NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION
HEAD COACH JAY HEAPS
On the game shift after the red card:
“We’re going to look at it in a couple different lights and I thought to be honest with you, it was some of the best stuff we’ve done this season. The first 20 minutes, I thought we were prepared, we were ready, we were all over them. Then, unfortunately, one play at the top and you know, we’re still looking at the film on it, but we felt like it was a bit harsh, and you know, it is what it is. The worst part is we’re up 2-1, but we’re down a man, 70 minutes to go. Referee’s got to be 100% on that, he felt like he was. Hopefully we can look at it some more.”
On the first 20 minutes of play:
“We were moving the ball, we scored two goals. I thought our movement was really good. I thought our preparation was really good. We had a game plan and that was our game plan: to play in the half and jump on them and we did. Sometimes game plans get disrupted and really, I’m a little disappointed by, after the red card, our reaction. For the next minutes, we gave them another goal. We really wish we had solidified things and played a little better in that time, a little more alert, a little more veteran-like in those few minutes. Unfortunately, we’re a younger team and we got rattled a bit. I really like the fight we had. I thought we came back. I thought we had chances to tie the game again, and so like I said, great opening, disappointing after the red card, our reaction, and then excited about our second half.”
GOALKEEPER BOBBY SHUTTLEWORTH:
On responding to the ejection of Andrew Farrell:
“We take the red card and we don’t respond great to it giving up three goals in the last fifteen minutes of the half, but we came in and sorted it out in the second half. I thought we did well in the second half; we kept the ball, we used our possession, we had some good chances and scored a goal.”
On the effect of the red card:
“Any time someone gets a red card people have to move around and Darius came into the game and pieces are going to be moving. It’s up to us to slow the game down there and try to get into halftime without conceding and we weren’t able to do that.”
On the end of the shutout streak:
“It was nice for us to get the clean sheets. Every time we go out we’re looking to get clean sheets and everybody has been really good this year; we’ve minimized giving away chances and hopefully after this game we can go on another streak and get more shutouts.”
MIDFIELDER DIEGO FAGUNDEZ:
On losing a close match:
“It was a tough game. We got two early goals and then it was a fight to the end. It was hard to get back into the game when they scored a couple and we just have to learn from this.”
On playing with 10 men:
“It does get you disappointed, but it’s things you need to deal with; if you go a man down everyone needs to step it up and not let the team come at us, so it’s a learning experience for us.”
On the team’s effort after the red card:
“You can tell that everyone wanted it and we worked so hard for It. You can tell everyone played with their hearts and it was tough to not get that last goal to tie it up.”
DEFENDER ANDREW FARRELL
On the red card:
“It was a good ball they played in behind, deep in behind. I got caught off-guard because I didn’t see Kenny Miller coming in from behind, from my left side. It was kind of a quick play. I had my hand, I think, on his back and I don’t think it’s a foul, but obviously it’s in the run of play, so you can’t really see it, and I mean, on the replay it looks like a foul, so, it’s tough going down a man. The team fought really well and really hard. I blame myself because I think if we’re 11 on 11, I think we get a good result. But the boys did well and fought hard. You know, it’s just a tough result and I really felt like it was my fault. Hopefully, whatever happens next I can get back in here and play well.”
On learning by making mistakes:
“I was talking to some of the veteran members of the team and they said maybe not foul him there and just let him have that shot. We get a goal scored on us, but maybe we’re still in the game, we’re still 11 on 11. You’ve got to learn. It’s something we haven’t had happened to us yet this season, we haven’t gone down a man. So, as me as a rookie, it’s my first year so it’s my first card. It was really weird. I haven’t really gotten red cards before. It’s always tough and you feel like you let your team down.”
On the effect of travel on his team’s performance:
“We’ve got a lot of guys who have done this before. It’s my first year. It was fine for me. I travelled a lot in college across the country and obviously it’s tough because you’re not playing at home, not sleeping in your own bed, but that’s not an excuse. It was a great atmosphere out here and our team did well. We started off really good in the first twenty minutes, and then I got that red card and it changed the whole game from there. So no, every team takes long trips from coast to coast so I think that’s not an excuse.”
MIDFIELDER CHRIS TIERNEY
On going down to 10 men:
“We started really really well. We were in full control of the game and unfortunately it was the classic case of one play deciding the game. That red card clearly changed the game. We liked our chances [at] 11 men, 2-0 up in twenty minutes and moving the ball well, creating chances. To be fair to them, they scored some decent goals after, but we could have been a little better defensively and dealing with going a man down, weathering the storm, and keeping ourselves in the lead.”
HEAD COACH MARTIN RENNIE:
Thoughts on the game:
“We must be the most entertaining team in MLS I think because the game never seems to be over when it feels like it should be. We started the game slow and New England, I thought, were playing real well. Agudelo looked like the player people have talked about, and I have not necessarily seen before, but today you could see just how good of a player he was. He was giving us all sorts of problems. We didn’t defend well on the first two goals but the thing I liked was that we had a couple of leaders like Kenny and Nigel who kept going and who really showed grit, determination and fight and they know that if you keep going with the game that anything could happen.”
On the red card:
“I think at that point we were struggling to find the way back into the game. But it was the right decision. That probably put us back into the game at 2-1. That could’ve been enough to get us going, but it’s not always easy to play against 10 men but today, for the most part, we did a good job of it.”
On Kenny Miller’s goals:
“I thought they were excellent goals, absolutely fantastic goals. And his overall performance was really top class. It made a big difference to our team tonight. And like I say, not just the goals but his desire and hunger and work rate when we were losing, when we weren’t doing well, that started to rub off on other people, and if ever there is a Man of the Match award given to the right person, then it was definitely tonight.”
STRIKER KENNY MILLER:
Thoughts on the game:
“We showed a lot of character…I mean we had the right mentality, and the right thoughts to get back into the game. We’re disappointed in the goals we lose, but we’re happy to get the three points. And make sure we don’t concede as many [moving forward], and score more goals.”
On if his second goal was his nicest with Whitecaps FC:
“Probably yeah… I’m happy to get the goals, you swing at it hoping it’ll go in, and tonight I was fortunate enough.”
GOALKEEPER BRAD KNIGHTON:
Thoughts on the match:
“If we keep scoring goals at the rate we’re scoring goals we’re going to move up the table nice and fast, and look good doing it. We just have to shore things up defensively and that comes down to me being a leader and organizing the backline and making the saves I need to make to keep us in the game.”
On his communication with Johnny Leverón:
“We talked over it…and I think he said he heard me. When it comes down to it we’re not pointing fingers at anybody, we’re together as a team and we’ve just got to do better defensively.”
DEFENDER CARLYLE MITCHELL:
On playing his first game back:
“It was a very difficult game for me to come back into because I was out for two and a half weeks, but I’m glad we got the three points.”
On the status of his ankle:
“I’ve been doing recovery with the guys to get in proper shape. I got a twitch at the beginning of the game but it was nothing bad.”
