LETTERS FROM CAMP: Trials. Tribulations.

Honestly... we CAN handle some strikers.



A SPORTING DISPLAY
Toronto FC continued their "preparation" for the regular season today with a scrimmage against home opener opponents Sporting KC down in the tropical wilds of Central Florida. On paper, the 3-3 result doesn't seem like the worst thing in the world but considering that only four of the starting eleven are actually signed to the club probably says much about how far along things are. Today's Reds were too distant from a real version of the team to be happy or sad about the state of things but at the very least.... they managed to score a few goals. The fact that the goals came from two unsigned youngsters (Ashton Bennett (2) and Jonathan Osorio) is best left unsaid.
　
ANOTHER DAY, ANOTHER TRIAL
It wouldn't be a day at TFC camp without another trialist that isn't a striker joining the club. The latest body to join Camp Shining Light (for at least a few days) is San Jose Earthquakes cast-off Jake "Horton Hears a" Hustedt. Guess what guys? He's a defender! You're downright flabbergasted aren't you?

#TFC training update: defender Jake Hustedt has been added to the preseason squad on trial. #TFClive
— Toronto FC (@torontofc) February 20, 2013

So another day passes in TFC's quest to avoid signing anyone who can score a goal while collecting trialists Panini Sticker-stylee. Who knows, maybe things really are going on behind the scenes (Yes, let’s say that while rocking in a corner) but TFC must have taken an Extra Strength Tylenol because it seems like Payne has disappeared. The President who was a quote machine since November has not been heard of much lately while Earl Cochrane speaks to the media, Fran O'Leary manages the team and Jimmy Brennan's pals are stopping by to go on trial. Here's hoping Kevin Payne is busy somewhere getting those strikers and wingers signed and not in Brazil on a scouting trip with Mo Johnston. Culture change etc. TBA

LETTERS FROM CAMP: Ryin Nilsin Tistimowkneeal Metch

"Cheerio Poms but me hammy is knackered"



MESH AND BONE
Harry Redknapp may claim he still isn't sure but our new New Zealish overlord Ryan Nelsen is hours away from calling it a day on his long and successful playing career. The new TFC gaffer will wear the hoops of QPR one last time today as the struggling West Londoners host the defending Premier League champions Manchester City - and it seems not a moment too soon. Not only is there a hefty amount of pressure on the affable Kiwi to take over the TFC reins quickly but according to the man himself, his legs sound about ready to fall apart. Nelsen told the redundantly named MLSsoccer.com this week that apart from his "glass knees", the big defender has a hamstring that is currently being "screwed on with screws and mesh at the moment". In New Zealisher or any language - that crap's just gross.
　
CHILDREN ARE THE FUTURE CUP
Our mateys over at Waking The Red have been using their leftover Dutch phrasebooks and dug up an interesting tidbit regarding TFC's youth teams. Apparently The Reds' U-16 squad will be invited over to Amsterdam to take part in the very prestigious AEGON Future Cup, hosted by those kings of voetbal development - Ajax. The tournament which welcomes the utes of major clubs such as Manchester United, AC Milan and Barcelona to name a few, would be a great challenge for Toronto's burgeoning Academy system. Of course being The Future Cup, this will all take place in some possibly dystopian reality so who knows what will happen. Blade Runners, Biff Tannen... that midget robot from Buck Rogers - it could get weird. Also, a bunch of teenagers in Amsterdam for a week.
　
SHHH! TRAINING CAMP
While it's not necessarily an ominous sign, the sounds you aren't hearing in town are about TFC's Training Camp. Practicing under the mystical Bubbles of Downsview, the club has just been quietly going about their business before relocating to Orlando, Florida later this week. Lack of eventful drama is nice but some supporters are finding the hush around possible additions to the squad increasingly disconcerting. As of now, The Reds' midfield and forward depth charts are wafer thin and the only nugget of new faces is an agency Facebook entry noting that Brazilian "wonder" twins Pedro and Paulo Mendes (most recently of the mighty superclub Atlanta Silverbacks) have been invited as trialists. Yahoo? In the past, fans have been teased with numerous possible additions by this time of the year - but of course those years all turned out to be disasters. Perhaps patience is a virtue? Okay, but our fingernails aren't too happy about it.

Tragedy, travel and trialists

"Umm, no - not me, the other one"



DERBY DELAY
Toronto FC's scheduled match against Columbus on Saturday has been postponed to allow the Crew organization to attend funeral services for Kirk Urso. Urso, Columbus' rookie midfielder died suddenly last Saturday and the club requested the fixture change from the league and TFC. "Given the tragic circumstances we agreed to accept this change in the schedule," said Reds' manager Paul Mariner. "Our thoughts are with the Urso family and everyone at the Columbus Crew during this difficult time." The match has been moved to August 22.
　
FREQUENT FLYERS
While the tragic reasons for the rescheduling of Saturday's match takes priority over football issues, the change in fixture throws a wrinkle into TFC's match preparations. The last two weeks of August will now see The Reds play a taxing five matches in two weeks. This stretch will include a five-day period which sees TFC plane-hopping between Toronto, Columbus and Houston before returning home to host Santos Laguna in a critical CCL match-up. The end of the month offers little respite as the Santos Laguna fixture is followed by a trip to Sporting KC and their fortress-like Livestrong Park three days later.
　
TRIAL OF THE CENTURY SUMMER
A small advantage to having the weekend off is that the club gets to have a longer look at the latest three trialists to jog their wares around Downsview Park. This year's trial list has only produced backup keeper Freddy Hall so far but there three intriguing players wearing green bibs this week:
　
PAUL ROBINSON:
PROS: Offers depth at centreback and on the left side as well as veteran leadership / Played alongside new Red Darren O'Dea at Leeds briefly / If signed you can say the sentence "We signed Paul Robinson... (wait for reply)... no the other Paul Robinson" over and over again
CONS: 33-year old journeyman who is a bit broken-down and won't be cheap / Could stymie Ashtone Morgan's playing time if Mariner goes "old Englishman love-in" / ex-Watford player and resident could force us to wear yellow kits next year and/or hear an increase in Elton John
BEST POTENTIAL NICKNAME: "The Other One"
　
DIEGO CERVANTES:
PROS: A healthy 6 foot 3, 27-year old centreback / Has tons of experience playing in CONCACAF environs / Has possibly played for every team in Mexico
CONS: Could mark the end of Adrian Cann's Toronto career / Needs to be loaned out to a new club every year to survive / Will have to fit in on a club that has about as much Latin flair as a Taco Bell in Oshawa
BEST POTENTIAL NICKNAME: "Donkey"
　
ANTWAN RUSSELL:
PROS: Along with Reggie Lambe and Freddy Hall, will complete TFC's "Bermuda Triangle" / You can't have enough ex-Dandy Town Hornets
CONS: For a forward, has very little goal scoring history / Will exhaust TFC's tapping of the Bermuda market, forcing us to look at St. Lucia
BEST POTENTIAL NICKNAME: "Bermudinho"
　
And... since it's Friday, we could do with a dance, we have no TFC this weekend and things could end up getting aimless like so...

LETTERS FROM CAMP: Flo Riders

TAKING THE KIDS TO DISNEY
The Reds announced yesterday that they were taking a compliment of 33 players with them to Florida to continue pre-season training. No major surprise to the travel itinerary as the club has yet to make further cuts after their initial four less than two weeks ago. Not making the trip are long-term injury projects Dicoy Williams and Nicholas Lindsay along with Jeremy Hall who (for undisclosed reasons) "trained away from the team" recently. Two younger Academy prospects, Brandon John and Tristan Jackman, don't get to ride the teacups at Disney neither but it is a magical time for (very) young Jordan Hamilton. The Academy youngster who is a month shy of his 16th birthday gets to continue his journey with the pros for at least a few weeks more.
　
The Reds will train in the Orlando area while participating in the Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic. The tournament will see TFC play at least three matches in their group stage involving Swedish club BK Hacken, Orlando City and FC Dallas. It was announced yesterday that live match streaming will be made available on the MLS website which should be much more interesting than the TFC YouTube video of the players boarding a bus to the airport. Way to depart Torsten!
　
ON TRIAL?
Our good friends over at Waking The Red have been digging through the rumour mill and have emerged with two candidates who could be joining TFC as trialists in The Sunshine State. In line with Paul Mariner's hint last week that two domestic but non-MLS players may join on trial, the names of Kevin Huezo and Julian Uccello have surfaced.
　
Huezo is a 20-year old leftback who has very little in the way of professional pedigree but has had flirtations with the USA U-20 team as well as Mexican club Pachuca's junior ranks. Uccello is an intriguing character. The 25-year old Toronto-born striker was once promising enough to go on extended trial with Manchester United and ended up in AC Milan's youth ranks. However, things haven't gone as hoped for the twice-capped Canada U-20 and his pro career has seen him bounce around the Italian lower divisions with such clubs as Crotone and Casale. His healthy strike rate at those levels and TFC's weakness at back-up striker could give him the slightest in with the club.

UPDATE: This afternoon, TFC officially tweeted (if that's a thing) that Kevin Huezo would indeed be on a trial with The Reds but joined by another former USA U-20 Moises Orozco. Both players were involved with the U-20 program when new TFC Academy Director Thomas Rongen was involved which illuminates the effects the Dutchman is having on TFC already. No official denial or acknowledgement of any Julian Uccello trial yet.
　
BRAVE WORDS
Much of the Canadian football community was shocked by the story that emerged from long-time player, coach and personality Paul James. In his cathartic and tell-all novel "Cracked Open", James tells the story of a career in football with some highs... but extraordinary lows. The most shocking element of the former Toronto Blizzard and Canadian international midfielder's novel is his admittance to being a long-term crack cocaine addict. Weaving a tale that tackles James' many demons, while traversing the strange world of the CSA, is both a brave and a frightening story. "Cracked Open" is available online now through James' website.

Letters from Camp: It's not Cann, it's a Dicoy

Left: decoy; Right: Dicoy

OHH! DICOY-OH!
In a further sign that Aron Winter's hardline stance against Adrian Cann's holdout won't likely waver, TFC has invited a new trialist into camp. 24-year-old Jamaican centreback Dicoy Williams joined The Reds at their South Carolina camp with the hopes of landing a contract. The 6 foot 2 defender has proven a quick marker with good leaping ability during his career at Jamaican club Harbour View and in his 6 Caps with The Reggae Boyz. A point in his favour is his ability to also play on both the right and left wings making him a potentially valuable bench option if he can handle the physicality of MLS.
　
NOT READY de GO
It seems as if the hopes that Julian de Guzman would be ready to start the new season against Vancouver may have been a touch ambitious. Speaking to media yesterday, manager Aron Winter revealed that the DP's injury recovery has been a little slower than expected... “Julian is recovering well,” said the Dutchman “but he’s three to four weeks away from being ready to play.” That is slightly disappointing for fans who would like to see the new squad take shape but Winter's plans for the midfielder may give fans optimism that the hometown star can bounce back from a poor 2010 season - “In our system, he will be one of our key players,” Winter said. “He will get the ball at his feet and forward in attacking positions.”
　
"I LOVE... GOOOOOLD!"
No, Bob de Klerk isn't doing his Goldmember accent in an interview, just a bit of Team Canada news which will no doubt involve some Reds. The group stage of the 2011 CONCACAF Gold Cup was announced today and Canada was slotted into Group C along side arch-rivals USA, Van Halen's favourite team – Panama, and the former home of Milli Vanilli - Guadeloupe. The highlight of the round will be a cross-border showdown in Detroit, Michigan on June 7th between The Yanks and The Canucks - winner gets Windsor. Find the rest of the schedule here. Gold Cup 2011 - "Catch the Taste!"

Letters from Camp: “More trialists? You bet Yourassowsky!”

Sweet Yourassed fashion scarf there Mikael!

TRIAL HARDER
Toronto FC released the names of more trialists joining the club in Florida today and they are... well... projects. Think more "new in camp" than "Nou Camp". The four players added to Florida’s Camp Wananfooty are:
MIKAEL YOURASSOWSKY: This 5 foot 11 Belgian defender had a bright start to his career, apprenticing with both Anderlecht and Argentine powerhouse Boca Juniors. However, the 27-year-old's professional record has been spotty and nomadic at best since with stops in Greece, Mexico and most recently a spell in Croatia's top division at NK Rijeka - ironically the most solid stretch of his career.
IVO "IN" DE HEUS: It's never a good sign if the most online research you can find on a player is his personal resume. Little is known about this Dutch midfielder apart from a lengthy stretch spent in the Ajax youth system (surprise!) and short professional stints with Dutch clubs Willem II and AGOVV Apeldoorn (Like Apple Jacks – just more footbally). Apparently caught the eye of TFC Assistant Bob de Klerk during his Ajax youth days.
JAMAL GAY: In an effort to help opposing supporters with their offensive chants, TFC invited Trinidad & Tobago International Gay to camp. Apart from his 6 foot 2 frame, there is little to get excited about over the 22-year-old striker. Came up through the Joe Public system before moving on to a lacklustre spell with Rot-Weiss Oberhausen in the German second division. Most recently loaned out to Turkish third division side Dardanel Spor A.S. who are apparently named after a popular brand of tuna - so that's something. Gay has scored 3 goals with the T&T National team but is always last in jersey sales.
JOEVIN JONES: Another Trinidad & Tobago International prospect. 19-year-old defender who has little professional record and emerged from the W Connection club. Despite 6 appearances with the T&T Nats he recently failed to make an impression at the Colorado Rapids camp and was released by The Maroons. First name is French for “Joe’s wine”.
　
DANNY'S KIDS
While the club has yet to make an official announcement, club legend Danny Dichio let it slip on Twitter yesterday evening that he was indeed taking Jason Bent's place as Head Coach of the TFC Academy U-19 squad. Dichio, who by all accounts has taken his education as a young coach very seriously (since being forced into retirement), is a natural choice and the second good homegrown coaching move made by TFC after the recent Bent promotion to the 1st Team. There is word also that fellow "Wall of Honour" (barf) recipient Jim Brennan will be involved in a coaching role with the Academy leaving a massive hole in the club's Auto Show, cartoon narration and coffee retrieval departments.
　
FIELD OF GREEN
Club owners MLSE released a report today slapping there own backs loudly and proudly over the profit that BMO Field has managed to make during its management by the sports, entertainment and panda meat juggernaut. The 2010 profit of $641,000 was in fact 3 times higher than projected and as part of their profit-sharing agreement, MLSE has provided the City of Toronto with $1.2 Million over the last 4 years. Mayor Rob Ford likely commented "Gravy Train. Union fat cats. KFC Double-Down. Argos." TFC supporters commented in unison "Ummm... roof?"

Letters from Camp: "Bent it like Jason"

Jason: On staff

GET BENT!
Aron Winter added some bench strength on the coaching side by promoting Jason Bent from the Academy ranks to 1st Team Assistant Coach. It's a solid move on the club's part as the 33-year-old Bent is a decent, young Canadian coaching prospect and his three years as Academy Head Coach gives him a strong bond with the crop of Academy youngsters moving to the 1st Team. For the Toronto native, whose playing career with the likes of Colorado and Plymouth Argyle was cut short by injury, it is a chance to learn the ropes of professional level coaching under some solid Dutch professors. No word yet from the club regarding who will fill the position of Academy Head Coach with possibilities including Danny Dichio, Mr. Coffee (Jim Brennan) or a professional poached from The Netherlands.
　
SIGN FIRST, CONFIRM LATER
It seems like Aron Winter may have got caught out as an MLS rookie manager when he announced the signings last week of Javier Martina, Elkebay Bouchiba and Nick Soolsma. While all signs point to the probability that the Dutch trio will indeed be signed, their contracts may well be stuck in the world of visas and MLS head office red tape. Toronto FC is being very careful in press releases to never refer to the three players as "signed" before any kind of official confirmation. Winter may have indeed had his first foray into the wacky world of Major League Soccer contracts.
　
THE MAGIC KINGDOM OF TRIALISTS
TFC had their first training session at their new Orlando-based camp on Tuesday which saw Aron Winter himself kitted out and looking fit enough to roam the midfield! All members of the 1st Team squad are on hand in Florida and so far the following players are also confirmed:
TRIALISTS: Javier Martina, Nick Soolsma, Chris Hunter, David Monsalve and Gianluca Zavarise
TFC ACADEMY: Ashtone Morgan, Matt Stinson, Oscar Cordon and Keith "Booyah" Makubuya
DRAFT PICKS: Demetrius Omphroy and Joao Plata
There is yet to be any confirmed word about would-be signing Elkebay Bouchiba or draft picks Matt Gold and Efrain Burgos Jr. While Bouchiba and Burgos may be held up by American work visas, the omission of Gold as well as the unknown status of trialist Eddy Sidra are mysterious. The club is expected to release its full list of camp participants shortly.

Letters from Camp: TFC wraps up some Turkey leftovers

"Mmm, you can really taste the Soolsma!"

From our Dutch horshe's mouth came word today that Toronto FC had snapped up its first new signings of 2011. During today's media scrum, manager Aron Winter informed the press that three of the players who were on trial with the club in Turkey are now indeed fully signed-on members of the Red-Oranje Army. The newest Reds are:
　
JAVIER MARTINA: The 23-year-old Dutch forward originally from the Netherlands Antilles impressed onlookers during all three of TFC's friendly matches. Usually the talisman when The Reds moved forward against their Balkan foes, Martina will have every chance to carve himself a place in the fairly barren Toronto front-line. The very technical former Jong Ajax prospect is the type of two-way forward Winter will need in his 4-3-3.
　
ELKEBAY BOUCHIBA: The versatile Dutch journeyman can play in the central and holding midfield roles and isn't afraid to spread his game to the flanks. Once again the two-way style Dutch player comes into the mix and the 32-year-old Bouchiba will be able to offer depth in a number of positions. With stops at clubs like AZ, FC Twente and Sparta Rotterdam, the sturdy midfielder will offer a Carl Robinson-like presence off the bench. Made a good impression despite only attending the second half of camp.
　
NICK SOOLSMA: Most definitely the most surprising of the signings. Going into camp, Soolsma was the least known of the trialists only having spent short spells in the Dutch lower divisions with clubs like HFC Haarlem and VV Young Boys. Considered the dark horse going in but impressed with hard training and a very good showing against a tough Dinamo Zagreb defence. The 23-year-old seems to have a burgeoning partnership with Martina.
　
There is yet to be any formal word out of TFC about the fates of the remaining Turkey-based (not turkey baste) trialists but there may still be a chance for some return appearances when the club travels to Florida next week. The most interesting prospect remaining would be talented Ghanaian midfielder King Osei Gyan but whispers are percolating that his asking price may be a bit steep for The Reds. With a new Americas-based group of trialists expected next week, the club isn't likely to pull the trigger on an expensive contract just yet.
　
One last potential player acquisition today sees TFC in a weighted MLS player lottery for the rights to USA U-20 defensive prospect Korey "Darth" Veeder. The young American has spent time with the US program's U-17 residency program as well as spending time with the USL's Crystal Palace Baltimore. TFC have a 45.52% chance of landing Veeder's rights. If The Reds feel the power of the force we will update below.
　
UPDATE: Columbus Crew beat the odds and won the rights to “Darth” Vedder. He has indeed fallen to the dark side.

Letters from Camp: "Toronto Meet-ros Croatia"

C'mon you Reds... and Blues... and Checkerboards!

What can we say - we'll take any pun too far just to have an excuse to put an old NASL shield up. However, Toronto did indeed meet a Croatian side today - and not just any Croatian side - THE Croatian side in the form of UEFA stalwarts Dinamo Zagreb. Today's friendly marked the end of TFC's Turkish triumvirate versus Balkan opponents and hopes were high after good results against two Serb sides.
　
As with all of the match reports from Turkey, we rely on text info coming down the wire like an Old West morse code operator so details are often few and far between. But, since you're here we thought we'd sprinkle some fun (or not) facts about Croatia into the mix. Enjoy Dinamo Zagreb vs. Toronto FC... and learning about the "Jewel of the Adriatic". If this site is anything - it’s an educational resource! For instance... did you know part of Croatia's Adriatic peninsula is called the "Dalmatian Coast"? Woof!
　
TORONTO FC 1st Half Line-up: Stefan Frei, Demetrius Omphroy, Doneil Henry, Ty Harden, Kevin Westmaas, King Osei Gyan, Elbekay Bouchiba, Oscar Cordon, Javier Martina, Nick Soolsma, Maicon Santos
DINAMO ZAGREB 1st Half Line-up: Sadly, not a Dalmatian in sight
　
1' - Dinamo Zagreb kick-off, wonder if Croat Prime Minister Jadranka Kosor is watching?
2' - GOAL: Who's not watching? TFC's defence. The Harden-Henry connection bumble badly allowing Dinamo to punch home an early goal. DINAMO ZAGREB 1 - TORONTO FC 0
5' - Dinamo joining together passes like when Croatia joined the Hapsburg Empire in 1527 AD!
8' - GOAL: Collapsing much like the aforementioned Empire is TFC's defence. The hard-luck duo in the middle fail to clear and the Dalmatianless Dinamo strike force find their spots... and the net. DINAMO ZAGREB 2 - TORONTO FC 0
10' - Preki leftover/ immobility aficionado Ty Harden being eaten up by Dinamo attackers
15' - Toronto defence covering less of Dinamo than water does over the entire Croatian landscape... 1.09% to be exact
21' - Only signs of offensive output for TFC coming from trialists Soolsma and Martina who are switching wings much like when Croatia switched to a kingdom under King Tomislav in 925 AD
28' - Soolsma making a nuisance of himself and sets up Maicon Santos but the finish is weak
35' - Soolsma is playing hard for a contract and forces a good save with a blast from a distance shorter than Croatia's 56,594 square kilometre land mass
41' - RED CARD: Dinamo gets a bit snappy, like an angry Dalmatian, and gets a random Croat sent-off. Due to friendly rules, they are allowed to replace him and keep 101... we mean 11 men on the pitch
44' - Half ends quietly, not unlike the 9th Century Christianization of the Croats
　
HALF TIME: DINAMO ZABGREB 2 - TORONTO FC 0
　
TORONTO FC 2nd Half Line-up: Stefan Frei, Eddy Sidra, Nana Attakora, Chris Hunter, Kevin Westmaas, Nick LaBrocca, Matt Stinson, Nathan Sturgis, Jacob Peterson, Joao Plata, Gianluca Zavarise
DINAMO ZAGREB 2nd Half Line-up: Still no Dalmatians... nor Hapsburgs
　
46' - TFC try to crowd players in the Dinamo box, similar to Croatia's population density of 81 persons per square km
47' - GOAL: It works! Jacob Peterson zips down the wing and drives in a low cross which Gianluca Zavarise holds and spins on, banging it into the net. Zavarisian Spin-O-Rama! DINAMO ZAGREB 2 - TORONTO FC 1
55' - Dinamo playing a counter attacking game much like they had to counter threats to their language from the Austro-Hungarian 18th Century influence
56' - Zavarise passes nicely to Plata who almost chips one over the Dinamo keeper
59' - RED CARD: Once Dinamo realized that they can't lose a man with red cards they have been throwing around tackles with abandon. Should be down to 9 men. Still at 11
61' - Zavarise free kick blocked, Nick LaBrocca hits rebound over the net... learns something about Croatian tax reforms in the post-Yugoslav era
65' - LaBrocca feeds Peterson who also chips the ball high over the Dinamo cross bar. Rumours of the pair missing Chad Barrett's striking style unproven
70' - Stefan Frei standing strong in goal like the maritime ramparts of Dubrovnik's Old Town
75' - TFC controlling the play but failing to find a through ball. Dinamo holding on like they are defending a draw. Or tie. Croats claim to have invented the necktie via the modern cravat
77' - RED CARD: Toronto's Gianluca Zavarise makes it 2-1 in red cards with a high kung-fu style challenge. He's off and replaced by TFC Academy prospect Keith "Booyah" Makubuya
81' - PENALTY: Matt Stinson brings down a Dinamo attacker like Tito's partisans brought down Nazi occupiers during World War II. GOAL on penalty kick. DINAMO ZAGREB 3 - TORONTO FC 1
89' - Game quietly petering out like the last days of the Croatian-Hungarian Union of the 14th Century.
　
FULL TIME: DINAMO ZAGREB 3 - TORONTO FC 1
　
So there you have it, the end of Toronto's Turkish-based friendlies against their Balkan cousins (not Cousin Balki from Perfect Strangers). TFC will head home Cold Turkey on Saturday with a respectable 1-1-1 record and some quality trialist performances to boot. With many holes still to fill, the next stage of camp may be even more interesting. Much like Croatian history and geography.

Balki opposition.

Letters from Camp: "Of Men and Mice"

Times are tough for Preki & Mo... er... Lennie and George

With a couple of good preseason results against quality Belgrade sides Partizan and Red Star out of the way, Toronto FC started to look ahead to the next few chapters of training camp. With announcements both on and off the pitch today, Aron Winter and Paul Mariner (or Team WinNer!) and the gang are moving forward.
　
· The club will embark on its first "gruelling" away fixture against Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday as they have to travel to the Croatian side's practice ground. Okay, by gruelling we actually mean a 10 minute ride on a luxury air conditioned coach. Almost like having an away match at Lamport and travelling from BMO. Just less hot dog stands... and no GO Train tunnel.
　
· Two names will no longer be seen in preseason line-ups as TFC cut loose Dutch winger Bas Ent and young Uruguayan forward Santiago Gonzalez Acero. For Ent, this marks the end of a 7 month flirtation with The Reds which sees his career highlight with Toronto a halftime sub appearance in last summer's Bolton Wanderers friendly. Unfortunately for the not-so-quick, blind-cross happy Ent, TFC wasn't in the market for the next Dutch Andy Welsh. For the young Gonzalez Acero it seems as if his frail physicality and lack of ball control when faced with strong defenders (which MLS has a few) caught up with him - and with Joao Plata filling the "little man" quota, he was a long-shot at best.
　
· A new face was added to the trialist list as Team WinNer invited 23-year-old Dutch leftback Kevin Westmaas to camp. The sturdy defender doesn't have much of a professional record to his name but has had a history with Jong Ajax (Ajax Academy) and was no doubt familiar to Aron Winter. Westmaas won't have too long to impress the coaching staff and will have to be big in training to garner an invite back to Toronto at the end of the week.
　
· The club firmed up their travel schedule for the next few weeks, announcing that the next phase will see them return to the GTA with practices all of next week at their Oakville indoor facility. Anything to avoid the (minus-whatever-the-F-it-is) weather and also a chance to integrate the supplemental players who didn't make the trek to Turkey. After their Toronto stop, The Reds head to Orlando, Florida on the 21st where they will take part in the lengthy named Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic with matches against Houston on the 24th and either FC Dallas or the USL's Orlando City on the 26th. Aron Winter no doubt covets that famous mouse-eared trophy at a tourney that is rated as one of the Top 10 "Theme Park/ Cartoon-related Pro Soccer Tournaments in Central Florida". Goofy.

Letters from Camp: "Red Star in morning... ankle bone's warning"

Del Boy's got loads of TFC clobber back there! Lovely Jubbly!

There are so many glaring differences between the 2011 TFC training camp and those that were held under the old regime. The current "Oranje Revolution" management are open with information, invite seemingly qualified trialists to camp and schedule challenging friendlies. Under old boss, the dictatorial Hosni Mobollocks (see what I did there? Topical!), it was all completely in reverse, done under a cloak of secrecy with very few, very canned, puff press releases.
　
Since the friendly victory over Partizan this week, the news from Antalya has included, happy players, motivated players, players learning actual tactics, players being selected for Canada and a general sense of optimism. The only minor story which is bubbling under the surface is the limbo-ish status of former interim head coach Nick Dasovic and the rumour that he has been offered, or has already become, the club's head Canadian scout. Either way, it's hardly a distraction to the players.
　
Speaking of players, TFC added a couple of triialists to the Dutch Pot this weekend in defensive midfilder Elbekay Bouchiba and young defender Chris Hunter. Bouchiba is a 32-year-old Dutch journeyman whose career has been spent almost entirely in the Dutch Eredivisie with quality clubs such as AZ, Sparta Rotterdam and FC Twente before moving to Qatar's Al-Wakrah club in 2008. Hunter is a strong 23-year-old centreback from northern England who decided to take the NCAA route with the UCSB "Gauchos" and lesser known junior Yavapai College. Favourite TV show is listed as "Only Fools and Horses" so he's already good in our books! Go on Del Boy!
　
The real reason we got up at 8AM on a Sunday morning of course was to fire up Twitter and various websites to follow The Reds through their second friendly of 2011. Today's match wasn't originally scheduled but added after arriving in Turkey when Aron Winter seemingly said "who can we play who is even meaner than Partizan?" And thus we bring you textual highlights of Toronto FC vs. Europe's angriest team... Red Star Belgrade.
　
TORONTO FC 1st Half Line-up: David Monsalve, Demitrius Omphroy, Adrian Cann, Nana Attakora, Ashtone Morgan, Matt Stinson, Elbekay Bouchiba, Oscar Cordon, Nick Soolsma, Maicon, Javier Martina
RED STAR BELGRADE 1st Half Line-up: 11 very angry looking unshaven Serbs, possibly a lead pipe...
　
1' - Club captain Dwayne De Rosario not with club as he left for Greece to prepare for Canada friendly and learn about Greek currency
9' - Red Star dictate the early play with aggressive wing play. TFC regretting salami, kebab and Turkish Delight breakfast buffet
12' - Maicon looking lively in the box when not having Red Star cleats imprinted into his thighs
15' - TFC Academy captain Matt Stinson brought down hard by Red Star defender. Apparently for "looking at him funny"
25' - Handful of travelling Red Star supporters start a running battle with a flock of seabirds who stupidly had Partizan-coloured feathers
31' - Monsalve makes solid saves on increasingly powerful Red Star shots
35' - Ashtone Morgan impresses with some tough 1-on-1 defending. He better watch his back at the hotel later
39' - Demetrius Omphroy shows off his new tattoo. A Serbian elbow imprint on his cheek
41' GOAL: Matt Stinson showing some Eastern Promise by finding himself on the end of a sweet Maicon Santon-Javier Martina set-up and cross. TORONTO FC 1 - RED STAR BELGRADE 0
44' - Coach Danny Dichio starts roasting the half-time goat

HALF TIME: TORONTO FC 1 - RED STAR BELGRADE 0
　
TORONTO FC 2nd Half Line-up: Milos Kocic, Dan Gargan, Ty Harden, Doneil Henry, Chris Hunter, Matt Gold, King Osei Gyan, Gianluca Zavarise, Bas Ent, Keith Makubuya, Joao Plata
RED STAR BELGRADE 2nd Half Line-up: Even angrier Slav dudes, a mean looking African guy and possibly a German Shepherd
　
48' - Toronto GK Milos Kocic tries to confuse Red Star with his wacky Serbian-Canadian lingo
52' - Bas Ent getting knocked down and right back up numerous times. Like an inflatable 1970's Dutch toy punching bag
60' - 5 foot 2 Joao Plata making a nuisance of himself with darting runs, sweet little passes and running between the legs of giant Red Star defenders
63' - Jim Brennan having hard time keeping up with all the early morning coffee orders back at TFC head office
68' - Plata in 1-on-1 with Red Star keeper but slips on the pitch before getting shot off. Red Star coach with shovel says "yes... pitch very slippery"...
71' - Top-rated trialist, and if signed, best TFC name ever - King Osei Gyan, looking very solid in defensive mid role for second game in a row. Hopefully this isn't a showcase for a bigger European club to grab him first
73' - Chris Hunter not intimidated by aggressive Red Star forwards. He's been in Newcastle's city centre on a Saturday night.
77' - Dan Gargan tries one of his "poor-man's Rory Delap" long throws but it gets lost in Keith "Boo-yah" Makubuya's long name
82' - Ent flattened again like a Dutch pancake. Ishn't that shtrange?
85' - Red Star throwing everything but the kitchen sink now at TFC defence. Wait... they actually threw a kitchen sink.
89' - Doneil Henry with a game-saving double block from a Red Star thrown-in then corner - Oh Henry!
90' - Ref blows whistle for full time - immediately runs to car and is driven to safe house.
　
FULL TIME: TORONTO FC 1 - RED STAR BELGRADE 0
　
So there we have it, a momentum boosting victory for TFC over high-quality opposition. Yes, we all know that these Balkan bad boys are just coming off winter break but it was still another tough yet skilled performance for The Reds. If there is one thing we can say for certain... after drawing Partizan and beating Red Star, Toronto FC are the best team in the Serbian League. On to win the Croat title later this week! Have to run now, there is a Serbian Yorkiesovic website that wants a "friendly" word with us.

Letters From Camp: "Trial, trial again" - International trialists join Reds in Turkey

Javier Martina - Pride of Netherlands Antilles

Team Winter's goal of releasing more reliable information in four days than Mo Johnston did in four years continued today with the promised list of the remaining participating trialists. After the introduction of the three Canadians (Eddy Sidra, Gianluca Zavarise and David Monsalve) yesterday, TFC's "Camp GobbleGobble" in Turkey welcomed the following potential Reds into the happy family. Well, except for Uncle Dwayne... he's a bit miserable. Anyhoo, here's the latest contestants in TurkeyTime...
　
· JAVIER MARTINA: 23-year-old forward from the Netherlands Antilles. That's an island chain, not the Star Wars pilot. Joined the Jong AFC Ajax (Ajax's youth team) from the amazingly named FC Omniworld who are possibly a club from a Dutch theme park. Spent 3 season with Jong Ajax with mixed results culminating in a brief loan to HFC Haarlem before they went bankrupt... not his fault hopefully. Was highly rated for a period which did see him make two minor appearances for the main Ajax team. Big chances on a TFC club with few forward options.
· KING GYAN OSEI: Or possibly King Osei Gyan... or Gyan Osei King... depends where you read it! Either way, the Accra, Ghana born holding midfielder who attended high school in California was once such a prospect that Fulham snatched him up straight out of a Ghanaian academy. While never making it onto the Fulham First Team, the tough midfielder proved to be a useful member during a three-season loan spell at Belgian Pro League club Germinal Beerschot. And hey, who here doesn't want a Beerschot?!
· BAS ENT: Frequent visitors to The Yorkies and other TFC sources will have seen Bas Ent's name for a while now. The technical Dutch winger trained with Toronto last summer including getting some minutes in the friendly vs. Bolton Wanderers. Ent spent his young career toiling through the Dutch Eerste Divisie and lower with clubs such as FC Volendam and VV Katwijk before finding himself at the Dutch-phile Ohio-based club Dayton Dutch Lions in the USL PDL. Dayton isn't far from Columbus and Ent just wants to get away. Isn't it our duty to help an Ohio refugee? Please be generous.
· SANTIAGO GONZALEZ ARECO: While not yet a renowned name in International football circles this lithe 18-year-old Uruguayan striker has made a few waves in his home country. The 5 foot 8 hitman showed enough promise to play for Uruguay's highly regarded U-17 team and he also earned a spot on their U-17 World Cup squad in 2009. Hasn't managed to break free of his last club's (River Plate Montevideo) B-team where despite having an eye for goal has succumbed to criticisms of his fragile physical nature in the box.
· NICK SOOLSMA: The least known of the three Dutch treats in this group, the 23-year-old Soolsma has yet to cement a place up front with a club of any substance. Spent time with Holland's VV Young Boys and HFC Haarlem (the Dutch kind of Harlem, not the cool Hip Hop one). No word if Soolsma had anything to do with Haarlem's bankruptcy either. Despite flirtations with the Dutch U-20 and U-17 set-ups, definitely the dark horse of this group.

Pride of The Rebellion - Wedge Antilles

Letters From Camp: "Trial it... just a little bit..."

"Captain... passenger De Rosario wants to complain about his meal"

YOUNG TURKS
We still get a little shocked around here with Toronto FC's new-found quality information sharing. For four years we had more misinformation and doublespeak than a George Orwell novel and a director who only appeared when there was good news. Like a moronic little ginger groundhog. Part of Team Winter's "sharing and caring" was a promise to inform supporters of the trialists involved with the 2011 camp. Following are the Canadians invited to Turkey with word that some Europeans will be added in the coming days...
　
· EDDY SIDRA: The Sudanese-born Canadian International had been highly rumoured to be involved with the TFC set-up after appearing at the Team Canada "Ode to all-things Manchester" kit unveiling earlier this week in Toronto. The 5 foot 7-ish, 21 year old defender has spent the majority of his pro career in the youth system of Germany's Energie Cottbus but found himself without a club at the end of 2010. Has 7 U-20 and 3 Full International caps to his name.
· GIANLUCA ZAVARISE: BC-born midfielder with 1 Canadian Full cap. Came out of the West Coast youth leagues and made his way to Italy's Serie D semi-pro divisions where he toiled with glamour clubs such as Calcio Montebellunna (The Monster Balloons) and AC Belluno (The Athletic Balloons). Managed to move up to the German league where he got some solid time playing for Vfl Bochum's Reserve side before leaving them for Greece's Iraklis FC where he failed to make a First Team appearance. At 24 years old could still have the potential to add some stop-gap domestic depth to the midfield.
· DAVID MONSALVE: The 22 year old keeper could be quite the story if he makes the club as he would be the first Red to make a return appearance after leaving TFC. One of the club's many first-year keepers, Monsalve made one start in MLS against Chicago and also got minutes in the first season's friendly vs. Aston Villa. Happy times. Has spent majority of last 3 years at Finnish club Inter Turku FC (The International Turkeys) where he made 14 First Team appearances. At 6 foot 2 and hailing from North York, Monsalve could well be in goal for the TFC Reserves at least in 2011.
　
For now, these are the only three confirmed trialist names in camp but with so many available roster spots and being so deep into Europe it will be surprising if they are the last. More to follow here if added trialists appear.
　
　
NO TURKEY FOR YOU!
It emerged this afternoon that former TFC assistant coach, then interim head coach, then in-limbo staff member Nick Dasovic is no longer with the club. Dasovic and the Reds parted ways before the team left for Turkey and without word if the decision was based on Dasovic's dislike for kebabs. The decision would surprise few as having a former head coach as an assistant could undermine Aron Winter's authority and would never really work. There were expectations that Dasovic may coach the Reserve Team but a coaching role at either Vancouver or Montreal now looks more likely for the ex-Canadian International.
　
　
WHO'S NAFTA NOW?
While not exactly news from TFC camp, Major League Soccer made a big change to league roster rules which will affect Canadian clubs. Starting this year, American players will be considered as "domestic" status on Vancouver, Toronto and next year in Montreal. The aim is to even the competitive playing field for Canada's clubs. In order to protect the "Canadiana" of those clubs, they will have to have at least 3 Canadians on the roster at all times.
　
The league has also set-up a "task force" alongside the CSA to find ways of improving Canadian player growth and development. Here's an idea MLS... Step 1) Buy sledgehammer. Step 2) Take sledgehammer to CSA. Step 3) Smash.
　
The genius brigade at MLS also announced conference realignment for 2011 with Vancouver and Portland joining the West and those Atlantic seaboard faves Houston Dynamo joining the East. That audible banging you hear are the combined heads of North American football fans hitting walls as we face yet another year without a single table.