denime
08-12-2008, 06:04 AM
Knight: A win out of nothing
Toronto FC's trip to Colorado reminded me of a scene in an old Monty Python skit. Two luckless characters are facing a firing squad. The screen goes blank, and the words “scene missing” appear. A moment later, they're safe, saying “What an amazing escape.”
Or, as Yosemite Sam once said to Bugs Bunny: “Ah don't know how ya done it, but Ah knows ya done it!”
With two-thirds of the starting lineup injured, suspended, playing at the Olympics or dumped to Dallas for a draft pick, Toronto's reeling Reds limped onto a gigantic field in the thin air of the Rockies … and won. For the first blessed time since the middle of June, they won.
It wasn't pretty – or even particularly efficient – but TFC's ultimate patchwork lineup got through 90 minutes without conceding any goals. And they would have happily settled for 0-0 on the road, but newly acquired striker Chad Barrett scotched that idea when he ripped home a superb 30-yard free kick just before halftime.
How ‘bout that? Both Toronto free-kick aces were out – Amado Guevara on a selfish red card and Laurent Robert hobbled by a hamstring – and the new kid lights one off that would have made either of his “expert” teammates proud.
Oh, and darn right the playoff hunt is still alive. Monday morning finds the Reds in a four-way tie for fourth in the MLS East. With the West Division faltering, two of those teams would be in the playoffs if the season ended now. The tie-breakers are a mess, but suffice to say, TFC is no worse than tied for the final spot, one game shy of the two-thirds mark of the regular season. I would call that contention.
Read more (http://www.reportonbusiness.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080811.WBsoccerblog20080811122708/WBStory/WBsoccerblog)
Toronto FC's trip to Colorado reminded me of a scene in an old Monty Python skit. Two luckless characters are facing a firing squad. The screen goes blank, and the words “scene missing” appear. A moment later, they're safe, saying “What an amazing escape.”
Or, as Yosemite Sam once said to Bugs Bunny: “Ah don't know how ya done it, but Ah knows ya done it!”
With two-thirds of the starting lineup injured, suspended, playing at the Olympics or dumped to Dallas for a draft pick, Toronto's reeling Reds limped onto a gigantic field in the thin air of the Rockies … and won. For the first blessed time since the middle of June, they won.
It wasn't pretty – or even particularly efficient – but TFC's ultimate patchwork lineup got through 90 minutes without conceding any goals. And they would have happily settled for 0-0 on the road, but newly acquired striker Chad Barrett scotched that idea when he ripped home a superb 30-yard free kick just before halftime.
How ‘bout that? Both Toronto free-kick aces were out – Amado Guevara on a selfish red card and Laurent Robert hobbled by a hamstring – and the new kid lights one off that would have made either of his “expert” teammates proud.
Oh, and darn right the playoff hunt is still alive. Monday morning finds the Reds in a four-way tie for fourth in the MLS East. With the West Division faltering, two of those teams would be in the playoffs if the season ended now. The tie-breakers are a mess, but suffice to say, TFC is no worse than tied for the final spot, one game shy of the two-thirds mark of the regular season. I would call that contention.
Read more (http://www.reportonbusiness.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080811.WBsoccerblog20080811122708/WBStory/WBsoccerblog)