D.C. United Head Coach Ben Olsen
On how it feels to win tonight, snapping a 13-game winless streak:
“It’s been a while. I think there’s a relief in there. We dodged a couple of bullets, but I thought [San Jose] dodged a couple as well. We really pushed for that second goal, maybe a bit too much – we left ourselves exposed in that second half. We have to keep searching and do better on our breaks: our 4v3s, our 3v2s – we work on them, but we just have to be cleaner with that stuff. We have the attackers to get into those spots, and we just got to be a little bit more clinical in the final third. Overall, obviously, I’m pleased that we hung in there, [got] a gutsy win. The second half wasn’t easy. [San Jose] is a very tough team to play up a goal because they’ve got some big boys and they’re willing to just dump and put balls in the box and look for scrappy second balls. I thought [San Jose] did a good job of that. Again, Bill [Hamid] came up big once or twice; a couple of guys laid out and blocked some shots, so it was a type of a game we needed to get a win. It wasn’t going to be easy to get this win.”
On Chris Pontius’ play tonight:
“I thought the first half he looked sharp. He looked like his old self, he looked aggressive. He played a little bit higher – we pushed him up a little bit higher so he could get to goal and be a little bit more dangerous. In the second half, I thought he started to fatigue; as a whole, we were doing a lot of defensive work. But he’s a dangerous player – it was good to see glimpses of him coming back and hopefully it’s something he can build off of.”
On Alain Rochat’s contributions tonight:
“He was great. He’s just what we thought he was. His passing helped us out of a bunch of spots. He continues to give us possessions when we’re in trouble. I thought the way he went forward a couple of times was a pleasant surprise. His crossing ability is good – we just didn’t get on the end of one or two.”
On how the locker room has been handling this tough stretch:
“We’ve all been tested and we’ll continue to be tested the rest of this year and for the next busy two weeks. It’s been brutal. It’s been brutal for the staff, the players. It’s been brutal for the organization. It’s been brutal for our fans. But what I’m most proud of is that we kept things moving forward. We had some bumps, but the loyalty the organization, the owners and the fans have had – all that stuff means a lot to these players and my staff. We’re doing the best we can and sometimes when you get into a spiral, a downward spiral, it’s tough to get out of. We were in an upward spiral last year, and we got every break. We didn’t have injury issues. Things went our way, and we had confidence. Things haven’t gone our way this year, and it’s no excuse to be in the situation we’re in, but I’m proud of the guys. They stayed together and continue to fight.”
On using the U.S. Open Cup win vs. Philadelphia to build momentum:
“I don’t think it hurt. I think it gives us hope for a cup in an important tournament. It’s exciting. I want us to get more games and continue on this rhythm. For the last two or three weeks, I’ve sensed that we’ve kind of leveled off from that spiral and I felt as if there was a good energy and a spirit with the guys that they wanted to really get out of this. I thought you saw that a little bit tonight, and hopefully it’s something to build on. We have to build on it. It’s not good enough to win this game and relax and not understand that we have a long way to go. But we’ll get there.”
On why Dwayne De Rosario did not play tonight:
“[It was] a little bit of [how the game played itself out]. [It was] a little bit of Wednesday in the back of my head and a little bit [because] of his injury. He’s only had one or two trainings this week. Dwayne’s going to tell you he’s fine, but you have to kind of gauge that and I’m glad we got through [the game] without using him.”
On how Conor Shanosky felt to take the field in a substitute appearance:
“I don’t think there’s a happier human being on this Earth tonight than maybe Conor Shanosky. He loves this team. He grew up with this team. For him to be a part of our first win in a while – I’ll bet you he’s over the moon. I think he did well. That’s a tough match-up – [San Jose has got] some big fellows that are strong. I was happy for him, very, very happy for him. He’s a great kid. He doesn’t say much, but he comes to work. He’s a soccer junkie, and I’m extremely happy for him.”
D.C. United midfielder/forward Chris Pontius
On the win:
“It feels good to get out of here with a win, even though it wasn’t necessarily the greatest game.”
On the winless streak:
“[It was] awful. It really tests you on the field and also off the field, mentally. None of us wanted to be in this position. We’re all here because we like to win games and we enjoy winning. I give the guys a lot of credit. We’ve stuck with it. As tough as it is the guys have come in here to work every day and put the work in. This is the result of it. So, hopefully this is one of many games and we can put a streak together.”
On whether D.C. United can build on this win:
“Of course. It’s nice going into Wednesday’s Open Cup game knowing we won this game as well. We can use this rhythm to keep us going in that tournament because it’s very important for us. We didn’t start very well in that either. So, hopefully, we can use this as well.”
On the game as a whole:
“It’s nice when you get a goal to start the first half. I thought we played some good soccer in the first 25-30 minutes. I thought they took it over for a while, especially at the end of the first half when they made us chase. In the second half, the game opened up, but we didn’t make as good decisions on the ball. So, we chased a bit, but I give Bill [Hamid] and the defense a lot of credit. [They defense] saw some scary chances in the closing moments, but they kept a shutout.”
On his own play:
“I felt like I actually got into a groove in this game. It’s one of the first games this year where I felt like I got into a rhythm and felt like my old self again.”
On the impact of his goal:
“It’s a bit of pressure [is] off my back now. Like I said, to be honest, the win means more to any of us than any scoring. For our fans, especially at home, to get this win was huge for us.”
On getting back out after the concussion:
“I’m glad I didn’t have any side-effects from it. I just kind of felt a little bit different that night and then we took the right steps and I progressed. I was fine and was able to get into training this week so it felt pretty good.”
On the penalty kick goal:
“Put it to the side that the ‘keeper’s not going! He went kind of early, so I saw him kind of leaning a bit early. So, I put it to the other side. No faking. I could see him out of the corner of my eye. I watched him and went to the other side.”
D.C. United midfielder John Thorrington
On his feelings after the game:
“It always feels a bit better after you win. I think if you look overall at the last few weeks, I think we have gotten the feeling here that we are starting to turn in the right direction with the game against New England, in New England, the Open Cup game and I think the game against Toronto you leave thinking ‘Oh, here we go again, we’re back to square one.’ I think in here we then had a really good week of training and I think we still felt it was heading in the right direction and then we get the win tonight. Our goals at the beginning of the season weren’t to win two games in MLS so hopefully that’s a stepping stone for more and that’s exactly what it’s going to take: guys defending with their lives. I still think we gave up a couple of chances at the end which you know you’re going to against a team like San Jose but by and large the defenders stood up to the challenge. They’re a handful up front and through midfield and the numbers they throw [forward]. So, to keep a clean sheet against them is testament to the whole team and the defensive effort. It was nice to score first, again, and then hang onto the lead.”
On teammate Chris Pontius’ play:
[He looked] good. I thought he looked sharp. Again, it’s part of getting into his rhythm and playing and he’s played in a couple of different spots, but he looked sharp tonight and showed everybody what he can do and that’s what we expect of him. He showed tonight his qualities and, again, for him individually, and for us collectively, the idea is that this is a stepping-stone. This wasn’t our goal to win two games out of however many it’s been. That’s the key for me—that we take the good from tonight, we keep applying it and remember the hard work that it took to get this win. We’ve got a couple of things that we can still improve on and progress.”
On the importance of the U.S. Open Cup:
“The Open Cup is one of two trophies that we’re in this year and it’s huge for us and I think so far our game against Philadelphia was one of the highlights so far of a year that hasn’t had many of them. We actually enjoy going out and playing there [Maryland Soccerplex]. It’s a different kind of atmosphere and hopefully we’ll reward the fans that come out there again on Wednesday with a positive result and keep advancing.”
D.C. United goalkeeper Bill Hamid
On the team’s goals:
“Open Cup and playoffs, that’s the goal and we’ll continue getting better and continue progressing and climbing up the ladder.”
On what changed for the team tonight:
“The decision-making was great tonight from everybody all around. The confidence was high. Ball movement and off-the-ball movement was really good. There was a real commitment to get on the end of things and to get the ball and go at players. There was no fear and we’ve just got to continue with that mentality.”
On teammate Conor Shanosky’s play:
“Conor did great. It’s amazing. He came in and stepped in—he’s a young guy—still a kid, but he’s come in and done extremely well. He came in confident, but we know that Conor has those abilities. Conor’s a stud, he’s a young guy that has a bright future.”
On teammate Alain Rochat’s qualities:
“He brings experience and brings a level of maturity that helps us stay organised and helps us pretty much keep it locked down against teams with very strong offense. He brings a lot, he brings a different edge. He’s quality with the ball at his feet. He has great vision; playing the ball behind; dribbling in; finding an attacking midfielder so he can turn and go at their backline. He brings a plethora of attacking sense, even though he’s a defender.”
On the importance of the U.S. Open Cup:
“It’s extremely important, just like this League is extremely important. Every game is extremely important.”
On Adam Jahn’s shot in the 73rd minute:
“He brought it down extremely well, put it on his left foot on the bounce and took a crack at it. It stayed up and I tried to react and fortunately I got to the rebound and we cleaned it up.”
On the morale of the locker-room:
“The media, I don’t know why, they continue saying that there may be something going on in this locker-room. Confidence has always been high. We know we have the talent, it’s just finding the final touch, that’s all it’s been. Saying that confidence is broken or something like that is completely off. The media saying stuff like that is amusing, but at the same time we know we have the talent, it’s just about going out there and finishing things off.”
D.C. United midfielder Nick DeLeon
On his feelings after the match:
“It feels good. It is a relief and a huge weight off the shoulders. We finally got a win, and we finally got a little bit of breaks there at the end when they had a few good looks. Bill [Hamid] came up with a couple of big saves at the end. Like I said we finally got some breaks that we haven’t been getting all year and we got the shutout and the win. It felt really good.”
On feeling as if the team was in control of the match:
“We came out hungry today. I felt the team came out with good energy. We pressed them from the beginning, and we got that early goal.”
On if the team can build off of this win:
“Yes, sometimes it just takes one win, and you can go on a little roll. I know for a lot of the guys it’s a huge weight off of their shoulders, so we can start to relax and play some soccer.”
On the penalty kick that led to a goal:
“It was nice. It was a great little move by [Chris] Korb to draw the penalty kick. Then Chris [Pontius], calm and composed had a good finish, so kudos to him. Finally getting a goal and get him rolling. We need that.”
D.C. United defender Conor Shanosky
On the game:
“It was one of those games where we had to grind it out. I came in close to halftime and we had the 1-0 lead. So, my job becomes to keep it 1-0. Doing that is definitely a positive and there’s obviously more that I can build on personally and that we can all build on. I think we escaped a little bit at the end. They had a few chances, but at the end of the day the three points is what matters and we got that. So, for now, we’ll enjoy it and we’ll regroup and look at stuff and get better.
On his feelings after the win:
“I am pretty happy right now. Just to get the win feels so good, especially with the club and what we’ve gone through this season. I know all the guys are very happy and relieved to get the win and I’m right on top of that list. To be able to play and get the win is what means the most to me.”
On his family’s attendance:
“My family was there. I’d been giving out my tickets to a bunch of people. After I played the Chicago game they all thought I was going to get in, but I hadn’t played the past couple of games so a few missed out today, but my family was there and I’m sure everyone was watching. I’m sure they’re pretty happy for me as well.”
San Jose Earthquakes Interim Head Coach Mark Watson
On his reaction to the match:
“Yeah we’re disappointed. You never like to lose. I thought the penalty was somewhat dubious. We don’t have a good angle from the bench, but the referee said play on and the linesman had his flag up for the penalty. Regardless, we dug ourselves a hole, but I thought the way our players responded was fantastic. We had a little lull right after the penalty and needed a few minutes to collect ourselves. I thought from there to the end of the first half and pretty much the whole second half, our guys were excellent. We can take some good stuff. I thought our ball movement was good, and I thought we chose the right moments to attack the box. In the end [we were] unfortunate not to get something out of the game.”
On his strategy without forward Chris Wondolowski:
“I don’t think the plan changes a lot. We have good players that can come in, so we focused on them. There is no point on dwelling on the fact that Wondolowski wasn’t in the lineup. We had the group that we chose, and we worked with them. It was all positive, mostly about how we wanted to approach the game and how we thought we could most effectively break D.C. down.”
On how he keeps things moving forward from here:
“We keep it positive. Other than giving away the early penalty and going down 1-0, I thought our performance was excellent. We will continue to work on things that I think we need to work on. We’re going to keep being very positive with the guys. I thought that as a coach the things you ask for from your team, I thought the players responded 100% tonight. I’m not faulting them for that. We’ll still keep working on a couple of little things in general. We’ll keep on working on a couple of little things for every opponent we have. We’ll keep working hard.”
On how he got his team ready for D.C. United:
“D.C. has some good players, and you know they are going to come out motivated. They do not want to be in this situation. They’re fighting for jobs. We knew that we had to prepare ourselves properly and match their energy and their fight right from the first minute. That was going to be the key. Our players did not underestimate D.C. They know they’ve got quality. They know they’ve been having a hard time. I thought we approached the game the right way.”
On if there were specific adjustments made at halftime:
“We spoke about a couple of things at halftime in terms of how we thought we could get in to good areas to attack the box, and the players responded. I thought we had a lot of good chances. I’ll have to go watch the video again to see everything. We had a lot of good chances tonight, and we’re feeling a little bit unfortunate that one didn’t sneak in.”
On midfielder Shea Salinas’ performance after being out for a month:
“I thought Shea was great. Shea’s big strength is getting the ball and going at players one versus one and getting crosses in. It’s something we spoke to him about and stressed before the game. I thought he did it very well and was very effective tonight.”
On if Salinas’ performance tonight bodes well for him in upcoming weeks:
“He put in a good performance. We’ll take every game as it comes. I thought Shea did very well tonight.”
San Jose defender Justin Morrow
On his stance on the penalty:
“Originally [the referee] told us to get up, but the sideline ref called it a foul. So, I think he overruled him.”
On what the plan was without teammate Chris Wondolowski:
“We just talked about getting the ball up to [Alan] Gordon and to hold the ball up so he could join in the play. I thought our forwards worked really hard tonight and did a good job today.”
On moving forward:
“Well, we got a big game coming up this weekend against the [LA] Galaxy. It’s our big, advertised summer game. So, if we can get a result that would be more than enough momentum than we need.”
On playing D.C. United:
“Eh, you know, they’re working very hard. You know, their season is not going as well as they wanted. But, all they needed was one result like today, and we go from there.”
San Jose midfielder Shea Salinas
On if he was happy with his performance despite the loss:
“I think that’s tough to do when you don’t win a game. It’s tough to be happy with individual performance because we’re a team, and we want to win games. So, as a team, I thought we fought hard and played well the second half. We were putting passes together. We were being dangerous. We just couldn’t score. So it’s just really frustrating not to come away with a point, at least, but we really wanted three.”
On the chance he created for teammate Alan Gordon’s volleyed attempt on goal:
“Well, Alan fought hard the whole game. [He] won a lot of balls in the air for us, and I know he was pretty beat up at the end of the game. That ball happened to sneak over the defender and put Alan in and it’s hard for him because his back [was] to goal. So, he [had] to try to turn to put it on frame, and he just wasn’t able to do that. But I think he finishes that eight out of 10 times. It just didn’t happen for us tonight.”
On teammate Chris Wondolowski not being available for the game:
“Having Chris Wondolowski gone is a huge loss for us. He was our MVP last year. He’s our best goal-scorer. So, missing him on the field, there is definitely a loss. But we’ve got a pretty deep bench. We’ve got Adam Jahn that came in and played great tonight; Walter [Martinez], Martin [Chavez], Marcus Tracey and Mehdi Ballouchy. These guys are great players as well. Not necessarily the ‘background’ as a Chris Wondolowski, but [there] shouldn’t be a drop in play. We should still go out and try to win games.”
