we don't win you can't talk about it favorably."
On what the team will take from the game:
"You want to win games when you have a chance. This was a game where we felt like we should have come away from points, so hopefully we can learn from it."
On the first goal:
"The first one was a little bit of a loose ball where Eddie Pope steps in and the ball rebounds and goes the other way, and we were caught in a bad spot. It was a little bit of bad luck."
METROSTARS CAPTAIN EDDIE POPE
Overall thoughts on the game:
"I think that the ball bounced their way a couple of times. The second goal was a tough one to give up. On the first one, I think that the ball just squirted out into the guy's path, and I think that we were a little cautious not to foul in the box, for fear of the red card. Other than that I think that we did OK. I think that we did OK offensively, but we just couldn't finish our chances, and that made the difference."
On the MetroStars' winless streak against the Revolution:
"I certainly don't think about it. Every game is a new game as far as I am concerned, so I really don't think about that."
On the Metros not being able to break away from the pack:
"One thing that you can't do when you lose a game in the regular season is get down and think that you can't break away from the pack. We have to come out on Wednesday, stay focused and try to win that game."
METROSTARS FORWARD FABIAN TAYLOR
On the team's performance tonight:
"I think that we played good in patches, but we were really unlucky today. We just didn't get the goal when we needed it. We could just never get the momentum."
On the game tonight:
"It was a very physical game today, but I think that we weathered the storm and just couldn't finish our chances when we had the opportunity to."
