What has the mood been like in training this week, coming off such an emphatic win?
At the beginning of the week, we were definitely in high spirits coming off a great opening game, so we enjoyed it for a day or two. But since then the mindset has definitely been that we're putting that game behind us. We know it's a good result, but we also know that it's one game out of 30. We know we can still improve.
What is it like going back through the video of the game and trying to pick out mistakes from what was universally perceived as a solid performance?
You're always going to make mistakes…very rarely do you have a perfect game. It's just nice to be able to talk through them as a team. It allows everyone to get on the same page about what we could do better so [the mistake] doesn't happen again. I think everyone is glad that we can critique each other and we can openly talk about it. It's a pretty open locker room, and I think that's going to help us be successful.
Now that every team in MLS has played, where do you see your team fitting in?
All that you can ask for right now is to compete and have a chance to win every time you step out on to the field. We knew that we were going to be a competitive team because of all the hard work we put in during the preseason, but it's too early to even look at how the other teams are doing. Right now we're just worrying about ourselves and focusing on the next game.
Speaking of the next game, you guys have a bye in MLS this week, but you'll be heading to St. Louis to take on A.C. St. Louis. You guys beat them 2-0 at home last time. How are you guys approaching the match?
Technically it's a friendly, but something Peter [Vermes] talked about this week is going into the game with the mentality of showing your style of play. We're looking at [the game] as an opportunity to get better at the things we do well and to improve on the things we don't do as well. The first time we played them I think it was probably one of their first games of the preseason. I think they're going to be very much improved from then just because they've had more time to practice and play with each other. I'm sure it's going to be a great match.
As a defender, how do you prepare for your next challenge in MLS - going up against Omar Cummings and Conor Casey?
It's going to be a challenge. They have different dimensions to their game. It's going to be a hard test for us, but that's why you play the game. You want to see how you compete with some of the top forwards in the league, and I know as a back four we're pretty excited to see how we can to against those two guys.
Michael Harrington got a pretty hilarious April Fools' Day prank played on him yesterday. What did you think of it?
It was unbelievable. People dream of an April Fools' prank like this, and it actually worked. For all the fans, you have to see this. They took care of the prank before practice, and then Jake [Wizards videographer] put together the video while we were practicing. We came back into the locker room to watch it as a team right afterward. I've never seen so many laughing guys in the same room. They had tears in their eyes. We were hitting each other, hitting the tables because we couldn't stop laughing. It was great.
