Chris Cummins breaks silence - Guess what? MO MUST GO.

The man who has now become Toronto's hardest hitting football journalist, The Score's Kristian Jack, has done it again. Not long after getting an exclusive interview with former striker Ali Gerba, Jack has got the first no-holds-barred interview with former TFC interim manager Chris Cummins.

What the likeable and very genuine, Cummins has to say about Mo Johnston's meddling, backhanded ways is truly shocking... or is it? Most supporters knew that the arrogant Scot only wanted a puppet and the moves Cummins says he pulled doomed the club into a toxic mess.

A day after a great win against Seattle, the appetite for bad news may not be high but every supporter who loves this club HAS to listen to this interview. Don't be placated by one win, give props to Preki and realize now more than ever - Mo must go.

Link to the interview below:

Kristian Jack interviews Chris Cummins

UPDATE: Later in the evening after this story broke, Mo Johnston replied in an astoundingly odd manner. Follow this National Post link to see how the front office continues to stupidly destroy this club with one soap opera after another. Seriously, is Johnston the un-fireable? Some kind of employment vampire?

THE STARTING 11: Headlines that would have made 2009 worse

--------------------That is some quality toad. Nice hole too.

Well, that's it then. 2009 is done and dusted with Toronto FC having nothing but a big wad of mediocrity to show for it. But have no fear brave TFC supporters - Mo Johnston is working feverishly to make everything better! (You! Step away from the ledge!) Well, you always have to look on the bright side though right? Imagine opening the newspaper and...

11. DE GUZMAN LOSES AFRO IN FREAK TURF ZAMBONI ACCIDENT

10. MONTREAL TO FIELD BEST SQUAD IN CANADA CUP FINAL

9. CHRIS CUMMINS TIPPED FOR ADULT FILM CAREER "I GUESS IT'S MY NAME" SAYS EX- COACH

8. JOHN CARVER ESCAPES WITH NEW BMO FIELD RECIPE: "TOAD-IN-THE-HOLE-ON-A-STICK"

7. DICHIO ATTEMPTS TO GROW ADRIAN SERIOUX-LIKE DREADS: FALLS INTO DEEP DEPRESSION

6. BITCHY THE HAWK GOES MISSING: HALF-PRICE WINGS AT BBQ PIT

5. ROHAN RICKETTS RELEASES FIRST SINGLE: "SOCCER RAP" GOES TO #1 ON CHARTS

4. PLAYERS ON TRIAL ACCIDENTALLY BURN DOWN BMO FIELD DURING PRACTICE

3. OUTBREAK OF BUTTY-FLU!

2. CARLSBERG GOES DRY - SUPPORTERS FORCED TO WATCH TFC SOBER: MANY LEAVE AT THE HALF

1. MO JOHNSTON SIGNS 2 1/2 YEAR CONTRACT EXTENSION.... (What?... Really?... But I was joking... Aww crap.)

BREAKING NEWS: Scapegoat # 2 fired

So Mo Johnston's big state of the no-union address was to remove the "interim" tag from head coach Chris Cummins title. He also removed the word "head" and "coach" from the affable Englishman's job description as well.

Yes, the ever-humble Johnston dispatched yet another manager from the TFC bench with Cummins being the convenient excuse for the mediocrity which Mo has taken nearly four years to build. But not to worry TFC supporters, the Scottish genius and # 1 on Richard Peddie's Christmas card list, "hopes" to have a new manager by February. No... not a typo... February!

Why exactly will it potentially take a professional club over nine months since the departure of John Carver to find a manager? Could it be that he needs to wait for Danny Dichio to get his coaching papers before being announced as Nick Dasovic's assistant? Is Mo waiting to see if the current Luton/ Crewe/ Swindon Town (insert low English league club here) manager is fired and suddenly available? Or maybe Barry MacLean, Mo's agent who seems to represent 75% of TFC, needs more time to do Mo's job for him?

Considering that the coaching style of your on-field manager should reflect upon your squad, how exactly are off-season moves going to be decided? Obviously it will be Mo (and his agent) fully deciding on the draft and any (if any) off-season acquisitions. This series of events will of course mean that any new manager will likely just be another extension (i.e. puppet) of the Scottish Lord and doomed to be Scapegoat # 3 in the "Keep Johnston at MLSE For Life Program".

And, in case you missed that sweet little nugget today, Johnston admitted he has agreed upon a 2 1/2 year contract extension pending finances. Joy! TFC supporters can expect a whole lot more of the same for a long time to come. Simply sad.

Editorial: TFC bench doesn't know is it's Cummins or going

After the all too predictable failure of Toronto FC on Saturday afternoon, the supporter's, and media's, axe was immediately and forcefully swung at interim manager Chris Cummins' head. It is hard to argue that anger, what with the technical shortcomings of TFC in the San Jose match and in many previous matches this season, but how much of the blame can lay solely at Cummins’ feet? Think about it this way, if your bus hit a lamppost on the way to work but the bus driver only had his learner's permit - would you blame the driver or the TTC who let him drive the bus? Chris Cummins, whose previous coaching zenith was as Luton Town's youth coach, has a learner's permit at best.

Cummins should have indeed been far better tactically than he has been this season. You should not deny him some of the responsibility for the constant all-out-defence, or Torontonaccio as we call it here, every time TFC held a slim lead. The astonishing statistic of 15 goals allowed after the 75th minute is shameful. The late game let downs, as well as the often impotent offence, are sure signs of a club that doesn't have a system that it is confident playing and players who have even less trust in their ability to succeed. The awful tactics, strange substitutions and often baffling line-up inclusions (yes you Chad Barrett) show a manager who is either woefully ill-prepared to manage at this level or is being controlled too tightly from above by a Director who has a hard time letting go of the reins. Perhaps the sudden and shocking departure of John Carver earlier this season had a lot more behind it than was let on at the time. After all, it's not as if Carver ran to another job was it?

Carver's early season departure is the most frustrating episode of this saga. Before the season began, Mo Johnston and MLSE were telling the world that this season's goals were Champions League and most importantly the playoffs. Carver's departure was indeed a road bump but it happened less than a third of the way into the season. If the less than lofty ambitions of a post-season were true, then why wouldn't a club of this size go out and find a suitable manager by mid-season to steady the ship? In MLS, half a season is an eternity. The right manager, and there are an awful lot of qualified ones out there, could have led Toronto well into the CCL Group Stage and safely into the playoffs. There are two big issues with a hiring of that sort though - spending the non-salary cap money to attract a good manager, and most importantly, having the Director cut the strings and allow a qualified manager to run the show his way.

A new face in TFC's coaching staff is an obvious checkmark in Mo Johnston's post-season to-do-list. It doesn't necessarily need to be a huge name in charge but it has to be a man who has the respect of the players and the freedom to create a style and set of tactics that TFC can and will play. Three Head Coaches in three seasons is no way to build a solid foundation. Mo Johnston will have to bite the bullet on this one and hire a strong character who may not always agree with him but that can work with him. He must also fight the temptation to simply promote from within in order to keep payroll down and keep his own job continually safe. As for Chris Cummins, he seems like a really genuine, nice man who was sadly put in the driver's seat of a bus headed towards a cliff with his learner's permit flapping in his jacket pocket.

TFC a McBridesmaid, never a McBride

That's about it then right? Enough now with the endless quest for the playoffs? Toronto had to leave Illinois with three points tonight but could only grab one from a match that saw TFC start with a frenetic energy and end with most players about to collapse. The 2-2 result was probably fair for both teams who both showed a lot more in the way of mistakes rather than skill. The biggest mistakes though seemed to come from the Toronto bench and its often baffling tactics.

Interim (by necessity) manager Chris Cummins started a very similar line-up to last week's team with Julian De Guzman playing a bit deeper than his previous match. It wasn't the DP who shone for TFC though, it was Dwayne De Rosario who was a man on fire for most of the night and grabbed the reins immediately. In the 6th minute, De Ro capitalized on a Fire defensive lapse and struck his 11th goal of the year putting The Reds up early. Ali Gerba looked dangerous and healthier and TFC looked dominant for the first 10 minutes, even Chad Barrett looked sharp (I hurt my hand typing that). However, disaster struck in the 14th minute when Rent-A-Defender Nick Garcia put a very weak own-goal past keeper Stefan Frei. The OG from the Earthquakes cast-off (!!!) deflated TFC's momentum and they lost their way, losing their composure for most of the remaining half.

Halftime reflections were frustrating as Toronto headed to the locker rooms on the wrong foot. Jim Brennan's rapid decline seemed very evident in the half with broadcaster Craig Forrest even openly pondering whether the captain should retire at season's end. It was nice to hear a broadcaster say what many of us are thinking. In the very least it was better than going back to the studio to hear Rob Faulds refer to the team as "FC" over and over again. That's so 2007! Luckily, former Blizzard supporters were spared any footage from Chicago's "Soccer Bowl '84" anniversary celebrations at halftime but it seemed as if the civic one-upmanship may have sparked The Reds in the locker room. That, or former Juve and Blizzard maestro Roberto Bettega called Chris Cummins.

Either way, pigs briefly flew over Chicago as TFC came roaring out in the 2nd half and Chad Barrett (ouch my hand) connected onto a De Ro cross and put Toronto ahead 2-1. It looked like "Blizzard's Revenge" but Chris Cummins decided that turtling for a whole half would be the best way to preserve the slim lead. Our old favourite negative tactic - Torontonaccio, came out and TFC put 10 men behind the ball. The useful Gerba was shockingly replaced by the still injured defensive midfielder Carl Robinson and The Reds began ball watching as Fire grew more confident. The all-out defending wore down Toronto in a hurry and they began to drop like flies through exhaustion and injury. Inevitably, Chicago patiently found its moment and Brian McBride schooled Nick Garcia and tied the game with a clinical finish. At that point, Cummins decided that offence was once again important and brought on O'Brian White but with most Reds collapsing on the field, the match was over apart from a lucky escape in the last second where Chicago could have taken all three points.

Chris Cummins, the former Luton youth coach and full-time Mo Puppet seems like a really nice guy but as the season has got down to the nitty gritty, his tactics and decisions have become less and less effective. Who knows if he has full control or if there is a Scottish puppeteer pulling strings from above (just what did John Carver know?) but the interim label looks like it should stay attached to the affable Englishman. The playoff hunt looks well and truly dead now as New England got their 3 points tonight jumping well ahead and TFC's end of season record will only end up being marginally better than last year's. If this season was indeed as important and promising as sold early in the season, would it have been that hard to find a truly qualified replacement manager by mid-season? Of course then Mo couldn't have a new manager to fire this time next year and all eyes would be on him instead. Perish the thought.

Editorial: Time to end kid gloves for TFC

Most parents will tell you that if you coddle a child for too long then they will end up spoiled. Now it's unsure how long "childhood" lasts for your average MLS club but three years seems to be at least "young adult". Why then, is Toronto FC being treated so gingerly by most observers - both on the inside and the outside of the club? The second half of the 2009 season has been truly awful. Yes, there has been the good news of Julian De Guzman's signing and the faint smell of real grass in the air, but on the field, this team's position in the table has only been saved by the mediocrity of the teams around them. The difference between TFC and the other clubs however is that the others are not using tired excuses like being a "young" club but rather calling it like it is - "a bad season".

There are some very glaring weaknesses that The Reds have shown since their first season which most supporters would have expected to be long gone by late season 2009 but have nonetheless remained. Production from TFC strikers is as impotent as it was on day one in 2007 with no signs of improvement, especially with the stubborn inclusion of Chad Barrett and the misuse of Ali Gerba. The other major roadblock to improvement is the shocking lack of production on the road. After last week's loss to Galaxy, the club's recent road tally was 1 point out of a possible 12. It was after that game that the "kid glove" treatment of the team reached maddening new levels. There were absurd comments from manager Chris Cummins that TFC "dominated" the play but were beaten by some bad luck. Apart from the TFC staff, the broadcast team on Rogers Sportsnet called the loss "a good effort" despite the 2-0 scoreline and lack of good Toronto scoring chances. The running corporate line throughout the season from Mo Johnston and MLSE is that they are "building something special" in the long-term, but near the end of three seasons the excuse of being a “young team” surely has to end now.

This mythology was further propelled this week by the team's star Dwayne De Rosario who appeared on SUN TV's "The Grill Room". When asked about the season's lacklustre results the "only a third year team" line was trotted out by the Scarberian. The fact that De Ro said his decision to come to TFC was "the right move at the time" was unfortunately not probed further but his body language of late and the sheepish answers from most other Toronto players seems to illuminate a lack of real answers. The new DP Julian De Guzman has said the right things such as the "playoffs are now" for TFC but surely there must be unhappiness in the dressing room that a playoff struggle is the best this club could achieve. Bluntly put, three years is enough time for any club with the financial prowess of TFC, in any league, to build a winner. It is not too much for Toronto supporters to expect more than a "squeaky bum time" (thanks to Sir Alex Ferguson) win in the Canadian Championship and a humiliating crash out of Champions League. While it is true there are some positive moves for next year, the time for "young club" excuses is over. There should be no fear from inside or outside of the club to call a spade a spade and simply say "this has been a bad season". A bad year is not the end of the world but propelling weak excuses from one year to the next must end before we start hearing about the woes of "only a fourth year club".