Barrett Batters Chicago With Brilliant Brace

Chad Barrett unleashed a force which is a sportsblogger’s (writer’s) dream today.  Not only did he produce 2 goals against the Chicago Fire, he produced instant corny material to be used in titles for articles.

On a more serious note, the performance put on by Toronto FC today was a combination of luck, hard work and a bit of skill.  This is exactly what teams need to produce points that will carry them to the finals.  The old saying goes, “You need to be good to be lucky and lucky to be good.”  Unfortunately for Chicago, the Windy City’s premier football club did not fare so well in the fierce winds of Lake Ontario.

In a very short summary:

Toronto FC was both as Nick Labrocca put one in during the 24th minute with the very helpful wind when he attempted to cross the ball into the box.

The first half ended 1-0 for Toronto FC.

The start of the 2nd half saw substitute O’Brian White score to make it 2-0 on a beautiful Toronto FC play which ended with a very ugly finish.  But as goals go…they all count, ugly or nice.  Chicago Fire SC hit back immediately with Logan Pause’s rocket (also wind aided) from well outside the 18 yard box.  Stefan Frei never stood a chance.

Finally, the oft-criticized (and praised from his backers) Chad Barrett netted a brace (for the uninformed, a pair of goals) to round out the 4-1 score for Toronto FC.  The first of which came off of a pass from sophomore substitute O’Brian White and was finished by Barrett with a cool composure which has so often been lacking during his stay in Toronto.  The second came off of a beautiful pass from Dwayne De Rosario combined with fluid movement from Chad Barrett.  Again, Chad Barrett was calm as he finished what was an easy goal (but he has missed many times in the past).

Barrett played one of his best games in a long time and appears to be developing into a quality player under Preki.  De Rosario had two assists during the game (White, Barrett).  Toronto FC, again, looked completely different than the club which plays on the road.

The Chicago Fire will look to improve their performance from this unfortunate match as they move to take on the Kansas City Wizards.

Toronto FC will look to improve its road record as it makes the short trip up to Montreal for the Champions League Qualifier and Canadian Championship, as they attempt to win the Voyageurs’ Cup for the 2nd year in a row.

Next match for Toronto FC: L’Impact du Montreal – Toronto FC (Voyageurs’ Cup, May 12th)

Next match for Chicago Fire SC: Kansas City Wizards – Chicago Fire SC (Major League Soccer, May 15th)

Notes: Terry Vaughn had a terrible game with blown calls on both sides of the ball. Blown set piece calls against Toronto and an obvious penalty was missed which could have made the game closer for the Chicago Fire.

TFC Academy played Portugal FC after the TFC-Chicago Fire game in the Canadian Soccer League season opener.  TFC Academy won 1-0.