Terry Dunfield Archive

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Nakajima-Farran, Piette the only real surprises on Canada roster

By
Steven Sandor
– 05/17/2012

Issey Nakajima-Farran, with Canada back in 2010, PHOTO: CANADA SOCCER

Canadian men’s national team coach Stephen Hart had been stating over and over not to expect too many surprises when he unveiled the roster for a June 3 friendly against the United States and two World Cup qualifiers to follow.

So, we shouldn’t be surprised that we weren’t surprised. For the most part, it’s a squad very similar to what we saw through the first phase of World Cup qualifying, which saw Canada eliminate St. Lucia, St. Kitts and Nevis and Puerto Rico.

Of the 22 men named to the roster, only two — teenager Samuel Piette and veteran Issey Nakajima-Farran, who plays in Australia — would be considered eyebrow-raisers.

Piette, at 17, was a major part of Canada’s team at last year’s U-17 World Cup and the recent U-23 squad that came within one game of securing a berth at the London Olympics. He is reportedly close to a deal with Fortuna Dusseldorf, who earlier this week secured its return to the Bundesliga.
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Mistakes send Toronto FC to sixth straight loss

By
Mark Polishuk
– 04/22/2012

Reggie Lambe, two goals not enough

,Not even the return of Torsten Frings could bring an end to Toronto FC’s losing streak.  In fact, the team captain helped prolong it.  Frings’ mistake in the opening seconds was the first of several defensive miscues for the Reds in a 3-2 loss to the Chicago Fire on Saturday at BMO Field.

The loss extends TFC’s franchise-worst losing streak to six games and the Reds are now just one more defeat away from tying Kansas City’s record of seven losses to begin an MLS season (set in 1999). 

Saturday’s match also saw Toronto tie another ignominious mark, as they were the victims of the quickest goal in the Fire’s franchise history.  Just moments after the opening whistle, Frings committed a sloppy turnover to Chicago’s Patrick Nyarko right in front of the TFC net.  Nyarko passed to a wide-open Dominic Oduro, who fired it home for his third goal of the season.
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Montreal gets historic win at expense of Toronto FC

By
Mike Wyman
– 04/07/2012

Sinisa Ubiparipovic scored the opener

Montreal coach, Jesse Marsch, fielded a reworked starting XI to begin the game against Toronto FC. The decisions paid off as the Impact got off to a good start, grabbed a lead in the early going and held it — despite giving up a goal in the late going — to put its historic first MLS win into the books.

Left sitting to begin the game were captain Davy Arnaud, local midfielder Patrice Bernier as well as Justin Mapp, who performed in all five games played so far this season. Sinisa Ubiparipovic started, getting his first minutes of action this season and coming out for map in the 73rd minute. Italian forward Bernardo Corradi wore the captain’s armband.

“It’s a big moment and a big win for the club, for the fans, for the city and for the players,” declared coach Marsch in his post-game comments before nuancing his positivity. “The reality is that the work is just getting started. I think we’re all pleased and happy and excited but I think our players are so well grounded that they understand that it’s about the whole process and pushing things along. I’m happy for everyone who is connected with this club and now let’s continue to perform.” he continued.
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Terrible TFC defending to blame for three-goal loss in home opener

By
Mark Polishuk
– 03/24/2012

Chris Wondolowski: Scored twice

If there was any question of Torsten Frings’ value to Toronto FC, his absence for most of the last two matches has proven just how badly the Reds need their captain.

TFC dropped a 3-0 result to the San Jose Earthquakes in front of 20,753 disappointed fans at BMO Field on Saturday in the club’s home opener.  It was Toronto’s first full game without Frings, who suffered a hamstring injury early in last week’s 3-1 loss in Seattle and will be out of action until late April at the earliest.  Without Frings holding the fort at defensive midfield and providing cover on the back line, the holes in TFC’s defence were been badly exposed for the second time in as many weeks.

“We’ve had a big loss of Torsten not there to organize the team on the pitch,” said TFC head coach Aron Winter.  “At the moment he’s not available to play [so] we have to fix the back line….We have to resolve those problems.”
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TFC’s defensive frailties exposed by Estrada, Sounders

By
Steven Sandor
– 03/18/2012

David Estrada

Just three days after winning its biggest match in club history, Toronto FC got a reality check.

Playing against a Seattle Sounders team that had something to prove after it received a 6-1 hiding from Santos Laguna CONCACAF Champions League action, TFC reminded its supporters that its back line is still too slow, too disorganized.

David Estrada scored three times as the Sounders won its MLS home opener 3-1 in front of more than 38,000 fans, but this was far more than one player having a good day. It was a case of a Seattle Sounders — a team which doesn’t have the star power of the Los Angeles Galaxy but plays at a much faster pace — running TFC’s back line ragged.

And, when TFC — already down 1-0 — lost Torsten Frings to injury after he was forced to make a last ditch saving tackle after TFC’s high line had been unlocked, the soft underbelly lost its armour. Frings had been successfully utilized as a sweeper to try and mask Toronto FC’s defensive defencies through Toronto’s two-legged CCL triumph over the Galaxy; without Frings, the Reds were left exposed.
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Toronto FC the last MLS team standing in CCL

By
Steven Sandor
– 03/15/2012

Milos Kocic: Robbed Robbie Keane late in the match

If, last July, someone was to predict that Toronto FC would be the last MLS team standing in the CONCACAF Champions League, they’d have been offered some pretty sweet odds.

But, there it is — after TFC played a cagey road game Wednesday in front of a smattering of Los Angeles soccer loyalists at the Home Depot Center, the Reds are the only team to qualify for the CCL’s final four. A second half goal from Nick Soolsma, combined with sterling performances from forward Ryan Johnson and goalkeeper Milos Kocic, gave the Reds a 2-1 win over the Galaxy in the second leg of their CCL quarterfinal, and a 4-3 triumph on aggregate.

The Reds will now face Herculez Gomez and Santos Laguna in the semifinal. And it won’t be easy. The Mexican powerhouse smashed six past the Seattle Sounders Wednesday.
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Record TFC crowd makes the noise, but Galaxy takes the advantage

By
Mark Polishuk
– 03/08/2012

Ryan Johnson... got the opening goal

Through the first 20 minutes of Wednesday’s CONCACAF Champions League quarter-final first leg, it seemed like Toronto FC was having the ultimate storybook performance. Playing in the biggest match (and in front of the biggest home crowd) in club history, the Reds jumped out to a 2-0 lead over the favoured Los Angeles Galaxy, driving the 47,658 supporters in attendance into even more of a frenzy.

Unfortunately for the Reds, however, there was no happy ending. Landon Donovan’s goal in the 88th minute equalized the score at 2-2 and cost TFC a chance to get an edge in the CCL tie.

“The city definitely delivered tonight and they felt like a 12th man,” said midfielder Terry Dunfield. “It’s too bad, the script was waiting for us to hold on and take that 2-1 score to L.A.”
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TFC has very little time to fix its defensive problems

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/26/2012

Geovanny Caicedo

Toronto FC’s brass made a decision not to prepare for the season like the other MLS teams do. While other teams have been playing preseason games for weeks, TFC had been bunkered in Toronto.

Now, after Toronto played just its second preseason game — a 2-2 draw against third-division side Orlando City at the Walt Disney World Classic — there will be those who wonder if the lack of preseason game action will help or hurt TFC long-term.

That’s because the Reds need to transform two new South American central defenders, Geovanny Caicedo and Miguel Aceval, into a solid partnership. Neither player’s English is strong. And, what’s more troubling, is that on Saturday they looked like they need a heck of a lot longer than a week and a half to become a solid central defensive partnership.

While Aceval will take credit for the equalizing goal, a left-footed free kick that caromed off the arm of Orlando defender Anthony Pulis, he and Caicedo had a few lapses in the first half of the match, including a comedy of errors that led to John Rooney’s penalty-kick opener.
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TFC finally gets its preseason underway with 5-1 win over USF

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/18/2012

Luis Silva

Toronto FC finally got its preseason schedule underway, and the Reds got a rather one-sided — and expected — win over the University of South Florida.

First-round draft pick Luis Silva scored two quick goals and set up another as TFC won 5-1 over the University of South Florida. TFC is at the Walt Disney World complex as it prepares for next week’s preseason tournament in Orlando.

Silva gave the Reds a 2-0 lead by the 15-minute mark.

Joao Plata, who set up Silva’s second goal, scored one of his own. Nick Soolsma and Canadian midfielder Terry Dunfield also got on the scoresheet. Dunfield’s goal came off a pass from Silva.
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CONCACAF delivers amnesty to de Guzman and Dunfield

By
Steven Sandor
– 02/14/2012

Terry Dunfield

The Canadian men’s national team got a bit of good news Monday.

CONCACAF announced that, after discussions with FIFA, the decision has been made to wipe away the yellow cards accumulated by players during the first two rounds of World Cup qualifying.

And that means Canadian midfielders Terry Dunfield and Julian de Guzman, who had a yellow each from the previous round of qualifying, will enter the next phase of World Cup matches with clean slates. So, neither player will be walking a tightrope when he next plays for Canada in an official qualifying match.
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