New England Revolution Head Coah Jay Heaps

On giving up goals in the first half:
“We were a little loose on the foul that cost the first set piece. That was a great header from [Brandon] McDonald. The second [goal] to me is unforgivable, quite frankly. It was five minutes before half, just textbook [definition] of what you don’t want to give up. Not only was it an indirect free kick, but [the ball] also bounced and was kicked around in the box. That was a play that we need to be better on.”

On the halftime talk:
“I told them what I thought in my heart, that we gave them the 2-0. There were glimpses, when we got the ball, that we could get them on their heels, and I really called upon them to show some heart in the second half. The first ten minutes of the second half was were the game was going to be won or lost. It was close.” 

On the second half response:
“We wanted the win and you could tell by seeing our guys’ faces that there was a belief that we could do it, they kept coming and coming. Unfortunately, we just gave the ball away and couldn’t keep it on the last goal. If we did a little bit better defending on that one play we could’ve at least had a draw.” 

New England Revolution Forward Jose Moreno

On the second half comeback:
“We responded well in the second half. We scored one goal and then we tied the game pretty quickly, but we lacked the necessary concentration and their third goal was enough to beat us. But we tried through any means possible; we attacked, we got the tying goal, but we were not able to get the victory.”

On what went wrong:
“We made mistakes that ultimately cost you a match. This team plays well; we move the ball around nicely, away or at home, but we are always missing that last portion of concentration. It happened to us at Gillette Stadium against the [Houston] Dynamo, when they tied the match in the last minute and then beat us.” 

New England Revolution Defender Chris Tierney

On giving up goals:
“It was disappointing to give up those goals in the first half. We’ve been talking about not conceding set pieces and they scored two goals right away. On the back foot, the response was really good in the second half. Unfortunately we broke down there one more time and they made us pay for it.”

On what was talked about at halftime:
“We obviously weren’t happy with the effort in the first half. We know we are a better team, and we just have to believe that and believe in each other. We showed what we were capable of in the second half. Unfortunately in this league, if you don’t do it for 90 minutes it’s not going to amount to wins.” 

D.C. United Head Coach Ben Olsen

On the game:
“It’s strange because I feel unfulfilled. I think our team feels unfulfilled, but it’s nice to feel unfulfilled and have three points in the back. I prefer to look at this as a three-game homestretch that we’ve had, and how we’ve performed over that span, and that’s been very good. 

“But today, in particular, we had moments. I’m not sure if it was complacency at times or just sheer ‘this is the end of a long stretch of us doing a lot of traveling and a lot of games.’ It does catch up to you, so I hope the break now comes at a good time and we can get our legs back and get our sharpness back. It wasn’t sharp [tonight]. Passing, simple possessions — we complicated the game. There’s a lot of stuff that wasn’t great. 

“Set pieces were good on the offensive end. It was a great team goal for the third, and a great team response. At 2-2, we fouled up a couple plays and it cost us, but we defended the box well at times. 

“Give [the New England Revolution] some credit, I thought coming out for the second half, they got reamed a little bit and came out with a good mentality and they snuck two goals.”

On the subs:
“I thought [Maicon Santos] did a good job, in particular, on the goal. It was a very good goal. He works very hard. It wasn’t an easy game to get subbed into, especially late for Lewis [Neal] and [Josh] Wolff. It was a lot of dirty work and trying to keep the ball, and I thought both of them did a good job with that. Obviously Maicon did his part.”

On forward Maicon Santos:
“[Bringing him into the game] was more a product of I thought we needed to get hold of the ball a little more. I’m looking to get Maicon in the game for the reasons we saw. The guy can score goals and he can hold the ball up. So now you have Maicon holding balls up, making it difficult for their center backs, and you have Dwayne [De Rosario] in the midfield who always helps us with possessions. It helps, and then we get the third goal and we’re doing a lot of defending. They’re throwing crazy numbers forward, and I thought we held on to the fort down the stretch pretty well. Bill [Hamid] comes through with a big save and we get goals from two center backs, so that’s always a positive when you can add goals from other spots than your forwards.”

On the team’s play:
“I thought a lot of guys got leggy toward the end. I didn’t expect that. I thought because we had the whole week, we’d be OK and we’d be flying for 90 minutes. I thought [Chris] Korb had to cut it out a little bit, Dejan [Jakovic] as well. There was a couple guys that really had to push through physically. I thought some of their minds went at times.”

On midfielder Nick DeLeon:
“It was really nice to get him back out there. I was questioning whether or not to play him just because I like to delay hamstring [injuries] as long as possible. We were forced to play him and he got through it and he looked good. He’s a confident kid. He gets out there, and he’s confident in the way he plays and his touch. He puts people on his heels. He had a good defender out there in Kevin Alston — who had some pace, so he’s always a tough matchup for wide guys — but I thought [DeLeon] did a very good job.”

On scoring early:
“You’re at home, you want to push the game a little bit and get the early lead and make them chase a little bit. We get [goals] at good times. We get the early one and then we get the one right before the half, and usually that breaks teams backs. We give them a lot of credit for coming out and getting two back. Ultimately our guys dug in and got the three.”

On winning three in a row:
“When you’re in this, it’s tough to pat yourself on the back. I want to keep going. I want more points, and I want to do big things here, and I want these guys to experience big things.

“We’ve got to find a way to be better with the ball, and keep the ball. Not defend that much, and have games where it’s a card flip, whether they get a little nick or they’re sending so many balls in that it was bound to happen they were going to score late. 

“I want to play a different way, and I wish we would’ve been a little sharper, but again, I’m looking at the body of three wins at home, which we haven’t done at this club since [June 2008]. This is positive stuff, and I’m not downplaying that. Again, I’m maybe just being a little negative; I’m a little unfulfilled with that game.”

D.C. United Forward Dwayne De Rosario

On the win:
“It all goes back to mentality, hard work, and depth. We kept our head up and we kept plugging along. Maicon [Santos] came on and really helped us, and put them back on their heels. Again, to see that game out, we just stayed compact and really limited their chances.”

On the long early season stretch:
“You can hear in my voice. I am absolutely tired. It’s been a lot of games in a short period of time. We withstand the demand that was put on us, and thankfully we have the depth of every guy that is ready to step in and make a difference. The quality in our depth showed again tonight.”

On Dejan Jakovic’s first goal:
“I think that was the first time Dejan ever came up for a corner. For him to score his first goal, a congratulations to him. It was well deserved.”

D.C. United Defender Brandon McDonald

On the win:
“I think you have to give a lot of credit to Branko [Boskovic]. The games that he has been in, he has come in and done what he needed to do. His service has been unbelievable.” 

On his goal:
“My guy kind of got stuck  behind one of his teammates. With Branko, he’s just going to put it where it needs to be, and it is our job to get on it.”

On the New England Revolution’s strong start to the second half:
“This year our guys have been so good at keeping themselves composed and know that it is going to come. For me, I wasn’t worried about the two goals.”

On the long early season stretch:
“The last ten minutes of that game, I looked down and didn’t know if I had legs. My lungs were exhausted. It’s good to go on this break – it’s well needed.” 

D.C. United Midfielder Branko Boskovic

On the win:
“It’s unbelievable. My two seasons here, and every time was up and down, and now it’s the first time we look like a real team. We have a good group and good atmosphere, but we need to continue to win.”