"Sepultureros" Didn't Need Help

Puerto Rico Islanders have an unofficial nickname of "Sepultureros" or in English - "The Gravediggers". Over the two legs of the Champions League Preliminary they didn't need help - Toronto FC brought it's own shovel and did all the work necessary to bury themselves.

Where does one begin with tonight's second leg? It is fair to think that most TFC supporters were expecting to see the club come out flying tonight, but instead of a cohesive unit we were offered up 11 men who happened to be wearing the same shirt. There was no evidence of a gameplan, no feeling of urgency and a seemingly shocking lack of motivation to do better. The urgency accelerated as the clock wound down but the team, the gameplan and the quality never reached acceptable levels. 180 minutes of football provided no goals and a shocking lack of good chances. Puerto Rico win 1-0 over two legs - and deserve it.

Throwing Chris Cummins under the bus will not achieve anything. Fabio Capello couldn't make a silk purse out of the sow's ear on the pitch tonight but the interim manager must at least share in the blame. How the club came out without the plan and motivation necessary is alarming. The change in attacking formation in the second half proved fruitless as the long range efforts were wishful at best but there was no further radical change from the bench. The only answer was to throw more and more attackers on the field and pray for a PRI mistake. While the Danny Dichio-Messiah legend is overplayed in Toronto, it is baffling that you wouldn't throw your giant hitman at their giant defenders for more than 20 minutes. In the end the best chance did ironically fall to Dichio's feet only to be denied by the post. All of the tactics were baffling.

The players must take their share in the blame as well. Far too many of the veteran leaders of this club where invisible tonight. The returning Amado Guevara was a non-factor while Carl Robinson and Jim Brennan added little. Brennan's crosses are in fact becoming weaker every game. Adrian Serioux put his body on the line again, and Dwayne De Rosario at least showed heart if not finishing, but the two hometown boys couldn't carry the other 9. It is sad to see that the passion for Toronto FC that made Torontonians make the very long trek to support the team in Puerto Rico wasn't shared on the pitch.

The most infuriating result, apart from failing to qualify, is that MLSE will gloss over this loss with one brief article on the TFC website and immediately get back to the circus that is Real Madrid. Sorry, MLSE/ TFC - this was the most important match of the season NOT an overhyped and underplayed exhibition next Friday which most real supporters were priced out of anyways. With that "the week that will make or break the season" was broke and a wall has been hit. Good luck getting that gravedigger's shovel back on the plane TFC, unless of course you are staying on for a few days to extend your Puerto Rican vacation. If so, I'm sure the travelling supporters who have to rush back to their real jobs will take it for you.

Match Preview: Getting Two By The Islanders aka "Los Miraclos II"

PUERTO RICO ISLANDERS VS. TORONTO FC
Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium - Tuesday 8:00PM EST
TV: GOL-TV

What's Spanish for deja vu? It wasn't long ago that TFC had grossly underestimated a USL squad only to need a major win to escape humiliating defeat. Glad to see life lessons were learned back in Montreal. Toronto FC did manage to pull off a minor footballing miracle back at Saputo that night however this is a whole different kettle of Tilapia. Unlike L'Impact, Islanders (or Tropa Naranja to their friends) have everything to play for and will not be fielding a reserve team for this match. Nothing is impossible and the ball is indeed round, but you have to believe that TFC is about to see exactly how Puerto Rico went to the CONCACAF Champions League Semi-Finals last season. Aye bloody carumba.

PUERTO RICO ISLANDERS (CCL) 1-0-0 (1GF / 0GA - 1 Away Goal)
Expect a very patient Islanders team at home. They have a good fan base who will be pushing them forward but manager Colin Clarke and his team know TFC will have everything to play for. Los Islenos will likely try to shut up shop and wait for TFC to make a mistake then pounce on the counter-attack. You know, like they did at BMO Field last week - aye! aye! aye! The PRI back four were both solid and feisty (almost fighting with each other at one point!) and know how to get the job done. Even if The Reds can sneak one by the defenders, keeper Bill Gaudette is very capable and likely headed back to MLS soon. We may not see them all night but any offense will likely come from Caribbean forwards Kendall Jagdeosingh and Nicholas Addlery.

TORONTO FC (CCL) 0-0-1 (0GF / 1GA)
Toronto FC have been an enigma all year long. You never know from one match to the next what to expect. "Strike early and strike often" should be the mantra being drilled into the players' heads as they acclimatize themselves to Puerto Rico. There will be no time to settle into a rhythm in this match and TFC will have to come out firing on all cylinders. Chris Cummins will hopefully be able to find a way of getting Ali Gerba more involved as success depends on the strikers doing what they are paid for. If he starts Chad Barrett again, they get what they deserve. Amado Guevara and Nana Attakora are still questionable and Adrian Serioux is sore but it will likely take wild Puerto Rican horses to keep him off the field. Where would this team be without Scarborough? TFC needs a 1-0 scoreline to send it to ET and a +2 score to win it. If they do go up by two they cannot have a 2nd half nap as per usual - Islanders will catch them if they do. Let's make a deal, if they manage to win the match and the preliminary, don't call it a "miracle", call it "what is expected".

THE ROTTEN RANT: Islanders Display Sums Up The Season

To whom it may concern,

How could a club who has been preparing for the biggest game in it's history come out so flat? It's not as if Puerto Rico was tearing up the pitch. What happened to "BMO Field -The Fortress", "This Is Our House" etc. etc? The lack of effort and game plan was terrible and as the game wore on the crosses got worse, the corners near amateurish and the finishing was non-existent. God forbid I say it out loud in the stands, but for the first time since 2007 I was so bored I almost fell asleep standing up.

Where is this all going? I'm tired of hearing "TFC is building something special for the future". It's one step forward and two steps back with this club. This season's highlight was the big win in Montreal but honestly it should have never come to that. The long term affect of that game was that another lacklustre season has been sugarcoated by one match. MLSE has once again managed our expectations.

Finally, if you believe Julian De Guzman was ever coming here you should also wait for a fat man to enter your house in December, leave you a new TFC jersey under your evergreen while munching on your cookies.

Yours negatively,
Professor Dom Rotten


Dom Rotten is an expert in the field of negative thought and is Head of the Department of Negative Neurology at University of Stouffville. The Yorkies do not necessarily endorse all of Mr. Rotten's opinions but he will express them whether you want to hear them or not.

The South Stand Report : Toronto VS. Puerto Rico or... The Most Important Game Ever Played Ever Anywhere... Ever

-------------------Because honestly, my logo is better than theirs
-------------------------------------and that's the mockery

A lovely humid, yet cool night at New Fort York. The precipitation has held off and there is some nice cleavage in the 6th row a lovely pink and orange painted sunset peeking behind the clouds.

For those that don't know, this is the most important game this club has ever played, which will eventually be overshadowed by the second leg rematch next week. CONCACAF Champions League qualifier has the mighty Reds up against the mighty Oranges of Puerto Rico. The Islanders, much like all other USL clubs, are not as crap as you may think. Last season, the Islanders took Cruz Azul to penalties in the SEMI-FINALS of the tournament. Still think they're sh*te? After finishing first in the USL, they had to play the final on the road due to ground unavailability and lost to Vancouver on the other side of the continent.

TFC are fresh off the all-too-familiar 'final five minutes collapse' against our faux arch rivals Columbus. But Puerto Rico should be a walk, no?

Serioux, Guevara and Attakora are out with varying injuries and Velez is on the bench. Oh well.

Predictions are 2-0, 2-1, 3-0 pro TFC and what can only be described as a pro-Islanders 2-2. Onto the match...

1st minute - Steele just fires wide in a highly ambitious start. The one kid in front of us gasses a ripe one... Warned to take a sh*t before game time.

5 - Arrieta heads the ball across the goal and just over the bar unmarked. Oh dear.

6 - Cronin fires his first shot just left of the net.

10 - Vitti undresses defenders and passes off to Cronin. Someone needs to inform Vitti that his role as a forward is to shoot. I can't imagine Vitti's contract has a no-shooting clause. Actually, that would explain alot...

13 - Garcia stops a PR attack without concern. Seriously, ice through his veins sometimes. I wonder how he reacts when he's under pressure.

20 - Vitti undresses a defender twice, loses the ball and a counter filled with pretty passing results in Kendall Jagdeosingh firing just left of the net. Vitti must have an undressing defenders clause too...

26 - The Chad with a flawless cross on to the head of DeRo and just puts it wide.

35 - Defender loses his shoe which results in a Toronto attack, Gerba's first shot doesn't miss by much.

HALF TIME : Antsy.

Note : It must be said that at this point, we've had nothing but praise for the Puerto Rico back four. Their discipline is surreal. Think Greece from Euro 2004.

47 - Gerba. Missile. Wide. Two supporters injured... probably.

52 - The Chad shoots forcing the keeper to make a glove deflection for a corner.

54 - DeRo throw, Cronin half-volley in, Gerba header, off the bar. Gargan and another defender start a pushing and shouting match. I think "oh, this is the end of the Islander defensive trap"...

Ro : "The Chad is a better midfielder than he is a forward" after a pretty run that causes some confusion in the defence.

61 - Cronin curls a ball just wide of the opposite post. Best touch he's had all game, but to be honest, the wrong guy is taking all the shots.

Dom announces that he has got to get some eggs after the game and encourages me to write it in. Either he's lacking Omega-3s or he's desperate for some blog time. There you go Dom. Now the world knows you have an egg fetish.

65 - TFC Corner. Dom feels that "this is it!".

66 - Another corner. Dom still feels that "this is it!".

67 - GOAL - Frei comes off his line, gets caught out and Jagdeosingh rifles a rocket into the net at a difficult angle. It was the kind of mistake that every goalie makes now and again so it's forgiveable. The goal came off a free kick against the run of play that, for all intents and purposes, was a great strike.

I guess that was it, huh?

71 - Build up has Gerba laying the ball off for Cronin who skies the ball.

74 - SUB - Barrett off, O'Brien White on. This was agreed as the wrong substitution to make as Barrett was playing really well. Should've been Vitti for Dichio and it should've been 15 minutes ago.

77 - Gerba gets called back offside after believing he beat the trap and embarasses the PR keeper. So close, but the right call.

78 - DeRo and the PR goalie clash. Goalie embellishes for too long, then has the audacity to take too long in his kick. Ref finally books him after three verbal warnings.

85 - YELLOW - Robinson does, um, something.

85 - SUB - Robinson off, Dichio on. 30 minutes too late.

89 - Dichio boxes out his marker to set a clear shot for a Brennan laser beam -PR goalie makes a lunging save.

90 - DeRo cross sends a diving Dichio header and an even BETTER diving save from the PR goalie. If it wasn't for the unsportsmanlike bullsh*t, I'd not only consider naming him Man of the Match, but I'd consider putting his name in... but I won't.

90+? Gerba pops up a strange shot that ends up almost chipping the keeper but allows Dichio to hammer into him. If the only justice we get tonight is the poetic kind, then so be it.

FULL-TIME TFC 0 : Puerto Rico 1

Man of the Match : DeRo. Gomez with an honourable mention.

Goat : No member of the TFC side was particularly bad. In fact they were good, if not, very good. However, Chris Cummins, beloved manager and the genius behind the 4-3-3, gets the nod tonight if only for waiting too long to bring on Dichio.

We understand that with any substitutions there's the whole "what if" scenario and second guessing. Given that the Puerto Rico back four were all 10s (if we were so anal to rate all the players, but we're not so just take our brilliant words for it), playing the flattest perfect deep trap I've ever witnessed, it was too long before Dichio came on and do what he does best : be big, strong, immovable and create much needed space up front.

Also note, we are not sycophants who believe that Dichio is the modern day answer to greatness (like Winston Churchill, Richard Simmons, James Brown to name a few). However, we do acknowledge what his role is and what he's good at : being the classic English-style number 10. I firmly believe that Dichio is the answer to solving the Puerto Rico riddle. But what do I know.

Ro would like to point out a giant WTF at the 4th official and the tannoy announcer for no mention of time remaining in the match. Puerto Rico made a substitution, but no sign indicating time added on returned. Boo discount refs. Boo.

Otherwise...

Ref meter : 3 out of 5. Didn't really screw up any calls and would've got a 4 had he booked the delaying keeper the second time he took the goal kick. Solid crew. Thanks for coming.

Poor-T.O. Rico

What do the writers of "Lost" and TFC have in common? Neither have an idea of how to successfully kill off Islanders.

It was offensive. Just not in the right way. TFC beat themselves in their first ever appearance in international play with an utter lack of attacking teamwork. The team have not found a way to integrate new striker Ali Gerba into the line-up and paid the price as they lost to Puerto Rico 1-0 on home turf. Islanders get a win and the all important away goal after striker Kendall Jagdeosingh hit a cracker on PR's only real shot on goal. Toronto now has a massive hill to climb as PRI are very solid at home and TFC will need 2 goals to win at least. If you are thinking TFC "Miracle II", Islanders won't roll over like the Impact did. PR's keeper Bill Gaudette won't let that happen and either way, Chris Cummins still has to fix the sputtering attack.

Very little to cheer for at BMO tonight but a small silver lining goes to Toronto's 18 year old Gambian defender Emmanuel Gomez who looked extraordinarily composed in his debut. A dart tonight though for the crowd, as the midfield (see expensive) seats were half empty which is disappointing for TFC's continental debut. Full no doubt next week against Real Madrid - a game with absolutely no importance compared with tonight. Stay connected for tonight's "South Stand Report".

Match Preview: Escaping The Island(ers)

TORONTO FC VS. PUERTO RICO ISLANDERS
BMO Field - Wednesday 8:00PM EST
TV: GOL-TV

Who's wants to sing the song? "THE CHAAAAAMPIONS!" Just like UEFA - but poor. It's CONCACAF Champions League! Wednesday is the night where Toronto FC and their supporters finally get to feel what its like to be Sparta Prague or FC Copenhagen. Champions of their nation - but not a good enough nation to get past the doorman and go straight into the party. It's the ever dangerous preliminary round - a home and home matchup where anything can happen. TFC will take on the bright orange Caribbean menace that are Puerto Rico Islanders at BMO Field with the return date scheduled for August 4th at PR's Juan Ramon Loubriel Stadium. Winning the two game series would be the beginning of an exciting continental trip - like a footballing National Lampoon's Vacation. However, if TFC underestimate PRI like a USL weakling (see Vancouver), it could be a terribly sad and unfulfilling trip - like a footballing National Lampoon's European Vacation.

PUERTO RICO ISLANDERS 0-0-0 (CCL)
USL side Puerto Rico showed a great affinity for Champions League play in the 08/09 tournament marching all the way from the preliminary to the Semi-Finals only to lose to Mexican powerhouse Cruz Azul in extra time. Currently sitting in 3rd place in the USL, the Islanders are a very solid team with a definite flair for offensive play. PRI's manager is Northern Irishman Colin Clarke, most famous for his spell as a player at Southampton where he scored 36 goals. Clarke took over PRI in 2008 and brought in a host of new faces whom have gelled quickly. The danger-men that TFC will have to keep in check include ex-Lecce defender, Italian-American Christian Arrieta who leads the team with 7 goals playing from the back; Northern Irish hardman midfielder Jonny Steele (also possibly a superhero alias) who is PR's version of Carl Robinson; and very solid goalkeeping in the form of American Bill Gaudette, formerly of Columbus Crew and apparently on Team USA's radar. Definitely not a USL also-ran and a foe that could prove much harder for Toronto than Vancouver or Montreal.

TORONTO FC 0-0-0 (CCL)
Well, here it is. The boys have grown up and are leaving the friendly confines of North America and tread gingerly into their first continental competition. Manager Chris Cummins and the players who have been in Europe will understand the pitfalls of international cup play and will know that they need a far better performance than they put out in the last two MLS matches. Things won't be made easier with injuries to Amado Guevara, Adrian Serioux and Nana Attakora. The defence, without Serioux and Attakora is especially suspect but perhaps former Islander Marco Velez can narc his old team and shine in a great chance at redemption. This is not the right time to criticize Mo Johnston's team building. However, I am not feeling fair - Mo, you should have seen this coming. If TFC can get past PRI and make the group stage, this club's roster is not deep enough to handle another six matches. Let me guess - you're trying to loan a River Plate player you saw last week right? For now, The Reds' attack has to say "ola" to the net a lot and pray to Saint Andrea of Lombardo that Islanders don't get any away goals.