No one will talk about TFC's 0-0 draw with Colorado years from now. It was a mostly forgettable game played days before a night that will end with a trophy presentation at BMO Field. To say that the fans are focused on the Voyageurs Cup final Wednesday is an understatement. There are fans that would have liked to see TFC play its office staff tonight to rest for Wednesday.
Aron Winter was not one of those people. Anyone that's been paying attention this year would have realized that the coach was going to put out the best line-up he could. He did. And, on the whole, it was good enough to get a rare road point for the Reds.
There were flashes of something good during the game. For once this wasn't a result underlined by Stefan Frei standing on his head. If anything, Toronto had the best of limited scoring chances. The Reds were positive when appropriate and had enough left in the tank at the end to just hold on.
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A point is a point and it is important. If TFC always played like this on the road they would be in a hell of a lot better position to end that four year playoff drought. Time will tell if they can, but we are just 1/3 of the way through the year. It's a little too early to give up yet (although the lack of home wins is troublesome).
The debate about Winter's decision to not rest more players will rage in Toronto over the next two days. Those that feel that the club should have will likely not be convinced otherwise. Amongst a certain type of fan the Voyageurs Cup is the be all, end all. Those fans represent a small minority of the stadium though. TFC won the trophy last season and I doubt you could find too many at BMO Field that would have argued that 2010 was a success. The league is the thing and league success is, by far, the most important goal. As much as some don't want to hear it, a 10th place finish will be far more significant in the mind of most TFC supporters than winning the four team Canadian championship will be -- even if TFC went on a CONCACAF run too.
The CONCACAF Champions League is not the Champions League and, although worthwhile, you cannot think of it in the same terms.
That's not to say that holding a trophy up in front of the supporters Wednesday isn't worthwhile. Of course it is. It's an important achievement for TFC's most loyal fans, many of which helped pay for the cup a decade ago. And TFC has shown the competition the respect it deserves.
The club also showed the league the respect it deserved on Sunday. And, that's important too.