Sporting KC Manager Peter Vermes
Opening comments…
I think it was a very difficult game today. I think the game got a little out of control for a good probably 70 minutes of the game and unfortunately I think it took away from the play of the game but sometimes you have to be able to get into those games and you have to be able to fight for those moments and you have to be able to secure the points. I thought not only did we do a good job of getting the first goal but we defended extremely well and we really didn’t give them anything. I don’t know how many shots they had but I’m sure that it was minimal; it really wasn’t anything dangerous except for the one that hit the crossbar. I loved the fact that up until the last minute of the game we were pressing them and not letting them control the game, so I was happy with that aspect of it.
On the club’s commitment to the tournament…
For those lower tiered teams, all these games wind up being David and Goliath. If you don’t take those games seriously it’s easy for a team to jump on you and a lot of teams have done that so far with the lower division teams and that’s why they win. Credit to our guys. Having the ability to play at home helps as well but I also feel like our guys are pretty seasoned now. We know that this next team is going to come to play. They didn’t come this far because they’re not good. We’ll have to be up for that match.
On Chance Myers role and contributions…
I put the guys out there that I feel like are going to accomplish the goal and the plan and that is to win. Chance didn’t have it easy, it took him a few years to get himself centered with the team. He fought through a lot of adversity. The one thing about Chance, he has never complained. He never came in to me. That guy just figured out that he has to do what he has to do. He has worked really hard. He’s fit and strong and he’s done well.
On Teal Bunbury’s impact in the lineup…
Having played that position that Teal is playing up there, sometimes you’re the lone ranger and it’s a difficult position, it’s not easy to play. First of all you have to be able to shape the game one-way defensively and you’re working hard. And when we win the ball, then you’re expected to have the energy to go to goal, cover distance, fight a man off maybe two men so we demand a lot from him and the other guys in that position up there. He’s a goal scorer but the work that he puts in at the end to help us get the opportunities that we get up the field is invaluable and I feel that is one of the many things that he brings to this team outside of scoring goals. The work ethic is tremendous.
Sporting KC Forward Teal Bunbury
Opening comments on the performance…
I feel like it was a pretty physical game. It got out of hand at times but for the most part I felt like we dealt with it well. We took it to them throughout the whole game and we just showed that games like this we’ll just have to grind out in order to make it further in this tournament. We want to win this whole thing. Credit to the guys, we dug deep and got the job done.
Why it is important to win the tournament…
We want to bring as many trophies to this organization as we can. As a group we know we’re talented enough and we know we have the proper tools to do so. It’s just a matter of time before things start going our way. It starts on the training field and we come out to the games ready to go. We have an amazing facility here and amazing fans and we want to show our respects to them and obviously this organization.
On the competitiveness between the two teams…
It was a pretty aggressive game for everybody so a part of me had to be a little more aggressive at times and I felt like if one guy was doing it the next guy was there to back someone up. It was a team effort, everyone was giving it their all.
On his recent run of form…
I’m in that groove, sometimes strikers get in that groove but the ultimate goal for me is to try to work hard on the field. The goals are things off the ball as well, working defensively and getting in good positions, things to help out the rest of the team.
Sporting Kansas City Defender Seth Sinovic
On his team’s performance in a 2-0 victory…
It definitely wasn’t the prettiest game from a possession standpoint, but I thought we battled really well. Colorado is a physical team, and it’s always a physical game against them. We competed well tonight, better than we did when we played them a couple weeks ago, and deserved the win.
On playing four games in 10 days beginning June 16…
We’ve got to make sure we are practicing hard and staying fit during this upcoming break. We’ve also got to improve in some areas. We’re battling well each game, but we like to harp on ourselves and get better. We want to keep possession in the midfield, we want to get the outside backs forward and getting crosses in. Everything we like to do can always be improved.
On playing the Dayton Dutch Lions of the USL Pro Division in the U.S. Open Cup quarterfinals…
Last year we lost to a team from a lower division, so we’ll be ready to play for sure. Luckily it’s a home game, so that will give us a boost. Hopefully we can then advance to the next stage.
On playing with his right forearm in a cast…
It’s not ideal, but once I start running around it’s not something I notice. When the game gets going, that’s the last thing I’m thinking about.
Sporting Kansas City Forward C.J. Sapong
On Sporting Kansas City’s offensive performance…
We played well as a team, but we didn’t produce as many clear-cut chances as we wanted. But we still got two goals. Both of our goals came from us staying alert in the box and being the first to the ball.
On assisting Teal Bunbury’s goal in the 79th minute…
Soony (Saad) played me a ball from the right side. I knew I wasn’t going to be able to head towards goal, so I tried to just head the ball into the mixture of people in the box. The ball happened to land right on Teal (Bunbury)’s foot, and he finished well.
On playing two matches a week throughout the second half of June and into July…
I think we have the depth to deal with that. Everyone on the team is very aware of our mindset. All the players understand how we want to play. Anybody can plug into a position, and as long as they share that mindset about how we want to press and how we want to attack, they will be fine.
Colorado Rapids Manager Oscar Pareja
Thoughts on his team’s performance…
I thought that the game didn’t give us what we deserved for the 90 minutes. We had a silly goal, a self-goal for us. Unfortunately the game didn’t give us what we deserved. The boys fought well during the 90 minutes. We had a team on the field that wanted it to happen and wanted to play. Unfortunately the game became too cheap. There were a lot of fouls in there but I have to recognize that my team tried to play all the time and tried to put things together.
On being without key defenders…
As coaches we cannot have those as excuses in the game. Obviously it is difficult when you have people that don’t regularly start but today I had people that did the job well. We’re still proud of the fact that the boys played on the field.
On the team’s approach to the match-up…
First off, I don’t think the game flowed much. There was a foul here and there, we tried to put things together and possess it and build it but we got to the point where we weren’t aggressive in the last third. The game didn’t flow much and we didn’t have the energy all the time. The second half we had better options and we created a few chances that should have ended in the back of the net for us.
On the tactical adjustments at halftime…
I wanted to take the team high up on the field after the first half. That was the plan and the strategy to let the central backs have the ball and then from there get the ball back in play.
Colorado Rapids Midfielder Tony Cascio
On Colorado’s performance in a 2-0 loss…
The game was a little out of our control. We tried to play over the top a little too much. We weren’t playing to feet. In the first half we did an okay job getting the ball into their half of the field. We found a little space on the left a couple times, but they defended well. Their back four is strong.
On Colorado’s offensive struggles…
At times I think we had a little more time than we thought. It seemed like we were rushing things going forward. We needed to be a little more composed. At the same time, it was hard to get our tempo going. We never really got into a rhythm in the game.
Colorado Rapids Defender Scott Palguta
On Colorado’s performance in a 2-0 loss…
I thought our back four was pretty solid throughout the night. They didn’t give us too many problems through the run of play. It’s very frustrating because the goals we seem to be conceding against (Sporting KC) have been our fault. Going back to last year, they’ve scored two goals on us in four straight games, and they seem to be soft goals that can be avoided.
On Sporting Kansas City’s strengths…
They’re very dangerous in set pieces, and they do a good job getting on the end of loose balls. Sometimes you create your own luck. If you’re scrappy and opportunistic like they are, you’re hard to beat. It’s just frustrating for us because we don’t feel like we played that bad. At halftime we felt like we were in a decent position. We knew we had let in a goal we shouldn’t have given up, but we were confident. We had a fighting attitude and thought we could pull a goal back.
On playing in a physical game…
There were a lot of fouls, but I don’t mind the physicality. (Sporting KC) is probably the most physical team in the league. They’re big across the board. They’ve got a very strong back four, and Sapong and Bunbury are big guys who can throw their weight around a little bit.
Colorado Rapids Forward Kamani Hill
On being subbed on at halftime…
I came on to help the team keep the ball and get things going more offensively on the right and left. I just wanted to give my team a spark and get us into attack mode.
On Colorado’s offensive approach in the second half…
We tried to pressure them more as the game went on, but I’m not sure we created one clear-cut opportunity in the second half. Obviously it’s tough to score when that’s the case. From our standpoint, that has to get better.
On the physicality of the game…
It was a real physical battle. Both teams had a lot of fouls, which kind of changed the whole outlook of the game. We weren’t able to get into a rhythm. The game was a little hectic with all the set pieces and fouls, which hurt our passing game.
