Pre-Match / Match / Post-Match Thread - Toronto FC at Vancouver Whitecaps FC - March 2, 2013 (R)

No, definitely not disappointed but TFC fans have a real habit of getting ahead of themselves. Check out the link to a big blog post I wrote in the blogs thread - that started as a post on U-Sector - for some extended thoughts on what last night might mean.

As negative as my reaction might seem... we might be (slowly) heading the right direction!

But Nelsen's huge collar's gotta go. My wife was calling him "Quentin" because he looked like like Tarantino with that sweater vest on.

 

I'm just glad he wasn't wearing shorts and a practice jersey

 

One thing like to mention is Bendik who had a decent game, hope he can continue to show that he wants to be the number 1 keeper and push Frei whenever he comes back.

 

I must say, even though Earnshaw was gassed after 60 minutes, he made a good first impression on me. He's got a good first touch, maybe a tad slow reacting to some plays, but he could be a nice finisher. As long as he can create shots and not poach all the time, he'll fit in nicely here.

 

Gee, talk about the glass being half-full. Way to ruin our "woo-hoo!!! TFC only lost by ONE goal this time - we're getting closer!!!" moment of celebration.

 

I'm like a doctor: it might taste bad but it's for our own good.

Get too excited and a crushing rest of the month might be harder to endure! All of our opponents over the next month won their opening game; two of them away in hostile grounds and LA at home in a rout. It still might - MIGHT! - just get worse before it gets better.

 

What about shorts? I suspect they're still verboten.

 

how the heck does a guy in Kentucky end up supporting TFC?

 

I liked the look of Earnshaw up there as well. I'm thinking that once he gets match-fit he'll be a huge asset.

 

Agree completely. Unfortunately, they would probably fire Nelsen mid-season just as they're starting to improve and we'll start all over again.

 

Seen the result. Unlucky getting beat 1-0, not seen the highlights yet but i will have a look later on.
How did Nelsen set you up?

 

defensive 4-4-1-1 with two DMs

 

Let's not start this rinse-wash-repeat cycle again...TFC changes management....things don't change that much....fans/media blame the previous regime.

Between Mariner's firing and this weekend, there could have other matches arranged....if that is what the new management wanted. They did not.

Besides, the one thing that has not changed in history of TFC (under any management) has been the idiotic race in the last week before the first game to, you know, find players and sign them. There were players playing significant minutes on Saturday night that would have had exactly zero benefit from TFC playing more preseason games....because up until the middle of last week they would not have been available to play in them.

 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not blaming Mariner for our current lack of fitness, I just find it funny that he planned as few games as his predecessor after all his whining about lack of fitness due to the lack of games in preseason.

Does anyone remember preseason 2011, the one that Preki would have organized? We had a training camp in Turkey against Partizan, Red Star, and Dinamo Zagreb, then we went to Charleston and played a bunch of games, and then we went to Orlando. These past two years we've just gone to Orlando

BTW, I'm sure they could have scheduled more games than they did, but I doubt they would have been able to line up a decent team to play against since they would have all filled up their preseason schedules already.

 

I sat down to watch the game happy the season was starting. My expectations were rather low, I was assuming something in the range of a 2 - 3 - goal score differential with possession being high 30's / low 40"s. I thought we did a decent job in the first half but was impressed with the White caps speed on / off the ball. Our back four did their jobs well. Upfront without Silva and a couple of guys dealing with travel and jet lag I really did not know what to expect. You usually need a day for every one hour of time change to make the conversion so for both Eppie and Earnie given their performance they did quite well. I stand by my 5 games and then we will see comment, but I am quite optimistic. I liked the way Vancouver used space to spread us out and at the same time I wondered why we seemed to lack this attack feature. Lambe is very quick and I like it when he runs at the other side, I would like to see more of this further out to spread other defences out. The White Caps are to be complimented on the team they have put together and while we may have some stomach turners until we get into late spring I am pleased that with the overal young age of our squad and the potential that appears to be there we will start to play games that are fun to watch and delivering of desired results. Bekkie looked really poised for a rookie and it will be interesting to see if he and Silva can co-exist on the field, given their respective experience. Earnshaw had moments where I could see the quickness and thought process others have mentioned and I can see that he is a natural scorer. All in all I thought the outcome was fair. Vancouver controlled large parts of the 2nd half and while we had strong possession in the 1st half I did not see too many opps that might have had us up by more than 1. Dunfield is so enthusiastic and I like that but he is a liability at times and that missed header was disappointing. ANyhow it will be good to see them take the field this week-end and how knows, who knows . .

 

Match photos.
http://www.zimbio.com/pictures/YVb0rYIhVvC/Toronto+FC+v+Vancouver+Whitecaps/browse

 

I always thought MLSE did that but it just occurred to me that Preki would've wanted to play against Partizan, Red Star and Dinamo.

 

That's a very pro-Vancouver highlight package. They were better than us, but we had our chances too.

 

being a whitecap supporter and attending the game on saturday, i was impressed by TFC's play-- spirited, well-organized along the back line, lots of hustle and playing for each other-- i think TFC has turned the corner and given time, will finally develop into a quality team that the fans have been waiting for soooooo long-- by mid-season, i think u will see that TFC can be a very competitive team building for the future

good luck- TFC fans deserve it!!

 

Ok...I'll answer my own question re: earnshaw. He's only signed until July but TFC have an option then to extend. [this from Larson]