MLS Cup Postgame Quotesheet

Following are select quotes from the players and coaches involved in MLS Cup 2002. The Los Angeles Galaxy emerged as 1-0 victors, taking the title when forward Carlos Ruiz scored a golden goal in the 113th minute, ending the game after 23 minutes of overtime.

NEW ENGLAND REVOLUTION

Taylor Twellman - Forward, New England Revolution "They were the number one defense in the League, and it showed today. All three of their defenders are tough. We had several great chances and its definitely tough to swallow. It all happened so quickly I don't even remember the goal."

"This season was awesome, our backs were against the wall nine games in and we battled back for the # 1 seed in the East. I don't think we had that many chances as a team, they really shut us down."

Adin Brown - Goalkeeper, New England Revolution "I just don't have a good feeling right now. We had a hell of a season and this is all so disappointing."

On the winning goal: "There was really nothing you could do about that. In that situation you just have to make yourself as big as possible. He's a great finisher, and he just put the ball away."

Joe Franchino - Midfielder, New England Revolution I've got to give the credit to L.A., it's disappointing, but we really came together at the end and that's what makes losing so tough. It's so tough to get so close and come away with nothing."

Brian Kamler - Midfielder, New England Revolution "Los Angeles found a way to get through at the end. We definitely had some good opportunities, especially in overtime. It's just a funny game like that."

Wolde Harris - Forward, New England Revolution "You could see in the first half that both teams weren't going to give anyone room to move. I think both teams got a little tired in overtime. We just need to take our hats off to them. They just finished their opportunity."

Leo Cullen - Midfielder, New England Revolution "It was a pleasure just to be a part of this team, to see how it all came together for this team. I came here last year and turned my career around. It's been amazing for me."

Steve Ralston - Midfielder, New England Revolution "We had some great opportunities, but the way we've come together this season has been incredible."

Steve Nicol - Head Coach, New England Revolution: "When you get to the second half of overtime you have to hope you're going to get one and not lose one. It's a very quiet dressing room. It's very easy for me to stand in front of them to tell to be proud of themselves and what a great run they've had. It doesn't mean a lot to them. I'm sure maybe in three or four day's time when they realize what they achieved in a short span of time, they'll be proud of themselves."

"I think the crowd today showed what this season has been all about. We've managed to get people behind us by showing a lot of heart and by playing good soccer. This is a perfect example of what we're hoping to achieve in the coming years. Los Angeles has been in four finals and that's something we want to emulate. If we can do that, you'll see bigger and better crowds on a regular basis here. We're proud to say that the New England Revolution are on the soccer map here in America."

"Quite frankly I thought the week off did him (Taylor Twellman) good. I don't think his fitness was greatly affected."

"They were up Taylor and Wolde's backsides the whole day. That was the order of the day and it was the order of the day for Taylor for the whole season."

"There wasn't a great deal happening for either team. Both defenses were pretty much on top. We didn't want to touch our defense because they hadn't created too many threats for us. Chacon gives us a different look up front so that's why he came on. Sending Griffiths in for Kamler was another move not to touch the defense. Kamler had done a good job and gotten wide on a couple of occasions but we thought Winston's pace would give them trouble and it almost did."

"It's a breakaway. At that [point it's not about preventing goals. At this point it's about what we've done right and plan for next year."

It's always nice to be the coach when thiongs like this happe. They don't want to go int hat direction, it's very much in their hands. The camaraderie and the quality of the plakyers brought themselves togethera s miuch as anything. Winning games does that for you. Being in such a bad position show you the character abnd good will the players have.

Definitely, I've had a few of these, more wins than losses. It's very hard and disappointng but you have to say next time we get the hcance we'll go one better.

On his interim status: "Yes, I'm fully expecting sign a contract so that I can continue to be the coach of the New England Revolution.

On what he told his team: "I told them you should be proud of themselves. Mr. Kraft had a word with them as well. He praised them for the way they conducted themselves. Straight after the game you saw the players humble enough to congratulate the wining side. That's how it should be. I'm so proud of them, that sums it up."

LOS ANGELES GALAXY

Sigi Schmid - Head Coach, Los Angeles Galaxy "It's been a long road with all the past and the Galaxy not having success in the finals. Whether you admit it or not, those losses still hang over your heard. This surely gets those ghosts out of the closet."

"My hat's off to Steve Nicol and all that his team has done. We continued attacking throughout the game and I thought our defense did a great job."

"There are so many people I want to thank. Tim Leiweke took a chance on me and allowed me to coach this team. Most importantly I need to thank the players. They always believed in themselves."

"Around here, you have a great man in Todd Smith, as he endures what he's going through. I lost my mom at an early age to cancer and you don't realize the fight that he is going through.

"My 72-year old aunt, who all her life asked why I played this crazy sport. She used to get upset when I was late for family functions. She couldn't understand what it was all about. She hasn't missed a home game in 30 years. And she didn't miss this one. It shows this sport can catch anyone at any age. Her being here today was very special because it's as close as it could be to my mom being here at the game."

"We had planned to start Mauricio Cienfuegos. He has been an institution with the Galaxy but Peter Vagenas was also healthy. Maybe there was a little of the passing of the torch today."

"In terms of the game I don't think we attacked the width as much as we needed to in the first half. I think Cobi confined himself to the right wing and we needed him to be more active. I thought he did that in the second half and that's what opened up the game."

"It's still a blur. I had to sprint out there for the celebration. That tired me out, and that's when I forgot everything. It was a good combination through the midfield. Tyrone laid a good ball off. He's a good attacking outside back. He got in behind them out wide and then hit a great ball to Carlos. Carlos did what he does best - score it."

"I thought what we had to do was not get frustrated as the game went on. They're a team that prides itself on its defense. We needed to make sure we didn't lose our shape on defense. I thought we did that throughout the second half and overtime. We felt it was just a matter of time."

"I think people hear us now. We've been in four title games, and won three of the four championship games we've played in during the last two years. Thursday (the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup Final) will be our fifth. I don't think there can be any doubt that we've got a great start toward establishing this club as the premier team of MLS in the early years of this decade."

Carlos Ruiz - Forward, Los Angeles Galaxy "First of all I want to congratulate the New England Revolution, their head coach and players. I have also lost some difficult matches on a number of occasions and it makes winning that much sweeter. I want to thank the League, the media and my teammates for making this happen."

On the winning goal: "I'm getting used to this type of play. I know that anytime there is a cross, a lot of my goals have come that way, and I look forward to opportunities like those."

On missing some scoring opportunities: "In any game you're going to have opportunities when you miss some and you make some. The thing is, however, is that we created those opportunities. Luckily I was able to capitalize on one of those opportunities and make the difference for this game."

On being the first Guatemalan player to win a title overseas: "This is very important to me and Guatemalan soccer. It's proof that all of the talents are there. Guatemalans are able to produce good soccer players who are able to win titles."

Cobi Jones - Forward, Los Angeles Galaxy "It's my first time in a winning press conference so I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do here. I have to give credit to the New England Revolution. They're an unbelievable team, especially over the last games of the regular season. They were on the brink of not making it in and then finishing first in the East and making it all the way to the final. It's a tribute to them.

"I also have to say thank you to all of the Los Angeles Galaxy fans. I'm surprised that we had that many fans here. I have to thank all the fans who followed us for seven long years of coming so close and being the bridesmaid for so long. Hopefully we can finish the next one (U.S. Open Cup) on Thursday."

On where this victory ranks in his career: "It hasn't settled in yet, but give me a few hours and a couple days. It's been a long season with the World Cup, qualifying, the intensity in Korea, and then coming back here and picking up the level here with the team and seeing us come from behind."

"To be very honest, the soccer press wasn't thinking of us in the beginning of the year or in the middle of the year. It was always San Jose and Chicago. But we took the hard route to beat San Jose to win the title. We've beat teams at their home and have established ourselves as a team that does not fold anymore."

"Obviously (the losses) are motivating but there was a quote in the locker room before the game something along the lines of 'Yesterday and tomorrow are twin sisters that ruin the present.' You can't think about the past and the other three games. This is a different team and we have a lot of different players like Tyrone (Marshall), "The Fish" (Carlos Ruiz) and 'Lexi (Alexi Lalas) who have helped the team establish itself as the premier team in MLS."

On where the win ranks: "It's a very different type of victory but it's up there. This is the pinnacle of my career for me - being a champion. You finally get the monkey off your back. No one can talk any more. I don't have to listen to Bruce Arena (U.S. National Team Head Coach) any more asking me when we are going to win a championship. I can finally walk up to him and tell him 'I got this one for you.'"

"I've been on the team that's lost and you can't say that team wasn't hungry. You can see it on their faces. When I went up to Joey Franchino (New England Revolution captain) after the game you could see the desire was there. We wanted it and New England wanted it just as bad. It comes down to the desire of the players out there. It comes down to the team which works hard and gets the breaks. We've had the quiet confidence over the past few weeks to come in here and do the things that need to be done."

On the physical match: "It's exactly what we expected coming in. We knew New England had established itself over the past few games by its defense. Sometimes they have seven or eight players in the box and it makes I difficult to score. And the wind didn't help as well. It made it hard to cross. So we had to try to get some breaks on them when they pressured us and we had a few chances that didn't go our way. But we finally got the fastbreak that worked."

On the flow of the game: "It was very difficult. I thought there were a few opportunities where we could have closed it out quick. But it didn't go our way and Adin Brown made some incredible saves. Their defense was so solid in the back. You start to think that it was going to go the way of the other three games. I knew the opportunities were going to come. When you have a proven goal scorer like Carlos (Ruiz) and you give him two or three chances, you know he's going to finish one of them."

"After the Colorado game there was no celebration. We still knew we had to focus on the next game. You can't celebrate in the semifinals thinking "we've made it to the final." This team has made it to the final before. We don't need that anymore. People have been asking me whether we wanted to make it to the final. And I didn't. You can't just be happy making it to the final any more."

"When you have opportunities you think are solid and the 'keeper comes up with a good save you think about it. Is this going to go the other way? But the opportunities kept coming and you just felt it was just a matter of time before the dam breaks and we were going to get one."

Alexi Lalas - Defender, Los Angeles Galaxy "For myself and Kevin Hartman it was an easy day because Danny Califf and Tyrone Marshall worked their butts off. Defensively, we knew that if we were able to keep them at zero, then somebody was going to score. We knew we were going to get our chances, and we were a little unlucky at times, but we got that last one."

"When we have the ball, it's also important to know where their markers are. So when Tyrone goes on his little walkabouts like he did at the end there, we get back into position."

"You go to this thing so many times. There's a lot of fans in Los Angeles and they've suffered for a long time, but they've also come out and supported us. I believe that if you're consistent, good things will happen. As good as New England played through the playoffs, we played well from the beginning of the season to win the Supporters Shield and win the League, and that says something."

"Defense wins championships, and all that type of stuff. With as well as both teams were playing in the past month, that effort showed tonight. Neither of us wanted to give it up, especially in a golden goal situation."

"This team has had a tremendous amount of success in its history. Getting to the finals and doing that type of stuff has been a part of this team. We all hear it. We have an incredible fan base back home, and every time you go to the supermarket or wherever, people who are into the Galaxy say, 'Hey, you better win it this year.' Now we can go back with a trophy for them."

"This is a wonderful ending to a three-year odyssey for me. It's something that has made me a better soccer player and a better person. It's not going to change my life, or it's not going to justify anything or make my life complete at the age of 32. But it certainly is a wonderful moment and something that I'll treasure."

"I'm greedy now. I really enjoyed myself this year, not just because of the success, but it was just a fun place to be and a fun team to play for."

Peter Vagenas - Midfielder, Los Angeles Galaxy "The coaching staff has done wonders all years preparing us for games, and that's the biggest challenge. Physically we'll be there (on Thursday), but I'm sure they'll give us the next day or two to soak this up because we deserve this, it's been a long time coming. Come Tuesday, it's all about business again."

"Danny and Taylor (Twellman) go way back. We could see it in Danny's eyes all week. After training Sigi gives us time to work on our own and Danny's had guys doing what Taylor would do. Califf was pissed off last time we were here because (Twellman) got a goal and he took it personally. Sigi made it personal and that's the best way he could do it, our defenders love that."

Ezra Hendrickson - Midfielder, Los Angeles Galaxy "Today we came out and p[layed very good defense. Our whole thing was let's keep it at zero and we'll win this game, because no one's going to shut us out. That was our whole attitude coming into this game. It took 100 minutes to happen, but it did."

"It's just happiness right now, its elation. We've been on the other end a lot of times, but now we're winners and hopefully this is the start of something that's going to continue for years to come."

"The thing with "Fish" is that he's a great finisher. He missed a couple of chances during the course of the game, but you always knew that if he gets another one he's going to put it away."

Sasha Victorine - Midfielder, Los Angeles Galaxy "I think (the crowd) excites us. We played a big game at San Jose to see who would win the conference in front of 20,000 people, and that was exciting. Whenever you know you're going to play in a crowd that big that is against you, you turn that energy into something positive you can use.

Danny Califf - Defender, Los Angeles Galaxy "Because I played against Taylor and Tyrone has played against Wolde, it was kind of personalized like that."

"I think the wind was the worst thing because you couldn't judge crosses or balls flighted from a distance, and it was really tough when you're marking someone who's so good in the box and so good at running."

"I think you know what to expect from (Ralston). The big thing is just being mentally sharp and really concentrating on intercepting his runs. You let him get twenty crosses in the game and he's a good enough player that you don't get on the end of one or two, and that's all that it takes. Defenders, they can clear 99% of the balls and do 99% if their job, but if that 1% results in a ball going in the back of the net, you've had a bad day."

"I looked at it over and over again, and I really didn't see all that much I could have done differently. I looked at it as a learning experience, something I could cut down from every detail and be nitpicky and see what I could have done a little better on every aspect."

Kevin Hartman - Goalkeeper, Los Angeles Galaxy "In terms of shots, I didn't have much to do. I think Chacon had that shot in the 90th minute and luckily he hit it right at me. My game today was pretty much distribution and getting the guys organized."

"I think we wear teams down by countering and making sure we defend well and it kind of frustrated them. We felt the longer we could make this game go today the better off things were going to be."

"I was hoping this thing would go to penalty kicks so I could play a little bigger role. But you win 1-0, you win the championship and you go congratulate Ruiz. He's unbelievable. He's probably my favorite player in the League and my favorite person in the world to watch."

"As soon as he hit the ball and it deflected I thought, 'That ball's 20-yards away. I don't even need to give a courtesy dive.' When it bounced off the post Pete said he knew it would bounce off the post."

Courtesy of MLS

 

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