Final report card

[johnmolinaro]

http://www.cbc.ca/sports/soccer/story/2008/10/28/f-torontofc-report-card.html

[Ossington Mental Youth]

as always thanks John

[woolly]

Excellent wrinting, John. Right on the money.

[johnmolinaro]

as always thanks John

gonna post on story on the Robbo situation soon

[Carts]

John,

Always enjoy reading your articles - as you just graded the entire season, just a question for you...

Who would you vote for as TFC's Man of the Year...?

Carts...

[Ossington Mental Youth]

Looking forward to the Robbo article.
Gotta say i disagree with a couple of points (IE Wynne in mid, he cant cross, Brennan being always solid at the back,
also kinda think Ruiz was a gamble worth taking (got him for nothing)
) but outside of that youre dead on.

[johnmolinaro]

John,

Always enjoy reading your articles - as you just graded the entire season, just a question for you...

Who would you vote for as TFC's Man of the Year...?

Carts...

tough one. Either Sutton or Robinson. I'll tell you though, I was very impressed with Barrett (he has a great attitude and great work ethic - you should see the guy in training!) and he could have easily been the best on the team if he started the season with Toronto.

[Carts]

tough one. Either Sutton or Robinson. I'll tell you though, I was very impressed with Barrett (he has a great attitude and great work ethic - you should see the guy in training!) and he could have easily been the best on the team if he started the season with Toronto.

Thanks John, two excellent choices echoed by many...

As for Barret - hearing his work ethic is that strong in training is nothing but good news and will only make him and the team better in the future...

Thanks again,
Carts...

[Oldtimer]

A good balanced analysis, much better than we've seen elsewhere. A little generous on Mo, but I'd mostly agree.

[Damien]

I truly hope MoJo will use last years trip to South America as a spring board for this offseason's trip down there. I'm sure there is a lot of untapped talent we could import for a low salary.

[Broadview]

Nice article John. Couple little things...

While I think Robbo and Guervara are good players, to me they didn't mesh well with each other or their wingers. If there was a game where TFC ever dominated possession, I really don't remember it. There were stretches, sure, but I remember other teams seemed to have the ball a lot more often than we did. Especially late in games.

Maybe if the wing players were a little more consistently the same guys it may make a difference. There were a lot of guys...Hemming, Smith, the other Smith, Rickets, Robert, Dunny, Wynne, Brennan and maybe a couple other guys all spent some time there. If we could just settle on four or so guys rotating in and out, that might help.

I'd give the midfield a "C" instead of a B-.

[CretanBull]

Great article, I pretty much agree with your view of things.

[The Professor]

Excellent! Bang on.

[rocker]

I truly hope MoJo will use last years trip to South America as a spring board for this offseason's trip down there. I'm sure there is a lot of untapped talent we could import for a low salary.

I wonder about this being as easy as you make it sound... Juan Carlos Osario, who is from south america and conceivably would have better connections than Mo, went down there and came back with crap (Cichero, Pietravallo, Rojas). As Ives Galarcep wrote:

Early on you could see Rojas' skill, Petriavallo's toughness and quality, and Cichero's ability and confidence. Slowly but sure all three players morphed into unreliable players whose flaws have laid ruin to Osorio's best-laid plans for this season.

Let's not forget DC United's awful experiment with Franco Niell (and certainly DC has a solid track record of scouting).

So I don't think it's just a case of Mo going down south and finding guys that will surely fit in.
i think there's a pretty high risk no matter where you turn.

[olegunnar]

An A for Goalkeeping. Wow

[Beach_Red]

An A for Goalkeeping. Wow

An A for stopping shots, but maybe not for clearing....

[jloome]

As much as fans appreciate the coverage, John, I have to seriously wonder about a few of these statements. Robert wasn't a bust from day one, he spent the first six or seven games pumping good balls into the box, only to find no one in the right position to receive them. Carver knew he didn't play defense when he came, so that was a coaching issue, not a player issue. Once those six or seven games had passed and Robert had decided he didn't like the setup, he became useless.

I suggested Wynne at mid earlier this year; then I saw him try to cross the ball a few times. Not a good idea. And he rarely got beaten in the final third -- his problem, in the first half of the season, was being caught too far forward, so he wasn't even in the final third to BE beaten, half the time.

There was nothing wrong with Tyrone Marshall's positioning most of the time, just his speed -- and even then it was largely from having to cover for the inept play of Velez and James.

Jimmy Brennan was far from stellar defensively, and by the end of the season had been caught out more times than Wynne. In fact, he was probably better offensively this season than defensively.

Tebily was not "a complete washout." In fact, most of the posters here who saw him play (in all of two or three appearances) concluded he was probably our best defender. Given his pedigree that wasn't surprising. Being a headcase (or having legitimate family issues in France) doesn't make you a "washout."

Geuvara and Robbo didn't mesh well at all until the final third of the season. Look at how low Guevara's assist total was. And Carver himself stated publicly on at least two occasions that when he plays the two of them centrally and had guevara come forward, their opponents ripped apart the middle of the field.

Although listed as a forward, Jarrod Smith only actually played there once or twice, and subbed in as a winger most of the time. So you can't really peg him for low goal production.

And how, exactly, does Mo get a passing grade when he has already conceded this year's decent signings were largely up to Carver? From the Barrett or Guevara signings? Maybe, but that doesn't make up for the lack of a defence, in my book.

Interesting read.

[johnmolinaro]

As much as fans appreciate the coverage, John, I have to seriously wonder about a few of these statements. Robert wasn't a bust from day one, he spent the first six or seven games pumping good balls into the box, only to find no one in the right position to receive them. Carver knew he didn't play defense when he came, so that was a coaching issue, not a player issue. Once those six or seven games had passed and Robert had decided he didn't like the setup, he became useless.

I suggested Wynne at mid earlier this year; then I saw him try to cross the ball a few times. Not a good idea. And he rarely got beaten in the final third -- his problem, in the first half of the season, was being caught too far forward, so he wasn't even in the final third to BE beaten, half the time.

There was nothing wrong with Tyrone Marshall's positioning most of the time, just his speed -- and even then it was largely from having to cover for the inept play of Velez and James.

Jimmy Brennan was far from stellar defensively, and by the end of the season had been caught out more times than Wynne. In fact, he was probably better offensively this season than defensively.

Tebily was not "a complete washout." In fact, most of the posters here who saw him play (in all of two or three appearances) concluded he was probably our best defender. Given his pedigree that wasn't surprising. Being a headcase (or having legitimate family issues in France) doesn't make you a "washout."

Geuvara and Robbo didn't mesh well at all until the final third of the season. Look at how low Guevara's assist total was. And Carver himself stated publicly on at least two occasions that when he plays the two of them centrally and had guevara come forward, their opponents ripped apart the middle of the field.

Although listed as a forward, Jarrod Smith only actually played there once or twice, and subbed in as a winger most of the time. So you can't really peg him for low goal production.

And how, exactly, does Mo get a passing grade when he has already conceded this year's decent signings were largely up to Carver? From the Barrett or Guevara signings? Maybe, but that doesn't make up for the lack of a defence, in my book.

Interesting read.

I strongly believe, amongst other things I wrote in the piece, that Robert was a bust from Day 1, Wynne does get beat in the final 3rd, Marshall is often out of position and Tebily was a washout.

Like anything, the game is subjective and open to different views. This was my take on the situation. We'll have to agree to disagree.

[mighty_torontofc_2008]

hey John where is the MLS plauoffs on cbc tv this week??

[RPB_RED_NATION_RPB]

C-...is very generious

[RPB_RED_NATION_RPB]

hey John where is the MLS plauoffs on cbc tv this week??


I remember BOLD...had the entire playoffs last season..wonder if CBC are doing the same this year

[TFC_Toon]

Good article John and a fair assessment of the season. The one thing that did stand out for me though was the comment about Tebily being a washout, I suppose from the number of appearances before leaving the club....yes that did not work out.

However the times he did wear TFC red and was on the pitch you could see the class in his touches on the ball, shame we did not see more of him at CB, he may have been the best CB we have ever had at the club, we will never know.

[vilerichard]

Robert wasn't a bust from day one, he spent the first six or seven games pumping good balls into the box, only to find no one in the right position to receive them. Carver knew he didn't play defense when he came, so that was a coaching issue, not a player issue. Once those six or seven games had passed and Robert had decided he didn't like the setup, he became useless.

...

Tebily was not "a complete washout." In fact, most of the posters here who saw him play (in all of two or three appearances) concluded he was probably our best defender. Given his pedigree that wasn't surprising. Being a headcase (or having legitimate family issues in France) doesn't make you a "washout."


My thoughts exactly.

[mighty_torontofc_2008]

I remember BOLD...had the entire playoffs last season..wonder if CBC are doing the same this year


checked the schedule...NO....why would cbc give a damn about MLS playoffs??:mad:

[trane]

As much as fans appreciate the coverage, John, I have to seriously wonder about a few of these statements. Robert wasn't a bust from day one, he spent the first six or seven games pumping good balls into the box, only to find no one in the right position to receive them. Carver knew he didn't play defense when he came, so that was a coaching issue, not a player issue. Once those six or seven games had passed and Robert had decided he didn't like the setup, he became useless.

I suggested Wynne at mid earlier this year; then I saw him try to cross the ball a few times. Not a good idea. And he rarely got beaten in the final third -- his problem, in the first half of the season, was being caught too far forward, so he wasn't even in the final third to BE beaten, half the time.

There was nothing wrong with Tyrone Marshall's positioning most of the time, just his speed -- and even then it was largely from having to cover for the inept play of Velez and James.

Jimmy Brennan was far from stellar defensively, and by the end of the season had been caught out more times than Wynne. In fact, he was probably better offensively this season than defensively.

Tebily was not "a complete washout." In fact, most of the posters here who saw him play (in all of two or three appearances) concluded he was probably our best defender. Given his pedigree that wasn't surprising. Being a headcase (or having legitimate family issues in France) doesn't make you a "washout."

Geuvara and Robbo didn't mesh well at all until the final third of the season. Look at how low Guevara's assist total was. And Carver himself stated publicly on at least two occasions that when he plays the two of them centrally and had guevara come forward, their opponents ripped apart the middle of the field.

Although listed as a forward, Jarrod Smith only actually played there once or twice, and subbed in as a winger most of the time. So you can't really peg him for low goal production.

And how, exactly, does Mo get a passing grade when he has already conceded this year's decent signings were largely up to Carver? From the Barrett or Guevara signings? Maybe, but that doesn't make up for the lack of a defence, in my book.

Interesting read.

I was going to say much of what you have said. Plus I think that while Sutton did make great saves he made to many blunders to get an A. Carver simply did not get the results to be given a B+.

[OneLoveOneEric]

Sutton is not a great keeper. Not close. Great keepers are defined as much by their lack of howlers as by their great saves. Sutton falls short on the blunders.