Head Coach James O’Connor
On the result against Columbus Crew SC
"Obviously, we’re very pleased. Tough game against a good opponent, So, obviously coming away with three points is especially very rewarding for the players, not just tonight, but the11 performances like this has been very good. So, to get the rewards tonight, was just deserved for the players."
On Nani’s assists
"Fantastic. He’s a quality player. He’s a world class player. Now, when you look at his ability to draw people toward him to create space, reverse. He’s only going to get better and better."
On the traveling supporters for Orlando City SC
"It was fantastic to see so many supporters come and make the journey. Great credit to them. You could hear them supporting us, and really trying to get behind the players. Obviously for us now to get home in front of our supporters on Wednesday is fantastic."
Midfielder Sacha Kljestan
On what he liked from Orlando City SC’s performance
"A lot of effort. We talked before the game about mentality and that mentality tonight. Specifically, we talked about every guy working hard for each other, giving a little bit of extra energy, maybe even if we didn’t have it, pulling the next guy’s arm if you had to and covering for your teammate. I think we showed a very high commitment and a very high level of that tonight, and that helped us get the win."
On rebounding from the loss against D.C. United earlier this week
"It’s always nice when you lose a game to have a game again three days later because you can kind of forget about that loss if you come away with a nice win. We were fortunate enough to do that tonight. Got a lot of games coming up and it’s a fun part of the season because the games just keep coming, you don’t have to train that much, your focus just shifts from one thing to another and we did a really good job of focusing on tonight and getting the job done."
On meeting with Orlando City SC’s supporters after the match
"Yeah, that was cool, there was a lot more here than I expected. We’re very thankful to our traveling fans who always support us no matter what. Some of them might have been in D.C., so for them to go from D.C. to come down here, we lost one but now we won one for them and that was pretty cool."
Goalkeeper Brian Rowe
On what he saw tonight from his teammates
"Just a big performance. I can’t tell you how good it feels to have our team rewarded and our guys rewarded with a result like that. Just mentally it’s such a tough game, coming from a road game a couple days ago in D.C. for a hard game, having to travel again and play here, legs are tired, guys are tired. It’s down to just mental fortitude and defending and riding it out, which we did."
On his bicycle-kick save
"Yeah, it just kind of popped out to him and fortunately I was able to get there and keep my team in it, so I was happy to make a save."
On the support from Orlando City SC’s fans
"It’s huge, it was awesome seeing them up in the stands and having their support there. Definitely kept us going with the tired legs, so I think coming back on Wednesday [7/3/19 vs. Philadelphia], it’ll be a huge call out to our supporters to come there and keep us going."
