It really doesn't make any sense.
A high-paid striker just managing to bumble the ball past the third-string goalkeeper of a barely-mediocre opponent, in the 88th minute, giving his team its first league victory in 10 tries. It really doesn't make any sense that such an event would be such a cause for relief, for satisfaction and for outright celebration amongst the fanbase of a team.
But then, this is Toronto FC we're talking about. Nothing ever really makes much sense.
[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]
It was perfectly fitting, of course, that the aforementioned high-paid striker was Danny Koevermans, he of the oft-repeated (and later-regretted) "worst team in the world" quip a week prior. In the intervening time since the remark, what have his Reds been up to?
Oh, you know, just a fourth straight Voyageurs Cup triumph, and a massively cathartic home victory over Philadelphia, ensuring the ignominious enshrinage in the MLS record books of TFC's 2012 edition wouldn't become any more grotesque than it already was at 0-9.
Now, an international break for most of the roster, a few weeks to rest and recuperate, and -- most importantly -- some positive psychological momentum to build upon, with about 75% of the MLS regular season left to go.
Let's not pretend that TFC's win over Philadelphia was glorious for any particular aesthetic reasons -- a clip of Koevermans's goal can be used as the video accompaniment to a definition of the phrase "they don't ask how, they just ask how many" -- or that it represents a fundamental and decisive turning point -- after all, the team still infuriatingly squandered a number of good chances, and just barely got past the league's second-worst team.
But for one day, Toronto FC and its fans could take a break from being nothing more than a punch line.
Of course the team's still in last place. Of course projecting this team as a playoff contender is still massively far-fetched. Of course, with the roster essentially the same as it's been since the season-opening string of futility began, much needs to change for 2012 to be salvaged in any meaningful way.
But what the hell, why not revel in the win, however meaningless it may ultimately prove to be?
Toronto fans readily adopted the "worst team in the world" moniker after Koevermans's initial remark, proving once again that sometimes you need to laugh in order to avoid crying. And that's really all that can be done at this point, it would appear. Enjoy each game on its individual merits, without getting too wrapped up in the bigger picture. 2013, here we come.
The MLS campaign is already a write-off, isn't it? There's no way they can possibly crawl out of the hole they've dug for themselves, is there?
That's what most would say, however dangerous such predictions can be in May. But then again, this is Major League Soccer we're talking about.
And as we've seen time and again, seemingly nonsensical things just have a way of happening to TFC.
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