TFC's James strikes decisive blow
By Eric Koreen (National Post).
Published: Saturday, May 31, 2008
TORONTO - Due to a bevy of complications, Saturday's game between Toronto FC and the L.A. Galaxy resembled something between your average regular-season game and the reserve contests that follow the main events.
Fitting, then, that a year-long reserve should strike the decisive blow.
TFC rookie defender Julius James scored in his first Major League Soccer regular-season tilt, giving a thin TFC side a 2-0 win over the Galaxy, who were missing their two flashiest players.
For James, the goal marked a spectacular debut. The rookie was TFC's first pick in this year's draft, going ninth overall. But because of some early-season additions to the lineup, James, until Saturday, had only got to run around in the sparsely-attended reserve games.
But with central defender Tyrone Marshall missing the game because of a foot injury, and his replacement, Olivier Tebily going down with an injury of his own early in the first half, James hit centre stage, finally.
And he did not disappoint. In the 48th minute, James got his head on the end of a free kick from Rohan Ricketts. James outjumped a Galaxy defender for the missive, and directed it past Steve Cronin, the diving Galaxy goalkeeper.
Jeff Cunningham added a goal in the 64th minute, as TFC (5-3-2) took control of a sloppy game with a dominant effort in the second half.
The game was notable for its absences. For the second straight year, the Galaxy came to Toronto without an active David Beckham. Last August, the English superstar could not play because of a sore right knee.
This time around, he was not even in the stadium, as he was with the English national team playing against Trinidad and Tobago.
However, he was far from the only glaring omission from the game. A favourite target of the TFC supporters, Galaxy forward Landon Donovan, was relegated to reserve status because of a groin injury.
TFC had its own holes in the lineup, with goalkeeper Greg Sutton, midfielder Carl Robinson and forward Amado Guevara all from TFC because of international duties. Starting forward Danny Dichio (grain strain) and midfielder Laurent Robert (suspension) also did not play.
Perhaps that accounted for the early uncertainty on both sides of the field.
The first half accomplished little, except perhaps to lower the bar for what deserves applause, and what does not.
With the absence of a shot on goal until the 39th minute, some of the more subtle aspects of the game earned cheers from the faithful at BMO Field. Marvell Wynne made a deft defence of the ball with a Galaxy attacker at his back, allowing the ball to roll out of bounds without touching it. The fans showed their appreciation.
Later in the half, James sent a looping shot at the Galaxy goal from midfield, sending it just over the crossbar. More applause.
But as the skies opened up in Toronto, so did the play. The last seven minutes of the half were entertaining, with each team coming close to quality chances, usually just attempting one pass too many.
In the second half, TFC finally got it right, while the Galaxy were left to slip and slide on the slick turf.
