QUOTE SHEET
Utah Royals FC 2-1 Houston Dash
BBVA Compass Stadium; Houston, TX
August 5, 2018
Utah Royals FC
Head Coach Laura Harvey
On the match:
“It’s huge. I thought in the first half we played really, really well. We caused them a lot of problems in between, we just couldn’t find that final pass and that final finish. Obviously conceding off a set piece is disappointing. In the second half, actually they made it harder for us to play. I’m just so happy the girls stuck with it and kept working hard. The moment we got the equalizer, there was only one winner.”
On the second half adjustments:
“I felt the substitutes really made a difference - the fresh legs and coming on in this heat. Taylor, Erika and Steng worked really hard off the work that Amy and Christen and Diana had already done up there. They just kept the ball, moved the ball quickly at pace which started to drop off when we got tired. Then even for Christen’s goal, the work Taylor and Steng did initially to force them back caused them a problem.”
On the confidence boost:
“We had a three-game week a while ago and we were so disappointed not to get a win in any of those three games. We knew that tonight was going to be a huge opportunity to get three points and we’ve got to take this momentum now into Wednesday.”
FW Katie Stengel
On the comeback:
“I think we showed a lot of character coming back and fighting until the very end. It was a tough one for all of us with the humidity and playing against a team that also needed three points – it was huge for us to get the win.”
On the goal:
“I saw Erika turn, and I knew she was playing it to me. Then I saw Jane come out, and the opportunity just presented itself.”
On second-half changes:
“Everyone on the bench has a chip on their shoulder and they want to come in and make a difference. Of the three girls that came in, I thought we made a difference. We worked hard of the ball, and pressed Houston, and was rewarded finally.”
On what the win says about the team:
“Every game is a must win now for the play-off push, and we really want to be in the top four. Coming in on the road we knew we needed a result – and it came down to who wanted to fight and work until the very end. We got two goals and that was enough.”
On preparing for the next game:
“We need to find what we did well and fine-tune a few things. We need to go into Wednesday with the same kind of attitude and fight for 90 minutes.”
GK Nicole Barnhart
On the game:
“I thought it was a choppy match. In the first-half we did a really good job of finding the pockets and keeping the ball – but weren’t quite dangerous in the final third. And then in the second-half, Houston came out and changed their formation a bit – and that put us on our heels – and made it more difficult for us to find those pockets. But we were able to cause the turn-over in their end that led to the first goal and stay dangerous to create chances off of the attack.”
On what made Houston different than the other matches:
“Knowing how important this game was to get in the playoff picture, and playing in the humidity -- and fighting through fatigue made it different.”
On missing Desiree Scott in the midfield:
“I think Lo’eau stepped in and did a really good job being in that pocket for us, and being a member of the attack. Obviously Des is a different player, but I thought Lo’eau did a really good job stepping in for us. And we were able to keep the ball, which is what we need to do against this team.”
On the comeback:
“I think it’s big. It shows our heart and desire – and that the fight is in us until the end. We are not willing to give up and I think that is an encouraging thing going forward.”
On the next game:
“We need to get as much recovery as we can. We have a travel day between there, and most likely a day of light training in preparation for a game back at home. I think when playing at home you get more of that fan-base behind you and energy to push out any sort of fatigue.”
