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    Duane Rollins
    Tesho Akindele, the 2014 MLS rookie of the year, has accepted a call up to the US national team. Previously the Canadian program had admitted to reaching out to him.
    Akindele is a borderline prospect – for both programs. Although he's certainly fit into the rag-tag bunch Benito Floro called up for the Iceland game he's not exactly a lock for a full team call-up.
    Still, it's another prospect (sort of. At 22, he's not really soccer young) that has seemingly turned away from the Canadian program.
    It seems far-fetched that he's a US player – It's worth noting that Teal Bunbury didn't get a call up to the so-called US Cupcake Camp – and this doesn't cap tie him, but the fact that he's looking for “bigger” things now should make most Canadian fans weary of him moving forward.
    He's not that good. If he doesn't want to play for Canada we should wish him well and move on. Focus our energy on the Cyle Larin and Jordan Hamilton generation that seems to actually want to represent the country.
    That said, we totally can make fun of him for this:

    Duane Rollins
    GK- Sean Melvin | CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC Residency
    GK- Quillan Roberts | CAN / Toronto FC
    GK- Kenny Stamatopoulos | SWE / AIK
    D- Nana Attakora | unattached / sans club
    D- Kevon Black | CAN / Toronto FC Academy
    D- Jonathan Grant | CAN / Sigma FC
    D- Dejan Jakovic | JPN / Shimizu S-Pulse
    D- Manjrekar James | HUN / PMFC
    D- Ashtone Morgan | CAN / Toronto FC
    D- Karl W. Ouimette | CAN / Impact de Montréal
    D- Adam Straith | unattached / sans club
    D- Maxim Tissot | CAN / Impact de Montréal
    M- Patrice Bernier | CAN / Impact de Montréal
    M- Christoper Mannella | CAN / Toronto FC
    M- Julian de Guzman | unattached / sans club
    M- Jonathan Osorio | CAN / Toronto FC
    M- Issey Nakajima-Farran | CAN / Impact de Montréal
    M- Samuel Piette | ESP / Deportivo la Coruña
    M- Daniel Stanese | GER / FC Augsburg II
    M- Russell Teibert | CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC
    F- Caleb Clarke | CAN / Vancouver Whitecaps FC
    F- Dwayne De Rosario | unattached / sans club
    F- Iain Hume | IND / Kerala Blasters
    F- Kyle Porter | unattached / sans club
    ​The camp runs from Jan 12 and is highlighted by a pair of friendlies against Iceland.
    Aaron Campbell
    THE GOOD:
    5 out of last 7 games at home
    BC Place has become something of a fortress since they moved from Empire Field. With how competitive the West will be this year, the Whitecaps can't afford to drop any points at home.
    The past three years have come down to the final weeks of the season for a playoff position push. This year should be no different.
    With games versus Houston, Dallas x2, San Jose, Seattle and NYCFC it will be a great chance to cement their playoff place.
    THE AVERAGE:
    A September 26th visit from New York City FC or Man City B
    Who will be in their line up? Will Frank Lampard and David Villa play on the turf?
    I am curious what $100,000,000 and the backing by Man City does for the MLS. All season long they will be compared to Orlando SC, just like the Whitecaps and Portland Timbers were in 2011.
    Can money buy MLS championships? We shall soon find out.
    THE BAD:
    Women's World Cup Break
    Yes, having a women's World Cup in Vancouver is great for Canadian women's soccer. Yes, they will be supported by supporters here in Vancouver. We're still holding out hopes that we could get a new turf that will benefit the Whitecaps moving forward.
    BUT.... from May 31st to July 11th, the Whitecaps will not play a home game. It will be 5 games on the road with thankfully a bye week break inbetween. This is my make or break time for this team. If they collapse, like they do most mid seasons they could be playing catch up the rest of the year to make the top six and grab a playoff spot.
    If the 'Caps can grab seven or eight of the possible points on offer during those five games it should give them a fighting chance in the tough Western Conference this upcoming season.
    Michael Mccoll
    While others in MLS go down the route of bringing in big name and big money signings, to varying degrees of success, the Whitecaps have gone with a lower key and in-house development approach. Some critics accuse them of being cheap. That was an accusation surprisingly levelled by some out east following the signing of young DP Octavio Rivero last month.
    But if we're being honest, you're not going to get the likes of Kaka, Frank Lampard, or Steven Gerrard coming to Vancouver to play on a horrendous fake pitch week in and week out. You might not even see them coming here when their teams actually play in the city.
    What you will see is an array of lesser known South American talent and burgeoning homegrown talent keen to make their name in the game, and that's an approach that the Whitecaps won't be shifting from for the foreseeable future and the 'Caps approach to youth development is something that Lenarduzzi is particularly proud of.
    "Even prior to joining MLS, it was clear we invested a lot of money in youth development for a good three, four years in advance," Lenarduzzi told reporters at the 'Caps first media presser of the new year. "That was always our philosophy. Having said that, we also knew that we had to bring in players that were difference makers.
    "We decided that we want to be known as a club that develops it's own players and we've stayed the course in that regard. If you look at the U20 team and the U17s, and we have nine players on both of those teams that are either current Residency players or have been through our system and I think that speaks that it's starting to work. Now what we need to do is to get more players, like Russell Teibert, like Kianz Froese, and we need those players to be coming though on an annual basis."
    Producing a steady stream of quality young players is a key focus for the Whitecaps, and one which Lenarduzzi is well aware won't just help Vancouver to the success they desire, but also provide a big boost for the Canadian national team, at all age levels, in the process.
    "One of our goals is to try to have a conveyor belt of having players coming through our system and onto our first team," Lenarduzzi said. "But equally important, on to our national teams. We need to get back to the World Cup.
    "I think a lot of what will determine if that's a possibility or not is what we are doing and what Toronto are doing and what Montreal are doing, Edmonton, Ottawa, in terms of giving those players an opportunity to play and get better and vie for MLS spots and national team spots."
    Of the 20 players named in Rob Gale's Canadian roster for the upcoming 2015 CONCACAF U20 Championship in Jamaica, which gets underway on Saturday, nine came through the Whitecaps Residency program. Four are currently on the Whitecaps MLS squad, two others will be part of the 'Caps USL PRO squad this season and two more are currently away at college.
    Add in nine of the 20 members of Canada's U17 squad being part of the 'Caps Residency program at present and the footballing future is looking very bright for Vancouver, with Lenarduzzi acknowledging how far ahead the Whitecaps seem to be right now compared to their Canadian rivals in terms of youth development.
    "It's nice when you look at those numbers and you look at the representations from the other professional clubs, it's something at this stage that we can be proud of. But we're not going to rest on our laurels. We're going to continue to put the emphasis on development and I think as much as we want to be a club that develops players, we need for the coaching staff to play those players.
    "And in Carl's case, he proved that last year in the Amway Cup and probably the best example of that was not long after Kianz Froese signed a MLS contract, he's coming off the bench at half time in front of 50,000 plus people. That's when people will ideally look at it and go they're doing what they said they wanted to do. It's taken them time, but player development is all about time."
    And therein lies one of the key components to it all. The switch from youth football to the pro ranks and getting playing time. The Whitecaps may have six Canadians on their MLS roster, but none of them are going to be starters when the new season kicks off in March. They're not at that level yet compared to others in the squad, although Sam Adekugbe is arguably the closest. Even ahead of Russell Teibert due to squad positional depth.
    Lenarduzzi admits that there isn't too much point developing all this young homegrown talent if they're not going to get too many minutes on the pitch and sees that as the next step for the Whitecaps to take.
    "We've stayed the course and now we're starting to see the dividends from it," Lenarduzzi feels. "Ultimately, we will see the dividends from it when we have three or four or five of those guys in our first team on a regular basis but I've always suggested that development is time consuming. It takes time for players to come through and do what you want them to do at the first team level. You don't just snap your fingers and have players go from not playing to playing. We'll continue to do what we're doing.
    "I'd love to see Marco Bustos, Carducci, Kianz Froese coming on in MLS games, CCL games, Amway Cup games and getting the minutes that will determine if they're capable of playing at that level or not. We think they are but all we're asking for as a club from our coaching staff is if we're going to develop these players, and there's an opportunity to play them, let's play them and then find out whether they're capable or not."
    It's a position that Whitecaps head coach Carl Robinson fully understands and is keen to remedy, but not to the detriment of both the player and a successful team on the park.
    "Money doesn't guarantee you success, as you've seen with a number of clubs," Robinson told reporters today. "I want to try and guarantee success but in the right way and I feel the right way is developing our own Canadian players through our Residency program.
    "We spent a lot of money on our Residency program. For that to come to fruition, there's nothing better for me and the club that we would like more than to develop them, play them in the first team and then maybe sell them on at a later date. That's going to be our model. We'll stick to that. We won't change our philosophy, I won't change my philosophy and we'll continue to try and strive for success."
    One of the crucial pieces to the development puzzle will be put in place with the 'Caps new USL PRO team.
    That team may be kicking off their season in a few weeks time but they don't have a head coach at the helm as it currently stands. That's a situation though that the club hope to have settled within the next fortnight.
    "We're still going through the process," Lenarduzzi admitted. "There are some candidates internally and as you can imagine, once people realised that we were in USL, we had a lot of resumes come from virtually all over the world."
    "We've narrowed the list down but we still need to do a little bit more work with the people that we have decided we'd like to interview further. Ideally we'll have a decision, by the latest, in two weeks."
    So, with a healthy amount of Canadians in their first team squad, some more promising ones on the horizon, a new USL PRO team set to kick off packed full of homegrown talent and providing the bulk of players for Canada's younger national teams, Vancouver Whitecaps certainly seem to be doing their bit for Canadian soccer. Could they do more? Perhaps. But they're streaks ahead of some of their rivals.
    But what of all those naysayers out there who like to say that the Whitecaps hate Canada and do nothing for Canadian football?
    "It's shocking to me, but that comes from a very small circle as far as I can gather," Lenarduzzi said. "I don't pay a lot of attention to that but whenever I hear that and I hear that we're not playing Canadian players, what I often do is turn that question back around on the person that's making those comments.
    "[i ask them] tell me of a player right now in Canada, that's not in our Residency program, that should be playing in our first team? And more often or not I get silence. I also believe that if you're going to make comments like that, you should also have the ability to back them up. A lot of people say it but a lot of people can't back it up and that's frustrating."
    Indeed it is, but ultimately, who cares? The Whitecaps will be the ones having the last laugh and the continued success.
    Duane Rollins
    Then he was fired. It was sudden and seemingly without cause. Rather than being poor at his job, he simply did not fit into the great Dutch experiment that the Reds were embarking on. Thomas Rongen was brought in and a new era at TFCA began.
    It was an era characterized by conflict between the Ontario soccer community and TFC. It was felt that the club had let a guy go with deep roots in the local scene for an outsider. The relationship grew worse as many in the community felt that Rongen didn't do enough to reach out to the grassroots or to help develop the technical side of the game beyond what was happening at the Kia Training Ground.
    Beyond that, the way Neely was let go was held up as an example of how TFC treats people poorly. For years, his firing has been a source of far-reaching resentment.
    Neely wasn't happy either. He didn't hide his disagreement with being let go.
    Up until today, the idea that Neely would be brought back to TFC seemed far-fetched, to say the least.
    Yet, here we are. He's been hired to be the senior academy head coach and to be an assistant coach with the USL-Pro side.
    The role hardly matters. What's important about the hire is what it might mean about TFC's willingness to change and to listen to stakeholders in the region. One of the biggest complaints you hear about TFC is that they are arrogant. When they do talk to the community they dictate, rather than communicate. The fact that almost no one at TFCA has a deep knowledge of the region has also been an area of complaint – how can you maximize the academy's full potential if you don't have good relationships with the region's clubs?
    With one move TFC has started the process of addressing those concerns. When the announcement was made I reached out to a few people in the community that had expressed concerns to me about TFCA in the past. The reaction to his hiring was universally positive. Nothing TFC does is universally liked in the community, yet this is.
    This doesn't instantly fix things, of course. But, for the first time in a long time there's a real chance of things being fixed.
    Beyond the literal impact of the move, there is also a symbolic benefit. Outside of increasingly grumpy fans, people don't forgive TFC. Yet, Neely has. Maybe TFC is trying to change.
    Time will tell, but this is a great first step.
    Squizz
    GK- Erin McLeod | USA / Houston Dash
    GK- Stephanie Labbe | SWE / KIF Örebro
    GK- Karina LeBlanc | USA / Chicago Red Stars
    D- Kadeisha Buchanan | USA / West Virginia University
    D- Allysha Chapman | SWE / Eskilstuna United DFF
    D- Carmelina Moscato | USA / Seattle Reign FC
    D- Marie-Eve Nault | SWE / KIF Örebro
    D- Rebecca Quinn | USA / Duke University
    D- Rhian Wilkinson | CAN / Comètes de Laval
    D- Sura Yekka | CAN / Brams United
    D- Emily Zurrer | SWE / Jitex BK
    M- Jessie Fleming | CAN / London NorWest United
    M- Kaylyn Kyle | USA / Houston Dash
    M- Ashley Lawrence | USA / West Virginia University
    M- Sophie Schmidt | USA / Sky Blue FC
    M- Desiree Scott | ENG / Notts County
    F- Janine Beckie | USA / Texas Tech University
    F- Josee Bélanger | CAN / Comètes de Laval
    F- Nkem Ezurike | USA / Boston Breakers
    F- Jonelle Filigno | USA / Sky Blue FC
    F- Adriana Leon | USA / Chicago Red Stars
    F- Christine Sinclair | USA / Portland Thorns
    F- Melissa Tancredi | USA / Chicago Red Stars
    Not listed are, of course, Diana Matheson and Lauren Sesselmann, both of whom will be fervently hoping that their respective knee injuries will heal in time for them to take part in the tournament. The absence of either one of them would be a big blow to Canada's chances; not having either of them would be extra troublesome for a squad that has not been traditionally awash with depth.
    Herdman has worked hard -- and been largely effective, at times -- in bridging that gap and widening the player pool, so the loss of two crucial players like Matheson and Sesselmann can be, to some extent, mitigated. But even so, yeah, like I said, keep those fingers and toes crossed for the ladies over in China.
    The two most interesting inclusions on this roster are likely strikers Janine Beckie and Nkem Ezurike.
    Beckie, a 20-year-old playing at Texas Tech University, scored a couple of goals and impressed many with her play at last summer's Under-20 World Cup. Her goals per 90 minutes rate in her three seasons at Texas Tech have been 0.765, 0.681 and 0.891. That earned her a look from Herdman and her first cap with the senior national team in a closed-door friendly with Sweden in November.
    Ezurike, 22, is the all-time leading scorer for the University of Michigan, with 49 goals over her four-year college career. She broke onto the scene for the national-team program back in 2008, scoring two goals for Canada at the inaugural FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup. She featured sparingly for Canada at the 2012 U-20 World Cup, but didn't get a look from Herdman until last spring's Cyprus Cup.
    It's unlikely either will be featuring for Canada at this year's Women's World Cup, but it's a shrewd move from Herdman to build up his pool of strikers as much as possible. As has been said over and over and over in this space (and will be said again, right now), Christine Sinclair won't be around forever. How much longer does she have? Well, look south of the border, where many USA fans are howling for Abby Wambach, the most prolific scorer in the history of international soccer, to no longer be a regular starter.
    Wambach, for what it's worth, is almost exactly three years older than Sinclair.
    Of course, if Sinclair (and Melissa Tancredi) can catch lightning in a bottle this summer, in the same way they did at London 2012, then they'll have cemented their legacies and ensured the goodwill will keep flowing for the Canadian team for years to come. But Herdman's job -- especially in light of a contract extension that'll supposedly see him behind Canada's bench until 2020 -- is not just to focus on the 2015 World Cup, but the 2019 World Cup as well.
    So even players who won't find themselves making the cut this summer know that the work they put in now could pay dividends down the road. That continuity can only mean good things for the program. It's why I praised Herdman's contract extension at the time, and why I continue to say that whatever happens at this year's World Cup, he should be sticking around.
    As for the immediate future, the Four Nations Cup poses some interesting challenges for Canada -- South Korea on Sunday, Mexico on Jan. 13 and China on Jan. 15.
    Canada's last encounter with South Korea was a 3-0 win in Edmonton on Oct. 30, 2013, though they can't be taken lightly, having become a consistent top-20-ranked nation that finished atop its group in World Cup qualifying. As for Mexico, Canada's had plenty of tussles with its regional rival in years past, and while the good gals have traditionally come out as winners, the Mexicans are also a team in the ascension.
    The host nation will provide the most intriguing match, given that they'll be in Group A with Canada at the World Cup. Will both teams play a cagey match, not wanting to give away too much? Or will they go all out in the hopes of terrifying the opposition? (It's the former, by the way.)
    Canada's last appearance at the Four Nations tourney in China was in 2013, in which they defeated China (yay!), lost to South Korea (boo!) and drew with Norway (meh), good enough for second place.
    Duane Rollins
    GK: Marco Carducci (Vancouver Whitecaps FC/CAN), Nolan Wirth (Oregon State University/USA)
    DF: Sam Adekugbe (Vancouver Whitecaps FC/CAN), Alexander Comsia (RC Strasbourg/FRA), Luca Gasparotto (Rangers FC/SCO), Jordan Haynes (Vancouver Whitecaps FC Academy/CAN), Brandon John (FC Erzgebirge Aue/GER), Rares Serban (University of British Columbia/CAN)
    MF: Manny Aparicio (Toronto FC/CAN), Louis Beland-Goyette (Impact de Montréal FC/CAN), Marco Bustos (Vancouver Whitecaps FC/CAN), Dylan Carreiro (Arbroath FC/SCO), Kianz Froese (Vancouver Whitecaps FC/CAN), Jérémy Gagnon-Laparé (Impact de Montréal FC/CAN), Chris Nanco (Syracuse University/USA), Michael Petrasso (Queens Park Rangers/ENG)
    FW: Hanson Boakai (FC EDMONTON/CAN), Calum Ferguson (Inverness Caledonian Thistle/SCO), Jordan Hamilton (Toronto FC/CAN), Cyle Larin (Unattached)
    It's, by far, the most professionally experienced Canadian u20 roster in history. Time will tell if that matters.
    *From January 9-24 in Jamaica twelve teams will compete in the championship, to be played in Kingston and Montego Bay, in a round-robin group stage followed by a championship round. The final rosters for all twelve teams can be found below and at CONCACAF.com, along with tournament news and notes.
    Group A is set to contain host Jamaica, along with Trinidad & Tobago, Aruba, Panama, USA and Guatemala. Group B was drawn with Haiti, Canada, Mexico, Cuba, Honduras and El Salvador, all listed in order of group position.
    The tournament will begin at the National Stadium in Kingston on January 9, with the first three matches of Group A – Aruba vs. Panama, USA vs. Guatemala and Jamaica vs. Trinidad & Tobago. Group B will start its action in Montego Bay the following day, when defending CONCACAF U-20 champion Mexico faces Cuba, followed by Honduras vs. El Salvador and Haiti vs. Canada.
    The top team from each group after round-robin play will qualify directly to the FIFA Under-20 World Cup New Zealand 2015, while the second- and third-place nations from each group will play in a final day knockout phase, with the chance to dispute one of a pair of play-in matches which will determine CONCACAF's other two Under-20 World Cup spots.
    All twelve countries participating in the Championship will play five matches during the group round robin phase. The first three match days for Group A will be played in Kingston, while all of the Group B matches as well as the last two match days of Group A will be played at the Montego Bay Sports Complex.
    The Montego Bay Sports Complex will also host the final day playoff phase and the championship match on January 24.
    *tournament info text from CONCACAF
    Michael Mccoll
    Have a listen and re-live some of the highs and lows of 2014 in Whitecapsland.
    You can listen to this, and all previous, episodes of the podcast on iTunes HERE.
    Or download it for your later listening delight HERE.
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    Or after all that, you could just listen on the player below!

    Grant
    The 2016 100th anniversary Copa America and whether Canada can qualify for it have raised the stakes for our nation’s soccer fandom. (The men's side is what we're focused on here.) Not to mention the oft-rumoured changes to Concacaf WC qualifying that could offer more difficult matches at an earlier stage.
    Sure, losing by seven goals in Honduras was shattering. But how about gassing July’s Gold Cup and thus missing the hemisphere's biggest soccer party ever. And then come September, suffering early elimination from Russia 2018 at the hands of, say, Guatemala.
    Narrowly missing out on the Hex for the first time since 1997 while getting slaughtered by a hated rival is certainly bad, but elimination from WC qualifying before the good Concacaf teams have even started would be a more insidious failure. Imagine suffering the months-long hype around a suddenly Canada-free 2016 Copa America. It would be existential-crisis stuff all over again for Canada fans.
    At that point it might be time to order genetic testing kits to shake out some long-lost Latin American ancestry. At least it would be a team to cheer for.
    It’s hard to know what long-term damage such rapid-succession setbacks would provoke. Some of you may be screaming right now, “After all we’ve come through, WHY WOULD WE STOP NOW?” Fair enough. But consider this. It’s not the incorrigible addicts we have to worry about. Elimination from World Cup qualifying in 2015 would mean three more years without meaningful games for the senior men’s team. Goodwill engendered from a respectable second half in 2014? Wasted. An entire summer of hot North and South American soccer action for Canada-haters to revel in on social media.
    We could lose a mini-generation of Canada soccer fans currently feeling okay about themselves, maybe on account of U20 success or perhaps the fact a former Real Madrid manager has wrangled the national side into playing solid-yet-uninspiring soccer.
    Don’t get me wrong. I’ve outlined the absolute worst-case scenario. It’s also completely reasonable to expect Canada to turn in a solid Gold Cup and then comfortably dispatch its opening opponent in qualifying, favourable draw or not. But if there’s anything my relatively short stint as a supporter of Canada’s men’s team has taught me, it’s that a whole bunch of bad shit always seems to happen. I've learned to mentally prepare for the worst.
    And you know what? Maybe three long years of nothing to get excited about (over and above the numerous long years of nothing to get excited about already in the books) would simply solidify support among Canada’s base. Long simmering resentments given more time to stew. Chips on shoulders given more time to fester. It would just make the long-awaited Holy Grail of World Cup qualification that much sweeter and more savoury, wouldn’t it? We’ll wait for genuine success until we die, or at until Canada ceases to exist as a Fifa recognized nation.
    Now go buy yourself a new Canada kit. We’ve got some soccer to watch this year.
    Michael Crampton
    TFC Fan 1: Hey, do you remember that time we made the playoffs?
    TFC Fan 2: No, that's ridiculous, what are you talking about?
    TFC Fan 1: Oh, yeah, that's right. ... I momentarily forgot that I support a historically unsuccessful team. Still we did win a few Voyageurs Cups!
    TFC Fan 2: Yeah, but that's easy.
    TFC Fan 1: So easy that the Vancouver Whitecaps have never done it in a decade of trying!
    TFC Fan 2: What do you mean? Surely that's impossible?
    TFC Fan 1: No, I'm not joking. They've actually never won. Even though there was a time it was literally only contested by two teams.
    TFC Fan 2: Huhn, that's funny, 'cause I'm sure I read an article by a Vancouver fan taking elaborate, unearned shots at TFC.
    TFC Fan 1: Yeah, it's one of those strange things. They seem to think that 5th place is a trophy.
    TFC Fan 2: Mountains are nice though!
    TFC Fan 1: Yeah, if you're into that.
    Happy New Year's everyone!
    Michael Mccoll
    Scrooge gazed upon the spectre. He was dressed differently to the Ghost of Football Past, who wore a flat cap, had scarves tied around both wrists, had a giant rosette pinned on him and carried a wooden rattle. This spectre was better dressed and kept checking his smartphone for twitter updates.
    The Ghost of Football Present rose, waved his smartphone in the air and transported Scrooge to an office in Toronto on Christmas Day. It was at BMO Field and a man sat alone at his desk wearing a red scarf and a frown.
    "Where are we spirit?" asked Scrooge.
    "You are at the office dwelling of Tiny Tim Bezbatchenko," replied the Ghost.
    "He looks sad," said Scrooge. "I thought people were meant to be happy on Christmas Day."
    "Alas," said the Spirit. "These are hard times and this is a bleak house."
    "Wait a minute, they're different stories altogether" said a well read Scrooge before the Spirit moved on.
    "Tiny Tim is crippled," the Spirit continued. "His hopes and ambitions have been crippled by coming to a team that simply cannot win. He is crippled by failure. His goose has been well and truly cooked this Christmas."
    "Should he not be at home with his family eating Christmas dinner?" enquired Scrooge.
    "He cannot stomach a traditional Christmas feast this year Ebenezer. He feels he's seen enough turkeys these past nine months to last him a lifetime. Look closely Ebenezer. Do you see Tiny Tim's crutch?"
    Scrooge peered at the crestfallen figure below him. "Yes, I saw it months ago," replied Scrooge. "His crutch sees him spend vast sums of money on top name players, only to still fail to deliver a playoff place."
    "And when your crutch fails you, the only way is down," boomed the Ghost.
    "Spirit," said Scrooge, with an interest he had never felt before in a football executive, "Tell me if Tiny Tim will live to see Toronto make the playoffs."
    "I see a vacant seat in the boardroom," replied the Ghost, "in the poor chimney-corner, and a crutch without an owner, carefully preserved. If these shadows remain unaltered by the Future, the hopes and dreams of TFC will die."
    "No, no," said Scrooge. "Oh, no, kind Spirit! Say that he and they will be spared."
    "If these shadows remain unaltered by the Future, none other of my race," returned the Ghost, "will find them here. You gave up on the team Ebenezer. Your team. That is not a true supporter. A supporter supports through thick and thin."
    "It was more like thin and thinner," retorted Scrooge.
    "Thousands of others have given up and lost hope and faith as well, and thousands more will follow. The team will die when there is no surplus population looking to attend and buy tickets."
    Scrooge hung his head to hear those words and was overcome with penitence and grief.
    "Football without fans is nothing Ebenezer," boomed the spirit.
    "You're just quoting Jock Stein now," replied Scrooge.
    And then, without a word of warning from the Ghost, they stood gazing down on an affluent living room full of festive revellers. Whitecaps fans once and all, buoyed by the news of a Christmas Day young DP signing. Everywhere you looked there was turkey, and crackers, and decorations, and presents, and much fun and joyous laughter everywhere to be seen and heard.
    It took him a few moments to focus but to his great surprise, Scrooge recognised his own nephew Fred.
    "Ha, ha!" laughed Scrooge’s nephew. "Ha, ha, ha!"
    There is nothing in the world so irresistibly contagious as laughter and good-humour. When Scrooge’s nephew laughed in this way: holding his sides, rolling his head, and twisting his face into the most extravagant contortions: Scrooge’s niece, by marriage, laughed as heartily as he. And their assembled friends being not a bit behindhand, roared out lustily.
    "Ha, ha! Ha, ha, ha, ha!"
    "Oh read it out loud again, please" asked one of the revellers, wiping a way a tear from laughing so much.
    "Mark it down, write it down, film it … We're going to turn TFC around and we're going to make the playoffs next year. We know where we're headed, we know how to get there. We've been given the resources of this ownership group and we will get to the right place."
    The whole room erupted in laughter once again.
    "Oh my," bellowed Fred, "That Tim Leiweke was a one. I'll miss his ridiculousness at TFC."
    "I don't know what was more ridiculous," one of the other guests exclaimed. "Leiweke saying that or the Toronto fans believing it."
    The room was filled with yet more laughter.
    "And remember when Duane Rollins tweeted out "#TFC will win the 2014 #MLS Cup. Save this tweet." in February?" said Fred to even more guffaws.
    "WHAT A FUD!" went up the cry around the room.
    "My Uncle Scrooge often brought Leiweke's quote up to me early in the year," said Fred. "Always said the Whitecaps would go nowhere if they didn't bring in the big names, the team was too young and full of unknowns."
    "And then they gave us Laba for a bag of balls!" piped up one guest, before more laughter followed.
    "What did your Uncle say to you Fred when Vancouver made the playoffs, clinched a Champions League spot, won their fifth Cascadia Cup and finished the season with a record number of points for a Canadian club in MLS?" asked another.
    "He just looked me in the eye, and said HUMBUG!". Cue more laughs.
    "He’s a comical old fellow," said Scrooge’s nephew, "That’s the truth: and not so pleasant as he might be. I think being a TFC fan for 8 years is bound to do that to anyone and those offences carry their own punishment, and I have nothing to say against him."
    "I have no patience with him," observed Scrooge’s niece. "He's a grump and a halfwit and clearly knows nothing about football". Scrooge’s niece’s sisters, and all the other ladies, expressed the same opinion.
    "Oh, I have!" said Scrooge’s nephew. "I am sorry for him; I couldn’t be angry with him if I tried. Who suffers by his ill whims of going to every home game at BMO?! Himself, always. Here, he takes it into his head to dislike us Whitecaps fans, and he won’t come and dine with us. What’s the consequence? He don’t lose much of a dinner."
    "Just some great football banter and incisive chat," replied Fred's wife and everyone nodded in agreement. "And don't forget all the fun games. Now, who wants to play pin the tail on Doneil Henry?"
    The Spirit turned to Scrooge. "See the fun you could have been having if you had gone along to their dinners."
    "Why would I want to go along and be mocked," asked an indignant Scrooge.
    "That is football Ebenezer," replied the Spirit. "Banter and ribbing and rivalries is what makes football. But what do you care? You walked away from your team and said that Toronto FC were dead to you."
    "And is this the lesson that you are trying to tell me Spirit?" asked Scrooge. "That I should renew my season tickets and be a TFC fan for ever more, no matter how poor they play and how unsuccessful they are?"
    "You still have a lot to learn Ebenezer, but my time on earth is short and will soon be over," replied the Ghost. "My brother will be with you shortly. Maybe then all will become clearer."
    Then with that Scrooge found himself back in his bedroom. He listened intently as the bell struck twelve. Scrooge looked about him for the Ghost, and saw it not. As the last stroke ceased to vibrate, he remembered the prediction of old Jacob Marley, and lifting up his eyes, beheld a solemn Phantom, draped and hooded, coming, like a mist along the ground, towards him.

    STAVE FOURTHE LAST OF THE SPIRITS
    The Phantom slowly, gravely, silently, approached. When it came near him, Scrooge bent down upon his knee; for in the very air through which this Spirit moved it seemed to scatter gloom and mystery. But as a TFC fan, he was used to watching such things.
    It was shrouded in a deep black garment, which concealed its head, its face, its form, and left nothing of it visible save one outstretched hand. A faceless being like many football club owners in the UK. Tucked into several pockets were share certificates and financial reports.
    "I am in the presence of the Ghost of Football Yet To Come?" asked Scrooge.
    The Spirit answered not, but pointed onward with its hand.
    "You are about to show me shadows of the things that have not happened, but will happen in the time before us," Scrooge pursued. "Is that so, Spirit?"
    The Spirit nodded.
    "Ghost of the Future!” he exclaimed, "I fear you more than any spectre I have seen. But as I know your purpose is to do me good, and as I hope to live to be another man from what I was, I am prepared to bear you company, and do it with a thankful heart. Will you not speak to me?"
    It gave him no reply. The hand was pointed straight before them.
    "Lead on!" said Scrooge. "Lead on! The night is waning fast, and it is precious time to me, I know. Lead on, Spirit!"
    And the Phantom did. The pair were transported to a group of gentlemen talking animatedly.
    "So that's it then. Finally dead?" said one.
    "I don't think too many will shed a tear?" said another.
    "Wouldn't expect so," replied the first man again. "Been as good as dead for years anyway. I think everyone was just past caring and waiting for the inevitable end."
    Scrooge was puzzled as to who the men were talking about. It can't have been his old partner Jacob, for that would have been in the past, but before he had too much time to think, he was watching a new encounter play out.
    There were two women in a small room with a seated man. The women were carrying a lot of red items and seemed to be trying to sell them to the man.
    "Oh come on mister," said the first woman. "You know they're worth more than that."
    "Not to me they're not," replied the seated man. "Not to anyone any more. I'll give you ten bucks for the lot."
    "But this is a vintage 2007 TFC strip. Inaugural season. And five other strips, ten scarves, lots of caps and so much other memorabilia." said the second woman. "Can't you do a better price?"
    "Ten is my final offer. Take it or leave it. I'll just be using them as cleaning rags anyway. No skin off my nose if I have to use something else. You don't like it, you blame the Two Timmies who promised so much but delivered so little."
    Grudgingly the women took the money and left cursing two Tiny Tims.
    Scrooge thought of all the Toronto merchandise he had bought over the years and the vast amount of money he had spent on it all. But before he could think too much, a new scene was unfolding in front of him.
    He recognised his nephew Fred once more and yet again, he was in fine spirits, toasting with friends.
    "Fans, one and all, and from near and far. Thank you for coming to another Vancouver Whitecaps end of season party," said Scrooge's nephew. "Once again, it has been a tremendous season and one that has seen the Whitecaps lift a record breaking 6th straight MLS Cup.
    "When I look back over the past few years and the success Sir Carl Robinson has brought to the team, it is amazing to look back at so many firsts. Becoming the first MLS side not only to win the CONCACAF Champions League but also the FIFA Club World Cup, was a tremendous achievement. But to lift that trophy three years running was something beyond our wildest dreams...."
    Fred was still talking but before he could hear any more of it, Scrooge was soon transported once again and he recognised the surroundings of course, for it was BMO Field. And there was his old seat in Section 113. The stadium was full. He was pleased to see that. But upon closer inspection it wasn't soccer that was being played and it was TFC fans that packed the stadium, rather it was CFL match, with the Toronto Argonauts losing to the BC Lions.
    "Spirit!", cried Scrooge. "What is this that unfold before me. What is going on in my home, my team's home? Why is there no soccer, only football? Did my team have to enter a groundsharing agreement to help split costs and free up funds for better players?"
    The Spirit did not answer and pointed to a wall. The signage read "Welcome to BMO Field. Home to the Toronto Argonauts".
    "Why is there no mention of Toronto Football Club Spirit?" asked Scrooge. "Did they move to a new stadium?"
    Again the Spirit spoke not but pointed to a small walled section in the car park which Scrooge now found himself in front of and staring at. There was a stone plaque, overrun by grass and weeds, the growth of vegetation’s death, not life. The Spirit stood beside Scrooge and pointed towards it.
    "Before I draw nearer to that stone to which you point," said Scrooge, "Answer me one question. Are these the shadows of the things that will be, or are they shadows of things that may be, only?"
    Still the Ghost pointed at the stone by which it stood.
    "Men’s courses will foreshadow certain ends, to which, if persevered in, they must lead," said Scrooge. "But if the courses be departed from, the ends will change. Say it is thus with what you show me!"
    The Spirit was immovable as ever.
    Scrooge crept towards it, trembling as he went; and following the finger, read upon the stone of the neglected grave the words - "The now defunct Toronto Football Club played at this stadium from 2007 to 2017."
    The finger pointed from the grave to him, and back again.
    "No, Spirit! Oh no, no!"
    The finger still was there.
    "Spirit!" he cried, tight clutching at its robe, "Hear me! I am not the man I was. I will not be the man I must have been but for this intercourse. Why show me this, if it is past all hope!"
    For the first time the hand appeared to shake.
    "Good Spirit," Scrooge continued. "The message is clear. If other fans do as I have done and give up on going to watch Toronto FC, then they will die a slow death. Is that correct?"
    The Phantom gave an affirmation.
    "And Spirit, I need to know. Will I and others get to see TFC in the MLS playoffs?"
    The Phantom shook his head and Scrooge accepted the answer in a resigned fashion.
    "For now, I know what I must do. I will honour the correct football path in my heart. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach. And that lesson has been loud and clear and understood by me."
    And with that, the Spirit shrunk, collapsed, and dwindled down into a bedpost.

    STAVE FIVETHE END OF IT
    Yes! and the bedpost was his own. The bed was his own, the room was his own. Best and happiest of all, the Time before him was his own, to make amends in!
    "I'm back and alive and in one piece. And now I know what I must do. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future!" Scrooge repeated, as he scrambled out of bed. "The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. Oh Jacob Marley! Heaven, and the Christmas Time be praised for this! I say it on my knees, old Jacob; on my knees! Thank you for helping me see the proper way."
    "I don’t know what day of the month it is!" said Scrooge. "I don’t know how long I’ve been among the Spirits. I don’t know anything. I’m quite a baby. Never mind. I don’t care. I’d rather be a baby. Hallo! Whoop! Hallo here!"
    Running to the window, he opened it, and put out his head. No fog, no mist; clear, bright, jovial, stirring, cold; cold, piping for the blood to dance to; Golden sunlight; Heavenly sky; sweet fresh air; merry bells. Oh, glorious! Glorious!
    "What’s today!" cried Scrooge, calling downward to a boy.
    "Today!" replied the boy. "Why, Christmas Day."
    "It’s Christmas Day!" said Scrooge to himself. "I haven’t missed it. The Spirits have done it all in one night. They can do anything they like. Of course they can. Of course they can. They could help Canada qualify for the World Cup if they so chose. Or maybe that's stretching things too far."
    Scrooge shouted back to the boy below. "Do you know the Poulterer’s, in the next street but one, at the corner?" Scrooge inquired.
    "I should hope I did," replied the lad.
    "An intelligent boy!" said Scrooge. "A remarkable boy! He must be from the West Coast. Do you know whether they’ve sold the prize Turkey that was hanging up there? Not the little prize Turkey: the big one?"
    "What, the one as big as me?" returned the boy.
    "What a delightful boy!" said Scrooge. "It’s a pleasure to talk to him. Yes, my buck!"
    "It’s hanging there now," replied the boy.
    "Is it?" said Scrooge. "Go and buy it and tell ’em to take it to BMO Field. Tell 'em to look for a sad sap called Tiny Tim who is sitting all alone trying to find his latest crutch."
    Scrooge took out a black marker pen and hurriedly wrote a note for the boy below to attach to the turkey.
    It read - "Dear Tiny Tim. Add this turkey to all your others from the past year. I've overpaid for this and won't get my money's worth. I'm sure you know the feeling. At least you and the turkey can have the same thing in common. You can both go and get stuffed."
    Scrooge threw down the note and the money and the boy hurried off to complete the deed so as to earn the half a bottle of Crown Royal whisky he was promised for doing the task in a timely manner.
    With a spring in his step, Scrooge got dressed in his best outfit and rushed out of his house on his way to the home of his nephew Fred. On his way he passed the two season ticket reps that had come to his door merely a few hours earlier.
    "My dear sirs," Scrooge exclaimed as he brushed past. "Did you get the numbers you were looking for yesterday?".
    "Unfortunately not sir," replied the fatter of the two gentlemen. "It is a hard sell, even at Christmastime for you cannot polish a turd."
    "Do you still have my season ticket billing invoice with you?" Scrooge enquired.
    "Why yes," said the other tubby with a smile.
    "Good!" said Scrooge with much frivolity. "Then on this day of giant birds you can have a lot in common with a pelican."
    "A pelican?" both men said together with a puzzlement.
    "Yes," laughed Scrooge. "For you can both stick your bills up your asses." And with that Scrooge continued on his way to Fred's house.
    His nephew was surprised to see him.
    "Fred!" said Scrooge.
    "Why bless my soul!" cried Fred, “Who’s that?"
    "It is I. Your uncle Scrooge. I have come to dinner. Will you let me in, Fred?"
    Let him in! It is a mercy he didn’t shake his arm off. He was at home in five minutes. Nothing could be heartier. His niece looked just the same. So did every one when they came. Wonderful party, wonderful games, wonderful unanimity, won-der-ful happiness!
    "Fred, I have been a silly old fool and wasted these past eight years. Can you ever forgive me for being a TFC fan" asked Scrooge of his nephew.
    "Forgive you Uncle? For there is nothing to forgive. I feel you have been punished more than any man should in his lifetime for the inglorious failures your eyes have had to endure. It is a suffering no man deserves."
    "Thank you Fred," said a relieved Scrooge as he fervently shook Fred's hand. "I have seen the light. Three of them you could say. I have seen the errors of my ways and was shown the path to true happiness involves not shunning football, but shunning Toronto Football Club and following Canada's chosen team. Your team Fred. The Whitecaps. I want to watch a successful team and they are clearly the only option. Always have been, always will be - past, present and future. I see that now. My eyes have been opened."
    "Oh Uncle!" replied a delighted Fred. "We're glad to have you aboard the good ship Vancouver."
    "I will be putting my house on the market in the New Year, moving West to Vancouver and buying a season ticket for the Whitecaps. And I can't wait!" said Scrooge with an unusual adornment on his face, that of a smile.
    Scrooge was better than his word. He did it all, and infinitely more. And the successful times he enjoyed were like no other times of his life.
    As for Tiny Tim, he did not die, apart from a little bit inside every day he stayed within the TFC organisation. He soon saw he was on to a losing cause and jumped ship to another sports team in another city. But his golden boy image was tarnished forever and he was never the same again.
    Toronto FC were not to be so lucky and in their 20th straight season of failing to make the playoffs, and with the fans clearing out faster than snow off a dike, the MLS bigwigs, or should that be Fezziwigs, had enough and put the franchise out of it's misery.
    Scrooge had no further intercourse with Spirits, but did enjoy some on his Cascadian travels in Portland. Well you know what those Timbers girls are like. But after his ghostly visitations, Scrooge knew how to keep Christmas well, if any man alive possessed the knowledge, and was truly grateful to that time of year for putting him onto his part of correctness.
    And Christmas time brought Scrooge special reasons to celebrate every December, with the MLS season wrapping up and Vancouver Whitecaps becoming dominant in North American football.
    Every Christmas Scrooge would gather his friends and fellow Whitecaps supporters for a big ball and toast the 'Caps successes for the year gone by. Glasses were raised and the assembled cheer filled the air - "Whitecaps fans the world over. May the football gods continue to bless us, every one!"
    Michael Mccoll
    Rivero has been playing his football in Chile's Primera Division with O'Higgins FC for the past six months, where he scored 10 goals in 16 Torneo Apertura appearances and his performances had reportedly been attracting interest from top Chilean sides Colo-Colo and Universidad.
    You can see some of what was generating that interest, and what the Whitecaps have added to their squad, in the highlights video below:

    The striker came through the youth ranks with Uruguayan club Defensor Sporting before making his pro debut with Central Espanol in the 2012-13 season, scoring three goals in his 18 games. He made another move the following season, joining CA Rentistas, where he notched 10 goals in his 17 appearances for the Montevideo side.
    Rivero joins the South American ranks in the Vancouver locker room and comes to the Whitecaps as a young Designated Player, which on current terms would mean a cap hit of $200,000. As always, terms of the deal and transfer fee are currently unknown, but earlier reports out of Chile indicated that the player had a $3 million transfer fee attached to him.
    The striker will have at least one familiar face in the 'Caps dressing room in the shape of fellow Uruguayan Nicolas Mezquida, with the pair playing together for Uruguay's U17 side in 2009.
    Rivero's signing comes after undergoing a medical in Mexico earlier this week and the striker will arrive in Vancouver next year where he will be officially introduced to the media. For now, he is just delighted at the opportunity the move to the Whitecaps and MLS affords him.
    Now, in the clamour for the Whitecaps to add a goalscorer, it will be easy to expect immediate results and pile the pressure on Rivero to perform. He will undoubtedly be expected to hit the ground running and although a new league and playing environment always takes a bit of getting used to, MLS seems to suit South American talent and he has shown that he has what it takes to perform and score in top level leagues.
    We'll soon see and know if that can transfer to MLS with ease.
    By getting this signing done early, it will give Rivero a full pre-season to train and settle into his new environment, as well as coming in match fit.
    He will no doubt also have to live with constant initial comparisons from some quarters with Camilo, but the 'Caps look to have added just what was missing to their attack and there could be some more to come soon.
    At 6'2", Rivero is the big target guy that Carl Robinson was crying out for all last season. His highlight video above shows some really nice and composed finishes, along with some headed goals. The partnership he could form with Pedro Morales and Mauro Rosales and the potential damage the three of them could do in MLS next season really is mouthwatering.
    The spine of the Whitecaps side for 2015 is looking very promising. With David Ousted in goal, Kendall Waston running the defence and Matias Laba just in from of him in the DM role, that's a solid defensive core. Add in Morales, Rosales and now Rivero and the attack is looking strong too.
    Robinson described the addition of Rivero as being "another piece to the puzzle", as he continues to build the squad he wants, adding "His skill set fits well with the way we want to play."
    Robbo and his assistant Martyn Pert were recently both in South America on a scouting mission. Robinson was in both Uruguay and Chile and it is believed that Rivero was his number one target from the trip. He got his man.
    What other pieces come out of the clubs South American and European scouting trips remain to be seen. Right now, Rivero become Vancouver third DP alongside Morales and Laba, but it has yet to be confirmed whether Laba will retain DP status next season.
    If he doesn't and the Caps can use allocation money to buy his salary down, that would free up another spot for Robinson to fill from his European reconnaissance. Which could be in the shape of another striker or winger. Factor in having another former DP in Rosales and that's a formidable side for what will be a formidable Western Conference next season.
    So well done Santa. Thanks for delivering the goods. Now, about that bike I asked for in 1978....
    Michael Mccoll
    "A Merry Christmas, uncle! God save you!" cried a cheerful voice. It was the voice of Scrooge’s nephew Fred.
    "Bah!" said Scrooge, "Humbug!"
    "Christmas a humbug, uncle!" said Scrooge’s nephew. "You don’t mean that, I am sure?"
    "I do," said Scrooge. "Merry Christmas! What right have you to be merry? What reason have you to be merry?"
    "Well I am a Vancouver Whitecaps supporter uncle. We have a lot to be thankful and merry about this fine year, with the hope of much more to come."
    Scrooge having no better answer ready on the spur of the moment, said, "Bah!” again; and followed it up with "Humbug."
    "Don’t be angry, uncle. Come! Dine with us tomorrow. We can talk football."
    "Good afternoon!" said Scrooge.
    "And A Happy New Year!" replied the blue and white clad Fred with a spring in his step.
    "Good afternoon!" said Scrooge again as he ushered his nephew out of the door.
    Fred left whistling "White is the colour", adding "of Christmas" to the end of each appropriate line, but Scrooge followed him outside to make sure the pipsqueak was indeed on his way.
    But as Fred left two other gentleman came up Scrooge's garden path. They were portly gentlemen, answering the eternal question once and for all as to just who had eaten all the pies. They now stood, with their TFC branded hats off, on Scrooge’s doorstep. They had books and papers in their hands, and bid Scrooge a good afternoon.
    "Have I the pleasure of addressing Mr. Scrooge, or Mr. Marley?", asked one of the gentlemen.
    "Mr. Marley has been dead these seven weeks," Scrooge replied. "He died seven weeks, this very night."
    "We are sorry for your loss," spoke one of the fatties, presenting his credentials which identified him as a Toronto ticket account manager.
    "At this festive season of the year, Mr. Scrooge," said the gentleman, taking up a pen, "it is more than usually desirable that we should make some slight provision for the poor who have suffered greatly in recent times. We notice you have not renewed your TFC season ticket and can only assume that this is simply an oversight on your part. We are pleased to offer you the chance to renew right now at a special price.
    "We'll even throw in a special commemorative personalised brick in part of the stadium redevelopments. How many and what names shall I put you down for?".
    "Nothing!" Scrooge replied.
    "You wish your brick to be anonymous?"
    "I wish to be left alone," said Scrooge. "Since you ask me what I wish, gentlemen, that is my answer. Good afternoon, gentlemen!"
    Seeing clearly that it would be useless to pursue their point, the gentlemen withdrew. Scrooge was left with an improved opinion of himself, and in a more facetious temper than was usual with him. "Renew to see that useless bunch" he mumbled to himself. As he turned around he noticed the knocker on his door. It was undergoing a process of change and was now not a knocker, but the face of his old friend Marley.
    It was not in impenetrable shadow as the other objects in the yard were, but had a dismal light about it, like a bad lobster in a dark cellar, for TFC fans are not the prettiest.
    As Scrooge looked fixedly at this phenomenon, it was a knocker again. To say that he was not startled, or that his blood was not conscious of a terrible sensation to which it had been a stranger from infancy, would be untrue.
    Scrooge decided to go to bed for a nap. He was obviously tired from all these annoying visitors. As he sat on the edge undressing he heard some horrible prolonged moaning noises. Flashbacks of being in the stands for Toronto's 2-0 loss to the Union workhorses in September came flooding back.
    The moans were succeeded by a clanking noise, deep down below; as if some person were dragging a heavy chain like a ghost in haunted houses in movies. He shook his head. "Poppycock and humbug" he muttered.
    All of a sudden his bedroom door flew open with a booming sound, and then he heard the noise much louder from below; then coming up the stairs; then coming straight towards his door.
    "It’s humbug still!" said Scrooge. "I won’t believe it."
    His colour changed though, when, without a pause, it came on through the heavy door, and passed into the room before his eyes. "I know him; Marley’s Ghost!"
    The same face: the very same. Marley, with his TFC strip on from the 2007 season, his season ticket holder scarf and red toque. But he was wrapped in chains. The chain he drew was clasped about his middle. It was long, and wound about him like a tail. His body was transparent; so that Scrooge, observing him, and looking through his strip.
    "How now!" said Scrooge, caustic and cold as ever. "What do you want with me?"
    "Much!" - Marley’s voice, no doubt about it.
    "Who are you?"
    "Ask me who I was."
    "Who were you then?" said Scrooge, raising his voice.
    "In life I was your partner, Jacob Marley."
    "Dreadful apparition, why do you trouble me?"
    "I have been forced to wander the afterlife for my sins, but I am here to let you know that the same fate awaits unless you can change. You can avoid my penance."
    "Tell me Jacob what I need to do."
    "I cannot. I am only here for dramatic effect and to tell you that you will be haunted by three spirits," said the ghost. "Without their visits you cannot hope to shun the path I tread. Expect the first tomorrow, when the bell tolls One."
    And with that the ghost disappeared. Scrooge had a confused look on his face, akin to that of Doneil Henry for most of the time that he played in Toronto. He went to bed, but not without changing his pyjama bottoms first and his sheets, for Scrooge had shat the bed like TFC in New York in their last game of the 2009 season. And like Toronto's defence in far too many games these past eight years, he fell asleep in an instant.

    STAVE TWOTHE FIRST OF THREE SPIRITS
    The day's events had tired out Scrooge and he slept right through, only to be awoken from his slumber when his old grandfather's clock, that he kept on the shelf, struck one. He's always meant to sell it to open up a stall selling Joy Division oven gloves, but he'd never quite got around to that.
    Scrooge sat up startled. He knew this was to be the hour of reckoning and sure enough, right there in front of him was another spectre.
    "Are you the Spirit, sir, whose coming was foretold to me?" asked Scrooge.
    "I am! I am the Ghost of Football Past."
    "Long Past?" inquired Scrooge.
    "No. Your past."
    Scrooge made bold to inquire what business brought him here.
    "Your welfare!" said the Ghost. "Your reclamation", and with that it put out its strong hand as it spoke, and clasped him gently by the arm. "Rise! and walk with me!"
    After some discussions around the practicalities of it all, and the rather chilly Ontario weather outside, Scrooge ended up flying through the air like Kendall Waston rising to meet a Mauro Rosales corner.
    Scrooge and the ghost went through the walls of his and were soon transported to Seattle in August of 1976.
    "Good Heaven!" said Scrooge, clasping his hands together, as he looked about him. "It's the Kingdome. I was here as a boy! Why have you brought me here?"
    "You have lost faith in Toronto football teams Ebenezer," replied the spirit. "I want to show you what success looks like. Look down there on the pitch. The Toronto Metros-Croatia are lifting the 1976 Soccer Bowl after a 3-0 win over Minnesota Kicks. And look, there you are Ebenezer. Jumping up an down in the crowd with your sister. You look so happy."
    "I was happy. We had a team that made the playoffs and made our city proud. Not the embarrassment the current team is. Why are you torturing me with what is in the past? What is gone is gone. These days will not return."
    "Perhaps. But we must now move forward three years."
    With a gust and a flash, the pair were transported to a new venue.
    "Where are we now Spirit?" asked Scrooge. "I do not recognize this as one of my memories."
    "We are in Vancouver. September 1979. The Whitecaps have just won the Soccer Bowl by beating Tampa Bay Rowdies in Giants Stadium in New Jersey."
    "Why are there so many people here in the streets," enquired Scrooge.
    "You're watching the team's return home and the victory parade in front of a couple of hundred thousand rabid supporters. This is a true soccer city Ebenezer. And this is what success feels like."
    "Spirit!" said Scrooge, "show me no more! Conduct me home. Why do you delight to torture me?"
    "One shadow more!" exclaimed the Ghost.
    "No more!" cried Scrooge. "No more. I don’t wish to see it. Show me no more!"
    But the relentless Ghost pinioned him in both his arms, and forced him to observe what happened next as a screen appeared to show a video compilation of all of the Vancouver football teams' national championships.
    First there was the 86ers four straight Canadian Soccer League triumphs from 1988 to 1991 and then the Whitecaps' USL championship wins in 2006 and 2008.
    "Spirit, why are you showing me these images. I am not from Vancouver. Show me Toronto success and championship wins," begged Scrooge.
    "I cannot. For there is nothing to show," boomed the Ghost.
    "Spirit!" said Scrooge in a broken voice, "remove me from this place."
    "I told you these were shadows of the things that have been," said the Ghost. "That they are what they are, do not blame me!"
    "Remove me!" Scrooge exclaimed, "I cannot bear it!"
    He turned upon the Ghost, and seeing that it looked upon him with a face, in which in some strange way there were fragments of all the faces it had shown him, wrestled with it.
    "Leave me! Take me back. Haunt me no longer!"
    And so the Spirit did and returned Scrooge to the bedroom of his Toronto townhouse.
    Scrooge was conscious of being exhausted, and overcome by an irresistible drowsiness; and, further, of being in his own bedroom. He gave the cap a parting squeeze, in which his hand relaxed; and had barely time to reel to bed, before he sank into a heavy sleep. But not for long....
    [To be continued]
    Michael Mccoll
    Nonsense? Festive fun? Sexist claptrap? Have a listen and decide for yourselves!
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    Haworth had a good season in Ottawa, being one of 2 players to make the jump to NASL from the 2013 Fury PDL team, along with GK Chad Bush. Displaying a lot of heart and aggression on either flanks whether chasing a loose ball or harrying the fullbacks, Haworth also filled in admirably on the wings, considering that he is naturally a striker.

    Photo courtesy of Ottawa Sun.
    He also shows a lot of selflessness on the pitch, able to connect with teammates close by and making off-the-ball runs when needed. However, he will need to work on his end product for the 2015 season from the wings, as he will have to improve his crossing and getting more often into the penalty area. I believe that he will continue to show good development into a winger, and he may seize his opportunity if he is given more chances as a striker.
    Eustaquio is a young talent at the heart of midfield who was the main man to sub in for Richie Ryan at DM whenever he was needed. Displaying good tackling and silky smooth long passes from the position, Eustaquio is being watched closely by both Ottawa and Canadian supporters, with many cheering on his development on and off the pitch.

    Photo courtesy of Ottawa Citizen.
    He still showed his youth on some occasions, with the player sometimes being caught holding on to the ball in dangerous positions, and making a rash tackle that resulted in a straight red in the last regular season match, but these are things that the player is certainly learning from and will only get better in 2015.
    Congratulations to Carl and Mauro, this is fantastic news for Ottawa and the two players during a very festive period.
    You can follow Namu Yoon on Twitter at @BBSC_SeoulBro, and his blog on Ottawa Fury FC at OFFCReview.wordpress.com, and at @OFFCReview.
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