For now, let’s ignore negatives. TFC needed to win badly. TFC fans needed to see a win badly. Nothing else matters.
So, the 2-0 win over Montreal – running the Impact’s winless streak in the competition to an amazing 13 games, with nine losses in that stretch – matter far more than the extra burden that two extra mid-week games on the schedule, or Richard Eckersley’s seeming inability to not get carded do.
A win is a win is a win and TFC does not win very much. Sitting 11 points and four teams back of a playoff spot makes MLS success more than a tad bit farfetched at this point (to get 44 points, which is likely the lowest total that will see a club make the playoffs, the Reds need to get 1.7 points a game the rest of the way. They had 1.15 points per game in the second half of 2011 after Frings and Co arrived) So, the Voyageurs Cup is all they really have.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
If the V-Cup is all that’s left, then they had best win it. Since the three championships TFC has won barely make a dent in fan frustration as it is, it seems unlikely that a runner’s up medal is going to resonate.
Especially against Vancouver. Although the Whitecaps do not have the same intensity of rivalry with TFC that Montreal, or even Columbus, have there is little doubt that the average Reds fan really enjoys beating the Caps and then sitting back and watching the bitterness spew from the west coast.
There are fans in B.C. that mutter “6-1” and “stupid rain” under their breath daily. The Caps are more than a little cursed in the competition and that’s more than a little funny for most Toronto fans. TFC fans don’t have much, but they do have this!
Can the Reds pull off the upset? Of course they can. They have bye week heading into the vital away leg and the Caps aren’t as superior to TFC as the records might indicate. Toronto is also becoming a big game team. They seem to play Cup games well – watch out if they ever actually do make the playoffs.
So, for once let’s focus on the possibilities. The Reds can’t lose this weekend and they are even with the Caps in the V-Cup.
As Ben Knight likes to say: Onward!