D.C. UNITED HEAD COACH BEN OLSEN
Overall thoughts on the match:
We were not sharp enough from the get-go. This is the part of the process that needs to get better with this young group. We think we are better than we really are because we had two games, so now we go out and forget about the commitment, the fight - all the little things that got us the results we had in the last two games. We started off in an unacceptable manner.
Now, the response was fantastic. I had to rattle them out a little bit and I thought coming off the second half was much better. The ball movement was better, and our balance was better. Our balance overall wasn’t good enough in the first half; we didn’t have options. I am not going to give good reviews on the first half to anyone on our squad.
I am not happy with one point, but I am happy that we battled back.
Thoughts on the referee:
I don’t want to go into any specifics, but I think he had a very bad night; I could be wrong, or I could be right.
On Dax McCarty:
We ask a lot of Dax [McCarty]; he’s doing a lot of stuff that some people don’t see. Tonight wasn’t his greatest night on the ball, although I think he was pretty sharp in the second half. But it wasn’t just him, nobody was sharp, guys were slipping, they didn’t have the right footwear. All these little things were not good enough in the first forty-five minutes, and essentially, it cost us two points.
On Santino Quaranta:
I thought Tino [Quaranta] did very well up top and gave us a really nice spark. It hasn’t been an easy transition for him, being on the bench, but I was really proud of him coming in and doing a good job tonight.
On Chris Pontius:
In the second half, he was very good. He is part of a lot of the good things that we do. Physically he is pretty well-rounded, he’s strong; I think he’s getting there. But I still need more numbers from him, he still needs to get more goals and assists for us.
On Fred:
Fred is a different player than what we have on the field. He can make plays and he’s a very composed midfielder. We wanted the three points, so we thought if we put him there we would be a better passing team, a little more creative, and he did just that. Another guy that is fitting into his role very nicely and helping us out.
D.C. UNITED MIDFIELDER CHRIS PONTIUS
On earning a second half penalty:
I saw an opening on the backline, I cut back on Marvelle Wynne, and I just kind of got myself in front of Jamie Smith. I was able to get some contact and it resulted in a penalty.
On converting the penalty:
I was confident [in taking the penalty], and I knew I had hit [the ball] well. I wasn’t going to try and place it, especially with the way the game was going.
On the game overall:
For us I thought we had a very poor first half. I thought the second half was better, but that said it wasn’t good enough. We strive for consistency in this team, and we didn’t have enough of it tonight.
On United’s progress as a team:
I think we have a good group that is coming together. Obviously at home you want to win all your games, especially against a good team like Colorado tonight, but we’re coming along well. There are a few things we need to fix, but at least they are things we know we can fix in training and through hard work.
D.C. UNITED GOALKEEPER BILL HAMID
On the match:
We started off a little slow, but we picked up it up effort-wise. It was good to a get a result, but we didn’t just want one point. Overall we worked hard, but we would have liked to come away with more.
On Colorado’s goal:
The free kick came in and passed the first line of defense, and I reacted to the left and it hit the back of [Jeff] Larentowicz’s head, and [the ball] dropped right to [Drew] Moor and he just tucked it in [the goal].
On moving forward:
I think we did well to get five points from these three home games. I’m looking forward to Ajax, they will be a tough opponent, and I guess they are pushing for a league title in Europe, so we’re going to work hard and try to push ourselves.
COLORADO RAPIDS HEAD COACH GARY SMITH
On the game:
I was in the end disappointed we didn’t take all three points. I thought the penalty was a poor call and I thought we had a big shot for [a penalty kick] ourselves at the far end when Sanna [Nyassi] goes to shoot and the leg comes through the back of him. We didn’t start the second half very well and D.C. with a little bit of help from the officials took advantage of it. But, yes, in frustration we didn’t get all three [points], but it’s been a long three road trips unbeaten so it’s decent.
On his team’s slow start in the second half:
We didn’t start [the second half] well. I think you have to give some credit to D.C. They started brightly and came out with renewed energy and vigor and I think the trip looked like it had gotten the better of us. Being away the last three games, it can sometimes take a bit out of your legs and that second period took a while for us to get going. I still say that the penalty call itself changes the course of events and I would think if [head official] Terry [Vaughn] sees it again on a replay, he’ll question the choice he made and I’d like to think he’d question the choice he made on Sanna [Nyassi] as well. But for us, it’s a positive three games – unbeaten, four unbeaten now – and we can look forward to going back home and playing three out of four at home now.
On earning a road draw:
I’m extremely pleased that we’ve stayed unbeaten. Three away games on the spin are not easy and they’re made even more difficult when you’re travelling to the East Coast because it’s a four hour journey. You come through the time zones and the guys have got to adapt. The players have shown spirit and determination and adapted extremely well to wherever they’ve gone. Last week in New England on a plastic pitch [they] adapted well and kept a clean sheet. Of course I’m pleased [with the draw]. I’m frustrated we didn’t take all three. I thought the circumstances surrounding [D.C. United’s] goal and how they got their point was disappointing because I think when we all look back on it, it’s not a penalty.
COLORADO RAPIDS DEFENDER DREW MOOR
On the game:
At the end of the day, it was a gutsy road point and we’ll take it. It was very physical from both [teams], which usually you expect coming here. They’re a scrappy team and they had a good run of the play there in the second half and we had to sit in and absorb a lot of the pressure. I thought we did a good job. I think [we were] a little unlucky to give away the PK there, but I think at the end of the day we’ll take the road point.
On his first half goal:
It’s just one of those things you go over in training. You go forward enough times which I have – it’s been about a year since I’ve scored – you’re bound to get a bounce to go your way and that’s kind of what happened. I didn’t attack the ball right away. I kind of stayed off the guy’s shoulders who went up for the ball and it just landed perfectly for me. I had a little bit of finishing to do, but it’s always good to get set piece goals.
COLORADO RAPIDS MIDFIELDER PABLO MASTROENI
On the game:
I think it was overall a pretty decent game. I think we had a good portion of the possession in the first half, had some good flow. [We] had some decent opportunities, just entry balls were either a yard left or a yard right to the guys up front and I think the [forwards] did a good job holding the balls in and bringing [the midfielders] into play. And then at the start of the second half I think D.C. came out with a little bit more energy. We were on our heels a little bit. We couldn’t get near the ball and couldn’t get any pressure and I think [D.C. United’s] goal was just a matter of time. They did a good job bringing it to us. So I think overall it was a fair result and we’ve had three games on the road over the last ten days so we’re pretty content with the five points.
On scoring first:
I think it was huge on a few different levels. I think it was our first set piece goal all year and that’s something that we’ve really been focusing on. It’s so hard to try to win games with goals out of the run of play and I think that just kind of set the tone for us and gave us confidence and allowed us to continue to keep decent possession and move the ball quickly.
