With a three-goal gap separating Toronto FC and FC Edmonton going into the second leg of their Nutrilite Canadian Championship tie, there wasn't much drama as to who was advancing to the tournament final. Wednesday's match therefore became a test for both sides to exorcise some recent demons and, to that end, both teams were happy with their performance in the 1-0 TFC victory.

So, Saturday’s road date in Seattle — one of the big boys in the West, and sure ro be inspired in its first game after losing midfielder Steve Zakuani thanks to a horror tackle from Colorado’s Brian Mullan — was arguably the first true exam of TFC’s credentials. And, it showed us the club has a long way to go. A long way. All of the pundits who have been placing TFC at the bottom of their MLS power rankings were proven right as the Reds stumbled to a 3-0 loss.

After 12 matches and still no wins against the Columbus Crew, Toronto FC's rivalry with it Trillium Cup foes is starting to resemble Wile E. Coyote's rivalry with the Roadrunner. Just when it seems the Reds might have a bit of an edge over the Crew, some unusual circumstance arises to cost TFC a victory. Case in point, the opening goal in Toronto's 1-1 draw with Columbus on Saturday. In the 41st minute, TFC midfielder Tony Tchani was the point man off a series of fine passes from Alan Gordon and Julian de Guzman, and Tchani made no mistake ,scoring his first goal of the season.

“A few seasons ago it was last five to 10 minutes we were giving up goals and now right when the game starts,” said defender Nana Attakora. “First 10 to 15 minutes, that’s not acceptable. We should start off fired up. Even if you need to kick it out, do what you need to do to not give up a goal. I feel like we’re killing ourselves right now starting off slowly. Even against L.A. we got lucky. All the coaches pointed it out. It’s something we need to fix.”

Another match, another slow start for Toronto FC. The Reds found themselves down two goals after just 10 minutes on Saturday night against D.C. United, and the deficit proved to be too much for TFC to overcome in an eventual 3-0 loss. "It's not good to start that way," said defender Danleigh Borman. "It's really tough on a team and it's really tough to get back from that. I think the guys tried to fight back but unfortunately it didn't happen for us today."

Five matches into the 2011 season and Toronto FC is still looking to find the right chemistry on the pitch. Perhaps that should not come as a complete surprise considering the club did trade away its captain and the face of the franchise after just the second match of the season. The constant changes to the lineup sure haven’t helped the cause in the short-term as management continues to preach patience to the fans and media who want the team to win now. The players can’t be feeling too secure, since coach Aron Winter has been public in his assertion that he is nowhere near finished making changes to his squad.

In a 0-0 draw with few scoring chances for either side, just about the only flash at BMO Field on Wednesday night was provided by the extra photographers on hand to catch an action shot of David Beckham. Toronto FC and the Los Angeles Galaxy each had a few attacking bursts throughout the game, but overall, both sides were lacking on offence — perhaps not surprising, given some of the personnel missing from each team's starting XI.

Last week, Toronto FC and Chivas USA played to a 1-1 draw at BMO Field. On Saturday night, the Reds drew 1-1 with the San Jose Earthquakes at Buck Shaw Stadium. Same scorelines, two radically different feelings. Saturday’s draw represented a decent result for TFC, securing its first road point of the season. Last week, a home draw against a poor Chivas side was a missed opportunity.

hose looking for a sign of where Toronto FC is headed in the post-Dwayne De Rosario era will need to wait a little longer. TFC's 1-1 draw with Chivas USA on Saturday afternoon was inconclusive both on the scoreboard and on the lineup sheet, given the rather thrown-together nature of the Reds' lineup. Less than a day after De Rosario was traded to New York, the two players TFC received in return (midfielder Tony Tchani and defender Danleigh Borman) were already in the starting XI. The two former Red Bulls didn't arrive in Toronto until midnight last evening and Tchani admitted to being weary. "I found out [about the trade] yesterday at four o'clock," Tchani said. "After training I heard rumors but I wasn't sure. They let me know after training that I had been traded to TFC and that they wanted me to come here today.

On Tuesday night, a preseason game between Sporting Kansas City and Real Salt Lake was abandoned in the second half because of what’s being described as an ugly brawl.