Seattle Reign FC at Utah Royals FC Pre-Match Press Conference • Friday, October 11, 2024
Head Coach Laura Harvey and Goalkeeper Claudia Dickey
Head Coach Laura Harvey
On her overall thoughts going into the match against Utah and finishing the season as strong as possible:
“I think, obviously, we’ve been in similar form throughout the season. I think the two teams, obviously Utah got a fantastic result last week away in Portland. I think they’ve been playing some really good football. They’ve been dangerous, so we know that we’ve got to defensively be solid. We know that we’ve got to do a little bit better ourselves on the other side of the ball and try and create as many chances as possible. It’s never going to be easy out there. But yeah, we’re excited for the opportunity.”
On learnings and discoveries over the course of the season:
“I think the biggest thing that I’ve been proud of with the group is how resilient they’ve been. I think they’ve had a lot thrown at them throughout the year, and every single time it’s happened, they’ve come back and tried to rectify it as much as possible. That’s not an easy trait to necessarily have. So, I think resiliency is the big thing that I’m proud of the group for this year.”
On her first trip back to Utah since coaching there and how the team is preparing to play at altitude:
“I’ve actually not been back since I was coaching there, so I’m excited for that. There’s a lot of cool little food spots that I’m trying to get into and I’m excited for. I wish I could stay for longer and play some golf. But yeah, it’s a beautiful place of the world – the mountains and everything that comes with it. It’s stunning, actually. And yeah, the community out there were really good to me, so I’m excited to go back and see some people. That’ll be fun.”
On what the team is looking for out of these last few matches regardless of the playoff situation:
“I think everyone’s personal pride takes over. This is our careers. We want to go out there and put on a good performance, both individually and collectively. I think that’s what our job is to go and do, so we’ve got to try and make sure we do that as best we possibly can.”
Goalkeeper Claudia Dickey
On her overall thoughts going into the match against Utah and finishing the season as strong as possible:
“I think all of us are pretty excited to go there and play. Obviously, the last couple of games we’ve been a little bit disappointed with our performances and the results. So, I think it’s just another chance to go out there and do what we love and have fun and get better. I think we always play our best when we’re having fun. So yeah, looking forward to playing and obviously playing against a team that we’ve had decent success with in the past. So yeah, keep on with that.”
On learnings and discoveries over the course of the season:
“I think one of the biggest things is we’ve realized how much we’ve needed everybody. We’ve had a bunch of injuries. We’ve lost a bunch of players to trades and loan, and I think realizing that we need everybody on this team always, throughout everything. I think it’s been a tough year for everybody in a lot of ways, but I think leaning on each other, knowing that everybody plays a super important role has been helpful to us in a lot of ways, and I think fighting for each other at the end of the day is always what’s worth it.”
On what the team is looking for out of these last few matches regardless of the playoff situation:
“I think it’s, like I said earlier, it’s kind of like another chance to just go out there and do what we love like. Obviously, it’s not necessarily in our hands. We can do everything that we can, and obviously to go out and win these three games is really important, but just to close out the season on high. Like I’ve said, obviously it hasn’t gone up to the standard that we’ve wanted it to, but I think these games are just a chance to prove ourselves and give people opportunities to just get better and have fun.”