New England Revolution head coach Jay Heaps
On if they were pushing for another goal at the end

Well yeah I think we were in terms of the game would open up a little bit and we were doing a great job defensively and right at halftime we thought they were going to release numbers to go for the win and if we were able to defend and I thought Jermaine [Jones] did a great job. He came late, he was able to get forward and you want to attack with three or four, five guys but make sure you’re balanced and I thought we were.

On the Red Bulls containing Lee Nguyen

No they did a great job on Lee. I thought Dax McCarty and [Eric] Alexander were excellent. On Lee every time he touched the ball there was someone on him so he have to go to the drawing board a little bit to get Lee a little bit more of the ball.

On choosing Teal Bunbury for the starting lineup

Teal has been excellent all season. He’s been our right-winger for the entire season, the last twenty games. So he’s earned it and he played great.

On halftime adjustments

We thought we came out with a great start, [in] fifteen minutes we knew it was going to be a good game. You know I thought our goal was excellent. We never really got our rhythm going, we never really played in the first half and so a little bit of a change at halftime was just to defend it across the way, put Jermaine [Jones] a bit more central to allow him to win some challenges and break from the middle, and then when we get going and we get opportunities and Lee’s getting space, that’s when we’re a little bit better. But credit New York, I thought they were excellent.

On how rewarding it is to have this team playing the way they are

I think it just goes back to how hard it was. A lot of sleepless nights building, from day one, a great core of players and young players and trying to get to where you’re a strong foundation and then you add the right player and I think Jermaine [Jones] has really helped us get over the top a little bit in terms of how we want to play and what we want to do.

On the travelling New England fans

Amazing. The crowd was simply amazing. If you were on the bench you could hear them the entire time, so going over there and being able to see that crowd on the road is just something spectacular.

On if he was surprised by the number of cards

Yeah in the first half. I thought in the end I think everyone was a little edgy with the cards because you never know if a silly foul happens where it becomes a red card so yeah I wasn’t happy. I don’t think either team wanted that many yellow cards, but I thought in the end Allen Chapman did a nice job of managing it because he didn’t throw anyone out and he handled it really well after the yellow card. I think yellow cards, as long as they’re used as warnings they’re great. But if you give a second one, that’s when you get a little nervous.

On if they were looking forward to a matchup with of Teal Bunbury against Ambroise Oyongo as opposed to Roy Miller

A goal and assist was pretty good from Teal [Bunbury], yeah I think Teal’s been great. It didn’t matter to us. We saw the suspension, but we know that Oyongo’s got a lot of pace and Teal’s got a lot of pace so it was going to be a track meet out there. You could see it, but I thought Teal showed not just his pace, but you saw the movement to get open on the goal. I thought ‘that’s Teal Bunbury.’ When you get him a little bit of space, he can create and I think he’s been excellent for us.

New England Revolution forward Charlie Davies
On the match

Today we didn’t’ get to play our game, they did a good job of shutting down our midfield and forcing us to play balls that we normally don’t play and it was mostly a battle. It was like a track meet a little bit. We ended up having to grind this one out and if we can win games like this where we’re not really playing at our best and we got to grind and fight, it’s going to be really tough to beat us because we can play the teams that play football but don’t really battle and grind. Today I’m so proud of these guys. We didn’t really have much of the ball today and I had to fight against two giants in the back, but Teal [Bunbury] came in today and really showed what he’s made of. He really stepped up today and Kevin [Alston] coming in as a substitute was phenomenal shutting down their right side with Lloyd Sam and [Richard] Eckersley so kudos to this team. I think we learned a lot last season and throughout the middle of this season [when we] were going through the middle of that nine game losing streak. Sometimes you have to win when it’s ugly and today we did that.

On the difference Jermaine Jones made in the game

I think we saw it, he got the game winner. He’s such a presence in the midfield. Breaking up plays, he’s such a presence. They never really got comfortable. He was phenomenal again today for us.

On Teal Bunbury

He’s really learned how to play that position. I think this whole season was kind of an adjustment period for him. Having to understand positionally and tactically where he needs to be where he doesn’t feel like he’s just running up and down for 90 minutes. I think in the Columbus game I said that was the best game I’ve ever seen him play. He might have topped it today. Positionally now he understands where he needs to be to be effective for the team both offensively and defensively and today that stepover and the finish with the left was phenomenal.

On not letting being the favorite go to their heads

It’s extremely important. I think this whole last third of the season we’ve managed to stay focused. You know it’s a huge win today to win at Red Bull but we’re really not that excited. We know that there’s a whole other round left, a 90 minute game. When they have Thierry Henry anything can happen. We know Bradley Wright-Phillips isn’t going to be a part of their squad next game, but they have Tim Cahill who’s probably going to step in and that’s his normal position so they’re going to be just as dangerous. We have to go in with the right mindset and we’ll be ready.

New England Revolution forward Teal Bunbury
On the result

I’m just very happy with the result we got. It was a crazy hectic game for everybody. It was kind of like a track meet, back-and-forth, but our guys stayed concentrated. We maybe didn’t have all the possession in the world but we were able to come out and get a result. We’re very happy with the result, but we’re not satisfied yet. We’ve got another big game coming up next Saturday and we’re going to enjoy this feeling, but definitely get prepared for our next game.

On his goal

I had a good feeling that was going in. [Asked if it was the biggest goal of his career thus far] Yeah I would say it is actually, yeah. All players always want to try to do the best they can in a game and if I get matched up I’m going to try and do certain things and I’m fortunate enough to get through that game and everyone was on point.

On the matchup with Ambroise Oyongo

There wasn’t too  much scouting that went on, I just knew it was going to be someone who hadn’t been playing too much and [Andrew] Farrell and myself just tried to exploit that area and I feel like we did it well, but there’s still obviously things communicationaly that we have to work on as well.

On what he saw on the game-winner

I saw Lee [Nguyen] got on the ball and I wanted to get wide and pull their defenders apart and he slid me the ball and [Luis] Robles came out and I saw Jermaine [Jones], slipped it to him and you know, went crazy.

On if he’s been working with his left foot

I mean you’re always working and training on different things and yeah I would say I have been working on my left foot.

On if there was a change in game plan if New England got an early lead

No not too much to be honest. Our game plan is always to play the same throughout the whole game. Obviously if we’re getting up three or four to nil, then that changes things, but going up one to nil our game plan was the same. To continue to put pressure on them and try to counter.

On the roughness of the game and if he was worries someone would be ejected

This is the playoffs and everyone’s emotions are high, everybody’s competitive. I was a bit surprised that there were so many yellow cards, but that’s the nature of it. Guys are competitive, they want to go out

there to win and you know it’s not malicious in any way but it happens.

On if the Red Bulls’ focus on Lee Nguyen opened things up for him

Yeah I feel whenever there’s a player that’s being double-teamed maybe or focused on more definitely is going to free up someone out there. For me, if that happens to be Lee or Jermaine [Jones] or Charlie [Davies] or whoever that is, hopefully I can get open and try and exploit that.

On going back home with the lead

It’s huge for us, it’s very crucial. But we know that New York is an unbelievable team, they have a lot of great players, and they can make things happen at a drop of a hat so we have to be prepared for that.

New York Red Bulls head coach Mike Petke
On the start of today's match

We usually start a little bit on the back foot almost every game. They stepped up and pressed. They had that header from (Jermaine) Jones which was one of about three of four clear chances they had and that woke us up a little bit. And then our passing was very good in the first half. Our ability to find Eric (Alexander) and Peguy (Luyindula) behind the lines and free Bradley (Wright-Phillips) up, Lloyd (Sam) had a good day out on the wing, we calmed down a little bit and moved the ball quick and got a lot better.

On Bradley Wright-Phillips' card situation

I can't talk about that at this moment. The game just ended. Listen, no matter who's out there next weekend, there's no game after that to look forward to if we don't get the job done. So however we get it done next weekend, we have to do it. That's it. That's the beauty of sports right there. Guys need to step up in big situations. I need to step up this week, the coaching does, simple as that.

On the officiating

The referee lost control of the game tonight for both teams. I almost wanted to get a yellow card because I felt left out. I know it sounds funny but I'm not trying to be a funny guy here. Besides that I'm not going to comment on it.

On the play of Teal Bunbury  

He's got some pace on him, he's a dangerous player. I thought we did well on Lee Nguyen for the most part today, I thought the guys listened to what we wanted to do. We didn't want to make him (Bunbury) a complete focal point this week, but he's obviously someone we talked about and had to address. And I thought Eric (Alexander), (Jamison) Olave, Ibra (Sekagya) always kept an eye on him. Jones as well, we looked at a lot of Jones' tendencies and I think for the most part we did well on him. Bunbury, one little step inside and a beautiful finish. You tip your hat to him. At the end of the day, all credit to them, they're a hot team right now and they're a very good team. It's not the right game to not finish your chances for us.

On next week's lineup

I don't like assumptions. Let me think about it, let me figure out what we're going to do this week. I'm not going to give any type of comments on who's going to play next week twenty minutes after the game.

On the Red Bulls' scoring chances

There's four of them. I'm not going to point them out. You can go look at the video. Obviously they didn't miss them on purpose. That's life, sometimes it just doesn't go your way. But we can sit here in the locker room and sulk and fight and cry or we can realize we have a game next weekend.

On the approach after halftime.

I didn't feel we needed to make any adjustments and I didn't feel we did need to make any adjustments. I thought the ball was moving well and Peguy was a big part of that with his ability to find those little pockets. We knew they were going to put Jones from left to right to keep an eye on Thierry (Henry) and we were hoping it would free a lot of people up and I think it really freed up Peguy a lot today and he got behind the lines and was pulling the strings a little bit. He's done well.

On subbing Tim Cahill in for Eric Alexander

At the end of the day, his ability in the air his ability to get forward with twenty minutes left and with twenty minutes left he should have the stamina to get forward and get back. He had a great week of training so we thought perhaps that would pay off for us. Set pieces, good in the air, maybe get a header.

New York Red Bulls forward Bradley Wright-Phillips
On missing the next game

I didn't know the rules of the yellow card accumulation… I'm angry obviously, I'm angry. Stupid yellow card and now I have to pay.

On the refs decision to hand him a yellow card

I would love to comment but I don't want to get a fine. It's clear for everyone to see.

On if he would have changed his approach knowing the card accumulation rules

I wouldn't have done anything stupid because I saw how the ref had started the game. Even when I did it, I didn't think I was trying to annoy the keeper. He threw it out, it was in my path so naturally I just tried to stop it and yellow card. It is what it is.

On his goal

It was all Peguy (Luyindula). I think he made a good run, the keeper made a save and was on the ground and I just went to hit the ball and I just gambled. I saw that the defender stalled a bit so I took a chance, got my head on it, didn't do much.

On the intensity of today's game

Yeah always, there's so much on the line, you know, the prize is big so people are going to be fighting for their lives so it didn't disappoint.

New York Red Bulls Goalkeeper Luis Robles
On tonight’s game:

Yeah, the really unfortunate part is to give up a goal that late in the second half. Even if we could have gotten out of this game 1-1 it would have put us in a good position to tie 1-1 or win. Now, right from the beginning, we’re going to have to take it to them. It’s just unfortunate that we gave up that goal at the end.

On missed chances:

I felt like in the first half we did create some good chances but the second half was a little more difficult. They closed us down. They moved Jones over to Lloyd’s side to put a little more pressure over there. Chances, I thought, in the second half were hard to come by. It’s going to be a real test of what we have mentally as a team. I’m confident that with this group of guys we can overcome that.

On second goal:

The second goal looked like a power-play, right? I think maybe four guys on two and Lee Nguyen had the ball and even as he was dribbling it straight down the middle he could have easily come straight at me. He had options on the left and the right. Unfortunately for us, in that moment, to give the ball up like that and for them to transition… that was one of the things that we talked about that makes them so dangerous is because they can transition quickly and they have the type of firepower that can put chances away. Even when they played the ball in and I cut the angle on Teal [Bunbury]… I mean I couldn’t tell if he was passing or shooting and I knew that the ball was going wide but then I saw Jermaine Jones streaking down and tapping it in. That just crushed me, but listen… we know what we’re up against, and we know it’s going to take our best game, but I’m confident, like I said before, in these guys.

On not having Bradley Wright-Phillips for second leg:

Yeah, unfortunately we just found that out after the game, but as much as it hurts not to have him, we have guys that can battle, we have got guys that have ability. I feel like our depth will definitely be tested but there’s no reason why, I don’t think, we can’t still pull it out. 

On Oyongo’s play:

The first goal I have to look at again. Teal’s bend, to his credit, he had an unbelievable shot. When he struck that I was just hoping it hit the post. He hit it so clean. But, considering he just flew in from Africa, and he played two games there, he was put in a difficult position. You know we’re very confident in his ability, and we remain confident going forward.

On officiating:

You’re trying to get me fined, huh? I’ll tell you the truth if you pay my fine. No, it stung. I felt like in the first half it just changed the flow of the game. I feel like that’s all I can say without going too much into it.

At the end of the day we knew the task at hand. We had a great atmosphere, the fans showed up, it was sold out. It felt like a playoff atmosphere. It felt like we were finally seeing the potential this organization has with type of arena, with this fan base, with this roster… we just didn’t do enough to get the result.

New York Red Bulls forward Thierry Henry
On tonight’s game:

You just have to try to fight back. That’s the type of goal where you can’t say ‘oh, you should have covered a bit better.’ It was a better goal. It was a good goal. It’s a tough one, but you just want to keep your composure and don’t go forward too early, and keep your shape. We came back into the game and it looked like we were going to win it, Tim was going to score. That’s how it is when you play this type of game. They scored before we did, right at the end, and they won.

On Bradley Wright-Phillips suspension:

No, to be honest, I did not know. There were a lot of yellow cards today, but I don’t think the game was a dirty game, to be honest. That’s the way it went.

On moving forward without BWP:

I don’t have to tell you what he did all season. He’s been amazing for us and now we have to do it without him. Scoring two goals is going to be very difficult without conceding one. We’re going to have to try to do that, and I’ve seen crazier stuff, so hopefully we can add one more. Again, don’t get it twisted. They played well you we have to give them their credit. Don’t take away anything from them. They played well, you have to take it on the chin and move forward, and make sure that, hopefully we can beat them at their place. They have been playing well for more than two months now. They have been solid and they showed that today and now we have to try to do what they did to us today.