THE MATCHUP: Get Deuce to it

That face just screams "used to it"

TORONTO VS. SEATTLE

 

BMO FIELD - SATURDAY 7PM ET
TV: SPORTSNET 360

THE KICKABOUT:

It would be hard to find two clubs more polar opposite in MLS at the moment than Toronto and Seattle.

Sounders, a club that has never known any long-term adversity in their MLS incarnation seems to go from strength-to-strength. The perennial title challengers have just added the biggest name in the league in Clint Dempsey; they have attendance that is bursting at the seams; and, their management strives to foster actual relations with their long-time supporters going as far as implementing a (albeit plastic-y version) club member program where input on the front office is invited.

TFC, a club that has never known any long-term success in any incarnation who seem to bumble from drama-to-drama. The perennial basement dwellers have spent months promising supporters that a "frightening" array of talent is on the way but have yet to materialize; they have attendance which has had the spirit sucked out of it and is a shadow of its former glorious self; and, their management has created a relationship with its longest suffering supporters something akin to a gnat buzzing around a horse's ass. Very used to it.

We were called Seattle's MLS blueprint once.

MANUFACTURED DERBY NAME:

"The Deuce Dropper" (TENTATIVE)

PLAYERS TO WATCH:

TORONTO: Joe Bendik, Steven Caldwell, Matias Laba,

SEATTLE: Clint Dempsey (TBD), Obafemi Martins, Mauro Rosales

THE ODDS:

- "Dealing with it": 5-1

- "Getting used to it" :2-1

- "Taking it or leaving it": EVENS

WHO ARE YA?

Shocked by the internet meme success of Kevin Payne's accidental comedy gold "Get used to it", the club has decided to move forward their latest corporate promo. TFC's green-kitted goalkeeper Joe Bendik will now be referred to in all press releases as Joe "Super Pickle" Bendik in conjunction with the good people at Bick's Pickles. Highlighting his pickle-green clothes and his crunching collisions with defenders, fans and team officials will be prompted to yell "DILL WITH IT" at every goalkeeping occasion. No gherkin, this is set to be Bendik's Bread 'N Butter.

POST-MATCH HEADLINE: "WE'RE USED TO IT"

BONUS: CHANTS ON GOAL:
"We Need to Sing About Kevin"

"Let's Get Used To It" (to Olivia Newton John's "Physical")

　

Let's get used to it, used to it
We need to get used to it

Let's get really used to it

Sick of hearing Kevin talk, Kevin talk

Sick of hearing Kevin talk

EDITORIAL: Got Used To It and Still Getting Used To It...

 

I get it.

 

Toronto FC is a business. It’s a franchise. It’s not a "club". It’s not a community cornerstone.

 

Toronto plays Roma. They give Roma an appearance fee, and then Toronto sets out to recoup their investment by charging higher-than-normal prices and hope the fringe football enthusiasts, glory hunters or die-hards of both sides pony up the dosh to watch the match.

 

And this model obviously works.

 

The "get used to it" comment has been blown out of proportion, as gold as it has been comedy-wise, by hardcore supporters as a metaphoric middle finger.

 

Here are things we need to remember:

 

Because it’s a business, and a for-profit one at that, the object is to exchange entertainment for money.

 

The hardest-core of supporters sit in the lowest revenue generating sections of the stadium. Have you seen what they charge for the comfy back seats at the centre of the pitch? One of those season seat holders has to be worth at least 10 of the south-enders.

 

Who hasn’t noticed the increased number of advertisers this season? Every facet is sponsored by someone or something. The only time the PA announcer doesn’t remind us that something is sponsored by something is when he’s announcing the starting lineup, goals and substitutions. Otherwise, his primary function is to shill.

 

 

We, like most of you, hate that loyal supporters are an afterthought at TFC, but it is as evident now as it ever has been. And as much as we have romantic ideas of supporter-owned clubs or protests that actually result in something positive, that will likely never happen. Why? Because you already paid. Money is the only metric that matters.

 

14000 people show up for a game that 19000 paid for. Are they concerned? A little. What will they do to change that? Platitudes. Cultural nights. Our presence isn’t nearly as treasured as we think.

 

Remember: This is a business. As long as anyone pays, then that’s what matters. The dollar is a vote, and with every dollar spent, is a vote of re-election.

 

With the threat of a mass exodus of season ticket holders at the end of last season, that’s when REAL CHANGE took place. Out with Anselmi, in with Payne. Money was about to be lost and likely not coming back.

 

Minimize (or stop) giving TFC your money for kits, scarves, beers, chip buttys and especially exhibitions. Otherwise, get used to it.

 

@ignirtoq sometimes has a point and sometimes within that point, he can articulate it without a massive tangent that never seems to come back. One time he took a tangent that led him to explaining why it is bullshit that ice cream is no longer ice cream but "frozen dairy treats". Too bad he was talking about T20 cricket and why it's awesome. Where was I... oh yeah, so sometimes @ignirtoq has a point...