Sporting Kansas City II head coach Paulo Nagamura
Thoughts on the match…
I think the game played exactly the way that we knew it was going to be. They’re a team that is very good in transition. It was a game that we knew we were going to have the ball and if we were good with the ball, we were going to create a lot of chances. I think that’s what we saw for the most part in the game. I think we were all over them. We created a lot of chances, but we could not find the last touch or the last finish. I think the team overall did okay. We fell asleep on the play that they scored on the first goal. On the second goal, I still have to see on the video, but the guys gets inside and scores a great header. A good performance overall just disappointing in the way that the game was managed by the referee with all the incidents that happened throughout the game and how calls are not being made that are supposed to be made. It’s very unfortunate to go into the locker room and see the frustration of our players because we work the entire week to get a result on the weekend. Games are being managed by so many wrong calls on the field. At the end there, I felt that the team that didn’t come out to play and that was wasting time and that was doing everything, in my opinion, in the wrong way that I see approaching the game, got the benefit of calls at the end. It’s frustrating from that aspect but I would like to praise our team. We fought until the end. That’s who we are. We’re never going to give up. I was pleased with the way the guys fought until the end. But, again, unfortunate how the game is being managed. In all our games in the USL this year, it seems like every game – and I can show on replays and videos – that we have calls that influence game results; bad calls that we leave the field feeling it’s not a neutral call, it’s not an even call or a fair call in terms of refereeing. When we're up on the road, we always see six, seven, eight minutes of stoppage time, but when we are chasing the game at home, it's always two or three. It's a constant challenge.
On creating chances in the game…
I think we created a lot of chances. We were around their box a lot. We had good looks and half looks. In my opinion, I think we produced enough to get points out of this game. Kudos to Memphis. They defended well in the end. But I felt in the way that we created and the way that we played, I think we feel disappointed not to get the three points.
Sporting Kansas City II forward Wilson Harris
Thoughts on the match…
I thought that we dominated the game for most of the game, honestly. I think we were unlucky. We had a lot of chances and could have been at least 2-1 up at half. I thought the boys played really well. It just didn’t go our way. There were some controversial calls that could have went our way that didn’t. At the end of the day, the loss is what’s happened.
On his goal…
It’s always good to get a goal and especially to start my 2021 season to get it going. Hopefully, more from here.
On getting the start…
It’s always good to get minutes. For me, I do my best when I get minutes consistently. Getting that fitness keeps me sharp for whatever comes next.
