Where in hell did these people come from?
That was the first thought I had as I entered BMO Field for the first time in April 2007. I had put my deposit down for TFC season tickets in November 2006, while living in Fredericton, New Brunswick, unsure of whether I would be moving back to Ontario. I put the deposit down in spite of my uncertainty because I had been part of a small and mostly online community of Canadian soccer fans since the late 90s and, as such, I felt an connection towards this club that was not probably rational.
There wasn't very many of us and everyone kept telling us that Toronto (and by extension Canada) could not support professional soccer.
We were foolish for thinking it could.
So, I had to be a part of it. Deep down I didn't think it would work out. Best case, I hoped we might do just well enough that we could slug around on the peripheral of the Toronto sports scene.
So, when the day arrived I had no idea what to expect. Meeting a friend for lunch at Shoeless Joe's (I actually went to the wrong one at first, thus I did not see very much of the pre-game build up) I saw scarves all through the streets. For the first time I started to believe.
Then I walked in the stadium.
Where the hell did all these people come from?
The stands were shaking. Literally shaking. People were joking that bolts were falling off the stands. Only they weren't joking. Bolts were falling off the stands.
Going to the washroom I was stunned to hear people singing. Where in hell was I?
Turned out I was home.
It also turned out that professional soccer could do just fine in Toronto.
If you were there in 2007 count yourself lucky. What we saw and experienced was special and it changed the sport in this country and, whether they want to admit it or not, in MLS. We didn't apologize for loving the local team. That was new. It was also the moment that a new generation of soccer fans in Canada started to take control of the agenda and direction of the sport here. That's probably heavier than this column needs, but I cannot stress how big of a turning point that day was.
The sport arrived. The battle for acceptance that my generation fought would never be repeated. Soccer was just part of the show.
And that didn't change during the next seven years. In fact, the sport became more established. When Panama played Canada in World Cup qualifying in 2012 there was no debate as to who the crowd was cheering for. It was Canada and it was because the TFC experience created a community of supporters that was stronger than any amount of losing could kill.
What did change was the community's feelings about TFC. Not everyone that bought in during the early days could justify sticking around. It wasn't just that the Reds lost, it was that they kept repeating the same mistakes over and over again. As the years passed it became clear that the buzz of those early days was about the love of the sport, not the love of the club.
Some remained. More than probably should have. But, many more tuned out. There were days where it seemed like there was no way the team could ever bring them back on board.
Then they blew it all up. They pressed re-set and in doing so they have managed to do something that very few sports teams can do.
They got a do-over.
After a perfect storm of an off-season the city is ready to care again. It's April 2007 all over -- Even Eddie Johnson is back in the role of a villain -- and a community of soccer fans is ready to shake the bolts out of that stadium.
For those that have been there since the start there is a instinct to hold back, to expect it to all go away. And, it might. For TFC. The club is too young to expect unquestioned love. However, the sport and the community around it will always be there ready for the next Bloody Big Thing.
There is saying in football that says that players and managers come and go but it's the supporters that always remain and who ultimately define a football club. It's a bit cliche, but like all cliches it's rooted in truth.
It's especially true in a city like Toronto where the sport's history is a zig-zag of different clubs, leagues and challenges that isn't always easy to connect. But, connected it is by those that made it matter -- you, the supporters.
So, don't hold back. Get out there tomorrow and party like its 2007, safe in the knowledge that we'll all still be here suffering, celebrating and everything in between for as long as there is a team for us to love, hate and make a part of us.