Cardinale Stadium; Seaside, California
Saturday, June 25, 2022
Sporting Director & Head Coach Frank Yallop
On conceding twice in two minutes:
“If you look at the whole picture of the game, for me, we played very well against a good side. These are not heartbreaking moments, but just things that we have done a few times in games we’ve had that just cost us. It was the same thing tonight, the general game we played well. We were energetic, we figured out their system, I thought we played well. Cortez and Walmer were getting into good spots, Christian was really lively up front, and Adrian was driving on. We had some great moments in the game, it’s just individual plays that are costing us right now. We can talk about it and show it on video and work on it and we’ve got to figure that out, but I’ve done this many times – this is first year blues. It’s not easy and one thing I will say is that our guys don’t give up, they keep going and driving to the end and they’re shattered right now and upset that they didn’t win or get at least a draw.”
On losing the positive momentum from the first half:
“Obviously we were one nil up at half time, and their team and their coach are going to change things because we were dominating and playing well. He brings on three subs, and they have quality on the bench, we’re kind of depleted with our players. They bring on three really good players that would normally start, and I wouldn’t say it changed the game, but it probably did. I still think that we can prevent the goals that went in but you have got to hand it to them, they have quality and they have depth. They have many players that can come on and make a difference to the game. It was frustrating because I think that we had a great game plan. We just couldn’t do it for ninety minutes, but that’s football.”
On the team’s close results this season:
“I’m not going to stand here and say I’m frustrated, but I am. The big thing is I know we have quality and I know we’re a good team, and if everybody was healthy in my squad, I think we’re okay. Chase got injured yesterdays, and we got Same Gleadle out, he got injured Tuesday, two very good players in anybody’s team. We don’t want excuses, but the reality right now is that if we had everybody healthy we’re not a bad side. This right now is no one’s fault, we’ve had a few injuries and a few hiccups here and there, and it doesn’t all go together. Sacramento have been known for a few years and they have done a nice job putting a squad together. We’re gonna be fine, I love the energy and I think the crowd feeds off that. I think that we as a group never give up which is a big plus for me as a coach, and I think that the fans enjoy that. Now, do we want to win every game? Yes. Are we ready to win every game? Probably not right now.”
On the result:
“Any time you lose a game, it’s really depressing and not good for you. I never go in there (locker room) after a game because they need to decompress and make sure that they talk amongst themselves and they’re going to say look we’ve had three or four moments where we’ve given the game away. But the rest of the game I’m thinking we’ve played against a really good team, and we did really well, and that’s the story of the season right now. The good thing is we’re still positive, we have a bunch of games left which I’m excited about. It’s about growing this franchise, it’s about growing the brand, it’s about growing our team. I’m not trying to make excuses for myself as a coach, but I’ve done this many times with teams and we’re usually pretty good after year two and three and four and moving on because you can sort through what you want, systems you want to play and certain players that are going to enhance what we’re doing here, and once I can get that in the next end of season window, I think we’re going to be fine.”
Defender Hugh Roberts
On Sacramento’s back-to-back goals:
“Sometimes we try to figure it out on the fly, and I would say it’s definitely more of a repetitive thing going on. When we take the lead, it’s almost like a curse for us, I don’t know if we play differently when things aren’t going our way or if we have a different mindset when we’re comfortable. Especially at home, we should be protecting our home territory where we’ve been having those one to zero leads and letting them slip away. It’s a mentality thing that we’re trying to figure out.”
On the second half momentum shift:
“We absorbed more of their pressure, but of course, when they’re down we can press them a little more but instead of responding offensively we absorbed that pressure and sat back a little bit. It was almost inevitable that they were going to score with that many crosses and shots but on the flip side we have to put that pressure back on them. It’s something that we’re going to grow from and work on.”
On the midfield:
“The chemistry is still getting better between the team. A lot of guys have been out because of covid and almost every single week two starters get hurt whether that’s in practice or the game. This has been happening all season. I’m not trying to say that it’s been unlucky for us but that’s how it’s been going. We’ll have a starter go in one week and then it will be a different starter next week. Within the offensive core there’s no fluidity yet and it’s not a chemistry problem – there’s been such inconsistency with the lineups. Especially within the offensive core there needs to be the same core unit so that the guys can gel together.”
On turning the season around:
“It’s going to take that one victory where we’re scratching and crawling. It’s going to be an ugly win – that’s the one that will get us over our hump. It’s just a confidence and a mental block, when you’re constantly losing and getting defeated it becomes a repetitive action in the back of your mind which becomes a worry in the back of our mind. Once we get on the offensive front and start scoring goals, that becomes the same pattern and routine of winning which creates a domino effect. I really feel like we need to get this one win and a couple goals and we’ll get over the hump and the guys will get their confidence back. We have a good locker room, the guys are still in good spirits so it’s not a matter of that, it’s just a matter of getting that one win that will propel us forward through the rest of the season.
Forward Walmer Martínez
On creating the chance for the goal:
“It’s all about following the play. I knew that the ball was in a dangerous area, and I had to follow through and that’s what I did. That’s my job and i had to do it – I was in the right place at the right time.”
On losing control in the second half:
“The most dangerous part of the game is the last 20 minutes so if we’re not focused or not playing as a unit we’re going to get broken through – as we did. There are things that we have to fix and there are mistakes that happen often, and we need to fix that. It’s no excuse for us to concede two goals in three minutes. It’s something that we definitely have to work on in training. It’s upsetting because in the first half we had that game and parts of the second half up until the 75’ and to lose it in three minutes it’s the worst way to go out of a game.”
On the difficulty of creating chances in the second half:
“It’s definitely tough because they block all access to any channels and space. They were playing very compactly and were doing good defensively. We needed to be a little more patient on the ball and wait for the right moment to attack and it didn’t happen that way.”
On the team’s feelings about Sacramento going into the match:
“To us, it’s any other opponent, we’re the underdogs and we know what we’re capable of. We are a good team, and we can do a lot of great things when things are working for us. This is definitely a team we can beat. Even though they beat Galaxy, that doesn’t mean anything. On the pitch, it’s who you are playing against, 11 guys versus 11 guys, and it’s whoever plays the best, today they had the upper hand.”
