💬 Carson Pickett: "I almost can't even put it into words how amazing it feels" after scoring in front of record crowd

Orlando Pride Head Coach Seb Hines

Opening Statement

“At the beginning of the season, it was one of our goals to get more fans to come out and watch us play at home this season. I know behind the scenes the front office is doing a terrific job to continue to promote fans to come out and support this team. It's our job to put the performances together as the players are giving absolutely everything on the pitch. They are doing the most to perform at their highest levels and get victories. I think tonight with the crowd coming out and showing their support for this team, it really helped the players out. They have been doing so well this year and it is something that I cannot put it into words.”

On the crowd playing a part in the match

“It is really important to get the backing of the fans, to get them off their seats and to get them excited. I thought that we started the first half really well as we created some opportunities. You can also hear it from the staff as our fans are the 12th man. They are the ones that spur you on, they are the ones that stick by you, and even towards the end you can still hear them being loud and proud. That helped push the players to getting the victory at the end.”

On bringing Angelina on at halftime

“It's always a tough decision when it comes to things like this. I thought personally that Morgan [Gautrat] was brilliant in the first half. Morgan did really well intercepting passes, getting on the ball, and linking passes that would turn into really good plays. I also felt like at times in the first half, it was getting too stretched at times. Summer Yates is playing an important role for us in the midfield as being more of an attacking player. Getting Angelina on the field for 45 minutes, is really important to us as we keep the players fresh and having them ready to go. There is a lot of competition for every position within the squad, which is important as it helps us know that we can rely on players throughout the squad. I’m really happy for Angelina, as she took her shot well and she deserved her goal.”

Orlando Pride Midfielder Angelina

On the goal she scored

“I’m just really happy to have the opportunity to put the ball in the net. I have been working hard for that. We’ve been doing a lot of finishing at training so I’m really glad that I got that.”

On the physicality of the match

“Yeah the game was very physical, we know that playing against any team in the NWSL is hard, there’s a lot of transitions but we tried to keep the ball as much as we could tonight and it’s really easy to play with these players. We can find really good pockets, and we find each other, we trust each other on the ball, so I think that makes everything easier.”

On knowing teams want to be the first to beat the Pride

“We keep doing our job, there’s nothing much more we can do. We keep focused on our goal, we always come to the games with the mindset to win, it doesn’t matter who we are playing against. We know that every team is making an extra effort, maybe because of the record or maybe because of the position every team is in, I feel like we just keep focused on what we are doing. Every game is a final so we take it game by game.”

Orlando Pride Defender Carson Pickett

Opening statement

“Cori Dyke, what an unbelievable service. Like I said on the TV interview, I credit it to her, because I would have never gotten the ball without her. So, we just kind of locked eyes. She saw the back line stepping, I saw the back line stepping, and she hit it over. I was there and it was an unbelievable ball from her. So, it's nice to get my first.”

On playing in front of over 17,000 fans

“I almost can't even put it into words how amazing it feels and what an honor it is. To be able to see this club turn from 2020 all the way till now, and just see the growth and everything that Haley [Carter] and Seb [Hines] have done here and the girls, the work that they've put in day in and day out. I stepped into this club, and I was like ‘wow, this is a winning club, a winning culture.’ Just to be able to do it in front of, I think, a record crowd, it's unbelievable. It's pushing the game forward. It's pushing the Orlando Pride forward and I do feel so much pride for this Club to be able to get that goal in front of everyone. I hope they all come back. It's a fun game.”

On the first goal taking pressure off the team

“I think in this league, especially being at the top and continuing to build, I think that you're going to get the best out of every team that you play. Going into the game, we knew every single game moving forward, it's going to be just as hard as the others. So just to be able to get a goal, and what we talked about is not getting the goal, and then relaxing. It’s continuing to get more and more goals and putting them away. So, I think that's something we can build on. In the first half, we continue to put balls away, but a great performance nonetheless.”