Quote Sheet: MB 3-2 OAK
Cardinale Stadium; Seaside, California
Saturday, March 15, 2025
Head Coach Jordan Stewart
On the match:
“I think it was a tale of two halves. I think there was a lot of sloppiness in the first half. With the ball loss, it was giving them opportunities, giving them a rhythm and obviously a goal comes from our mistakes and not defending well in the box. I think in the second half, we showed character and showed the kind of resilience we have as a team. And even with a man down we were able to hang on until the end. All in all it is a good result but hopefully I don’t have to go through that every week since I’m losing my voice as well. Three points at home for the home opener and the crowd was amazing.”
On the energy from the crowd:
“You could see it was a real boost with a sold out crowd and that helps. Once you get in a rhythm and everyone knows the plan it gives you more confidence, more spirit and even I was trying to pump them up as well. All in all it was a fantastic win and a great atmosphere.”
On the quality of the goals scored tonight:
“It started with Mayele [Malango] cutting inside, a great goal there. And even with Anton [Søjberg] at the end with the header. It just shows that guys starting, guys coming on and the rotations that we have in the team are super important especially with the packed season that we’re going to have with the different cups and hopefully going into the postseason. We’re going to need to rely on everyone to help, like Grant Robinson who came in and got an assist. It’s a great squad-led result. Now we have a quick turnaround for the game on Wednesday.”
Forward Mayele Malango
On playing in front of the Cardinale Stadium crowd:
“It was just amazing, the fans gave us a real bump and the energy to keep going. It was amazing, I was really happy.”
On beating Oakland in the home opener:
“Playing against a rival team is always the best. We came out here, played our best and got the win. It was super exciting and I’m happy to get the win.”
On his goal and celebration:
“The goal was good, it was nice to score and help the team win. And then the back flip, of course. I told the fans that I would backflip if I scored so I had to do it for them. I’m just really happy, but we need to keep going.”
