Something Smelly?

Toronto FC overcame tremendously long odds to win the Nutrilite Canadian Championship last night in Montreal with an emphatic 6-1 win over the host Impact overcoming a tie breaking four goal differential and thereby leaving the Vancouver Whitecaps (who were in attendance) out in the cold.

The Montreal line-up, game plan (or lack of one) and apparent lack of effort has left fans seething in two cities and celebrating in another and almost everyone unsatisfied with the ending of what up until this point has been a great competition.

For Impact coach Mark Dos Santos who faced the prospect of playing two games in three days - the first a meaningless game in a competition his side were already eliminated from and 48 hours later an important league game - the game represented the ultimate no win situation.

Put your best team on the field and risk further injury to an already injury depleted side before facing the Whitecaps in what is turning out to be a must win game league game for the Impact on Saturday

OR

Field a mostly reserve squad, hope to keep the score close, bow out of the competition gracefully and rally the troops for Saturday’s USL1 showdown with Vancouver. . (You think this game suddenly has new meaning for the Whitecaps? – Oh and it just happens to be live on the CBC network…)

Most, make that almost all, coaches in the professional game would choose option two and hoped that their reserve players would come through with a professional effort in order to raise their stock in the eyes of the coach.

Ah the best laid plans of mice and men and coaches…

Unfortunately for Dos Santos his players laid the proverbial egg and have left a proud franchise looking very, very bad.

For the club it the third body blow in the past six months the first being rejection by MLS, the second the on field collapse in last year’s Champions League quarter-final versus Santos Laguna and then last night’s collapse.

It’s is going to be interesting to see how the Impact win back the faith of not just their followers but MLS. The first be a much more difficult task the second answerable with dollars.

The much bigger question for Canadian soccer is how to fix the Championship so the chance of this kind of thing is reduced (it is almost impossible to eliminate).

Among the ideas bring a fourth team or initiate some sort of pay for points system that rewards teams for every point won during the competition.

While both ideas have merit both have problems at this point.

The idea of a fourth team while intriguing is probably the one farthest off if only for the reason that determining that fourth entry from the myriad of non-amateur sides in Canada would require a great deal of money on the part of the teams who would like to challenge the big three and it is money they just do not have at this point.

The pay for points concept is an interesting one if the sponsorship money could be found. How the money was distributed would be the main issue – does it go to the club? The players? And who decides?

All in all a disappointing ending to what up until now has been a hugely successful effort to determine a true Canadian champion – let’s put it down to growing pains, move to improve things and continue to support the growth of the professional game in Canada.

Addition by Subtraction - Mo's New Math

The release of goalkeeper Greg Sutton by Toronto FC and acquisiton of defender Nick Garcia and the rights to Canadian striker Ali Gerba is by now old news overshadowed this week by some guys named Ronaldo and Kaka and their visit in August with the Spanish League runners-up, word that grass may eventually indeed be the surface of choice at BMO stadium and last but least some wailing from Toronto FC fans who have announced the honeymoon is over.

But to me this move of addtion by subtraction by Mo Johnson is just the latest in a long line of moves that while promising much probably in the long run won't add up to much.

First just the economics of the move - $160,000 annually for Sutton who has served the team well on and off the field and even in a season where the young Stephen Frei stepped forward and took the number one job continued to soldier on without bitching.

In exchange $200,000 for Garcia a central defender from one of only two defenses with a worse record than TFC's and a player (and salary) that the worst team league in the year was more than willing to part with (a THIRD round draft pick). San Jose so values a third round pick they were even willing to throw in the rights to Gerba.

The much travelled Gerba despite scoring 10 goals in 24 appearances with MK Dons in the England's League One was not offered a new contract by the club. Gerba despite finding the goal in various leagues both here in North America and in Europe has not managed to wear the same jersey for more than two seasons since 2004-05 with the Toronto Lynx. Since that time he has made 84 appearances for seven different clubs while scoring 28 goals that kind of scoring rate would usually warrant some stability so one has to ask what's the problem?

Expected to sign with Toronto by Monday or Tuesday Gerba is certain to add to at least the number of clubs he has played for and appearances if not goals scored if form holds true to any other striker that puts on the TFC jersey.

So in exchange for a solid back-up veteran Canadian goalkeeper and reduced depth at this key position when the number one is already nursing an injury and waiting for the clock strike midnight on what has been a Cinderella rookie season we get a veteran American defender who had obviously wore out his welcome as the captain and heart of the worst defense in the league. Oh yeah throw in an attacker with obvious talent who has trouble holding down a job.

This is progress?

A New Midfielder for TFC?

Reports out of off Scotland have former Aberdeen FC star Jamie Smith ready to complete a move to Toronto FC after impressing during a trial period at the Canadian side.

The former Aberdeen FC midfielder has been on the lookout for a new club after failing to win a new deal with Aberdeen FC after a season plagued by injury.

Smith was invited for a four-day trial period at Toronto, who sit third in the Eastern Division standings.

Failure to Launch

Fool me once shame on you. Fool me twice shame on me.

Toronto FC twice in two years have flattered to deceive in their participation in the Nutralite Canadian Championships aka the Voyageurs Cup.

In back to back years needing just a tie to clinch the title TFC has come up short – last season at least looking like they cared in the penultimate game against the Montreal Impact.

Last night in Vancouver in contrast the team looked complacent, not interested and like the bunch of underachievers that has too often “graced” the turf at BMO field. This leaves Toronto needing an unlikely 4-0 win over Montreal to claim the championship.

During night’s 2-0 loss to the Whitecaps there were obvious signs that this team cannot deal with even modest expectation or mental pressure and the sniping continued after the game as head coach Chris Cummins and the players themselves called each other out.

TFC Captain Jim Brennan was lucky to escape a red card in the second half when he appeared to get away with a head butt as things spiralled out of control for the visitors.
"The better team won on the night, no doubt about it," said Cummins. "We didn't play well enough.
"I have to question hunger, desire, passion. Vancouver had that and we never did. I've openly questioned that and they (his players) are questioning that as well. If you don't show that passion, that desire, that willingness to compete, you are going to get nothing in this game. And that's exactly what happened to us."
The time has come for the fans to start calling (loudly) people out as well starting with “Director of Soccer” Mo Johnson.
The lack of depth as in year’s past is apparent in the Toronto FC line up who were missing leading scorer, Amado Guevara of Honduras, and American defender Marvell Wynne because of international duty.

Beyond missing what undoubtedly is their MVP in Guevara this appears to be a team in serious need of a kick in the pants either literally or figuratively and the infusion of a key player would go far to address this. So far Johnson, despite having the capability under the league’s arcane economic rules in two seasons to address this has failed to deliver.

The on-field problem is not just a Voyageurs’ Cup issue either this is a team that has now lost three of their last four games giving up eight goals in the process as the psychological boost of playing for new coach Cummins and the outstanding play of rookie keeper Stephen Frei have both faded as early season promise settles into mid-season mediocrity and the stated goal of making the play-offs is beginning to look more and more tenuious.

The good thing is that the team itself has a chance to step up and address the issue with an upcoming run of four games in league play that not only are winnable against teams with fewer points than them but games they should be expected by themselves, the management and the fans to win.

The time has come to step up and be counted and prove that the teams marketing slogan – “All ofr One” – is more than just words.

Making Off Like Bandits

There was a time in Canadian soccer history when the visit of any European club team let alone one of the biggest club names in world soccer would have had people falling all over each other to get tickets at any price either financially or to their local side.

“We’re hosting ______________________ (insert any top division club name here) and we have to change our regularly scheduled league game and pay up to ten times as much as normal for a ticket to see a bunch of overpaid European players on vacation! Great! When can I buy my tickets?” This would have been the only question.

Times have changed though – perhaps the sign of a maturing market, perhaps just sign of the tightness of the economy or a combination of both – because people are complaining already about the impending August visit of said big name club to face local side Toronto FC.

A couple of things have raised people’s ire:

The quick rescheduling of a league match to two weeks from now in mid-June against the New York Red Bulls and the fact that the “friendly” will not be designated as the included friendly in season tickets packages.

The first one is unfortunate the second close to unforgivable from a fan’s point of view.

Face it about the only really horrible thing about facing the Red Bulls in two weeks is that you are facing the Red Bulls in two weeks. If you were looking to miss a game at some point this summer as a season’s ticket holder this one probably ranked right near the top of the list. Dallas ohh, San Jose jeez, New York ummm

Let’s see grab the sun block, buy a new swim suit, pack for trip to cottage and oh yeah see if I can convince the neighbours kids to take those tickets to the TFC game versus the always bad Red Bulls in early August…

You certainly weren’t going to waste time trying to sell them on Stubhub were you? I didn’t think so.

The second one is a bit harder to take as a fan. You’re a season ticket holder; one international friendly is included in your package, an international against one of the better known names in the sport is announced but SURPRISE according to the club “oops that’s not the game we meant”. @$$&*#$@#!!

Actually it’s really not that much of surprise. More surprising, then again, is the fact that MLSE didn’t handle things a little better – why not announce another international first – the one included in the package and then as a bonus here comes the original Real Salt Lake. People would still have been unhappy but at least there would have been less of a bandit like appearance to the purchase of tickets to the game.

It does not excuse MLSE for their handling of this but what people constantly seem to fail to realize is that this is a business – sometimes not a very well managed one but a business none the less. The main object of said business being to generate greater revenues than expenditures in any given year - you don’t do that by giving away the opportunity to realize your largest gate of the season.

In all likelihood season ticket holders will get first crack at the Real Madrid tickets allowing for a bit of give on both sides – fans get their tickets if they want to pay a higher price and MLSE gets their revenues which helps ensure the viability of the club into the future.

By the way anyone want tickets for the Red Bulls game? Anyone??...