Playing out the string, when there are no postseason hopes and all that is left to play for is pride and positive momentum for next year, is never fun.
Toronto FC looked to be making a positive end to their inaugural season, winning earlier in the week against the New York Red Bulls. But any positive momentum they had, however, dissipated quickly in Colorado, as they lost 1-0 to the Rapids despite being a man up for most of the match.
"When the score was 0-0 with 11 vs. 11 we were fine," said Toronto coach Mo Johnston. "But after the red card and the penalty kick we couldn't get it going."
Defender Marvell Wynne said the TFC players were disappointed, having hoped to build off of their performance against the Red Bulls.
"The win against New York was fresh in our minds and we were hoping to carry that forward to this game, but that's the game of soccer," he said. "We aren't consistent and our offense just wasn't there today."
Johnston thought his team showed flashes of good play, but his sputtering forwards could not make the most of their opportunities.
"Against 10 men we had 90 percent of the ball and Maurice Edu was dominating Pablo Mastroeni," said Johnston. "You see the dominance there, but we were not getting enough weight on the ball. Our delivery of the ball was poor. Our two strikers, [Jeff] Cunningham and [Collin] Samuel, were poor, and I told them that. And when your strikers are off you don't score goals. And that's why this team has had trouble scoring goals of late -- because of our strike force."
Johnston did see some bright spots, especially from Wynne, who played excellently in both midfield and defense.
"We created a couple of half chances with Marvell coming up the wing, and Samuel should have scored on one of them," said Johnston. "There were another couple chances that the goalkeeper punched out and to me that means the delivery has to be a little better."
Wynne himself felt that Toronto's problem was a lack of leadership and players wanting to step up and take control of the offense.
"We never wanted to keep the ball and possess it," said Wynne. "It seemed like we were all scared and we weren't sure of our footing or our touch and no one wanted to be the playmaker and put the team on their shoulders. Carl Robinson did all he could as a center back, but I think we really missed him in the midfield."
Johnston also took issue with the refereeing, disagreeing with major calls that both benefited and hindered his team.
"I didn't think the red card [to the Rapids' Mehdi Ballouchy] was a red card," said Johnston. "And the penalty kick, I'm going to take a fine for this, but that was a complete joke. [Facundo] Erpen spun away from Pozniak, there was no contact, and he went down like there was a swimming pool there."
Johnston sees a tough road ahead for the next game in Los Angeles against the Galaxy, especially in terms of his roster.
"We have a lot of guys missing next week for international duty, Carl Robinson, Andrew Boyens, and one other player from tonight I can't name is in the USA team," said Johnston. "And we have several guys injured. So we are struggling."
Overall, the night was a microcosm of the season for Toronto, who just cannot seem to consistently take advantage of their opportunities.
"It is disappointing," said Johnston. "Overall I don't think it was good enough and when I look back at the season there are certain guys who I just don't think are good enough for MLS."
Geoffrey Urland is a contributor to MLSnet.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Soccer or its clubs.
