See below for a transcript of Outlaws Head Coach B.J. O’Hara’s Week 2 MLL Conference Call
On the Outlaws’ Week 1 win
“Well, I think it was typical of a first game – the good, the bad and the ugly. Our first half was about as well as we could expect for a first game at both ends of the field. And, we were not that naïve to think that any team in this league is capable of getting back in the game and taking it to you and that’s exactly what Florida did. They regrouped at halftime and we actually started the third quarter very strong. We got off probably five or six really good looks on offense and they brought Adam Fullerton in off the bench to start the second half and he made some great saves and gave them a bit of a spark. And then we had some trouble at the X for a little while, so they had a lot of possessions. When they have the ball, guys like Casey Powell and Josh Amidon and so forth, they can hurt you. That’s exactly what happened.”
“Well, I think it was typical of a first game – the good, the bad and the ugly. Our first half was about as well as we could expect for a first game at both ends of the field. And, we were not that naïve to think that any team in this league is capable of getting back in the game and taking it to you and that’s exactly what Florida did. They regrouped at halftime and we actually started the third quarter very strong. We got off probably five or six really good looks on offense and they brought Adam Fullerton in off the bench to start the second half and he made some great saves and gave them a bit of a spark. And then we had some trouble at the X for a little while, so they had a lot of possessions. When they have the ball, guys like Casey Powell and Josh Amidon and so forth, they can hurt you. That’s exactly what happened.”
On activating John Grant Jr.
“Well, obviously, John Grant was a big part of that offseason trade involving Brendan Mundorf and moving him to Chesapeake. The move this week was more of a contingency. John is still involved in the NLL playoff with the Colorado Mammoth. We are just trying to anticipate should they lose on Saturday night – for his sake, we hope they don’t – but if they don’t get past Saturday, then he would be available. Whether or not he’ll play, we’re not sure. But in order to make that possible, we had to make a move on our active roster.”
“Well, obviously, John Grant was a big part of that offseason trade involving Brendan Mundorf and moving him to Chesapeake. The move this week was more of a contingency. John is still involved in the NLL playoff with the Colorado Mammoth. We are just trying to anticipate should they lose on Saturday night – for his sake, we hope they don’t – but if they don’t get past Saturday, then he would be available. Whether or not he’ll play, we’re not sure. But in order to make that possible, we had to make a move on our active roster.”
On this week’s game against Ohio
“They have some momentum, they’re feeling pretty good about themselves – they played really well. I’ve seen the game several times now. We’re breaking down the film right now as we speak. They are awfully dynamic, particularly in the midfield with the addition of Harrison and Baum, they have great games, as well as Bernhardt, so they have three pretty potent offensive midfielders. They got great goalie play from Scott Rodgers – he has been kind of on and off in the MLL for the last couple years – had some great games and struggled a bit. He was at his best the other night. Very good defense, so they are going to be a handful, for sure.”
“They have some momentum, they’re feeling pretty good about themselves – they played really well. I’ve seen the game several times now. We’re breaking down the film right now as we speak. They are awfully dynamic, particularly in the midfield with the addition of Harrison and Baum, they have great games, as well as Bernhardt, so they have three pretty potent offensive midfielders. They got great goalie play from Scott Rodgers – he has been kind of on and off in the MLL for the last couple years – had some great games and struggled a bit. He was at his best the other night. Very good defense, so they are going to be a handful, for sure.”
On Matt Gibson
“That was a move we made anticipating some holes through guys college coaching and NLL. We needed a lefty and Matt was available. He has moved to the west coast now, so it makes it a little bit easier travel-wise. He is in his third year now, so he’s not a rookie anymore. He is awfully skilled. He has great vision and is a tough little guy. He looks for people to get open – he had three assists the other night – he had a couple looks. He has to be productive and he will be. He took a pretty good whack on the hand – we were a little concerned, but I think he’s OK. The x-rays were negative. So, he’ll be good to go.”
“That was a move we made anticipating some holes through guys college coaching and NLL. We needed a lefty and Matt was available. He has moved to the west coast now, so it makes it a little bit easier travel-wise. He is in his third year now, so he’s not a rookie anymore. He is awfully skilled. He has great vision and is a tough little guy. He looks for people to get open – he had three assists the other night – he had a couple looks. He has to be productive and he will be. He took a pretty good whack on the hand – we were a little concerned, but I think he’s OK. The x-rays were negative. So, he’ll be good to go.”
On what he expects from the players still playing in the NLL
“Well, we feel really good about our core. Certainly at the defensive end of the field, we have most of our veterans. Chris O’Dougherty is the one piece that played a lot for us last year. Chris will be in this week to work out. He was playing indoor also. His team is out of the playoffs. At that end of the field, we’re pretty in place. At the other end though, we have (John Grant) Junior, waiting for him to come in. We have Curtis Dickson, who is having a monster year indoor. We are really excited to get Curtis in an Outlaws uniform. He has never played MLL. We have held his rights for several years and hopefully that is going to pay off. And then we have a couple of young men – Cam Flint will be in shortly. He has been playing indoor. And then the rookie class, we have Ben McIntosh from Delaware, who we feel like we have to get a real good look at him and Jeremy Noble from the University of Denver is having a great year. There are some other pieces there, that while we don’t feel they’re necessary, we are excited to get them in and give them a good look.”
“Well, we feel really good about our core. Certainly at the defensive end of the field, we have most of our veterans. Chris O’Dougherty is the one piece that played a lot for us last year. Chris will be in this week to work out. He was playing indoor also. His team is out of the playoffs. At that end of the field, we’re pretty in place. At the other end though, we have (John Grant) Junior, waiting for him to come in. We have Curtis Dickson, who is having a monster year indoor. We are really excited to get Curtis in an Outlaws uniform. He has never played MLL. We have held his rights for several years and hopefully that is going to pay off. And then we have a couple of young men – Cam Flint will be in shortly. He has been playing indoor. And then the rookie class, we have Ben McIntosh from Delaware, who we feel like we have to get a real good look at him and Jeremy Noble from the University of Denver is having a great year. There are some other pieces there, that while we don’t feel they’re necessary, we are excited to get them in and give them a good look.”
On the improvement he’s seen form the team’s second-year players
“Well, Eric (Law), specifically, he does not play like a second-year guy. He still looks like the paper boy, but he handles himself with a lot of poise. He had a great game the other night both as a shooter and as a ball distributor. He picked one off on the ride in fact and scored a goal. He is going to be a big part of our offense this year. We have a couple other guys that are – (Chris) Bocklet and (Drew) Snider and third-year guys now and they’re like wily veterans. We think we have a good mix of seasoned veterans like Lee Zink and Jesse (Schwartzman) and Anthony Kelly, but we also have some good, young talent that we hope gives us a nice mix.”
“Well, Eric (Law), specifically, he does not play like a second-year guy. He still looks like the paper boy, but he handles himself with a lot of poise. He had a great game the other night both as a shooter and as a ball distributor. He picked one off on the ride in fact and scored a goal. He is going to be a big part of our offense this year. We have a couple other guys that are – (Chris) Bocklet and (Drew) Snider and third-year guys now and they’re like wily veterans. We think we have a good mix of seasoned veterans like Lee Zink and Jesse (Schwartzman) and Anthony Kelly, but we also have some good, young talent that we hope gives us a nice mix.”
On Mike Simon’s first game with the team
“Well, he scored a big goal for us in transition. The thing about Mike is and (General Manager) Tony (Seaman) and I talked about this after the game was, he’s tough to evaluate because nobody goes on him. Every time he was on the ball, the guy quickly got rid of it. That tells you a little bit about his presence and how people feel about going against him. But, up and down the field, he was very good. He handled the ball in the open field, he slid on defense when needed. He did all of the things we knew he could.”
“Well, he scored a big goal for us in transition. The thing about Mike is and (General Manager) Tony (Seaman) and I talked about this after the game was, he’s tough to evaluate because nobody goes on him. Every time he was on the ball, the guy quickly got rid of it. That tells you a little bit about his presence and how people feel about going against him. But, up and down the field, he was very good. He handled the ball in the open field, he slid on defense when needed. He did all of the things we knew he could.”