Toronto FC Wraps Up Inaugural Season With Tie Against New England
Posted October 20, 2007 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It wasn’t exactly pretty, but for an expansion team Toronto FC didn’t actually do half bad.
The football club wrapped up its inaugural season with a 2-2 tie against the New England Revolution Saturday, bringing to a close a campaign with more downs than ups, but plenty of signs of life that suggest Major League Soccer could have a bright future in the Toronto.
Striker Danny Dichio scored in the 90th minute to earn the tie and Collin Samuel opened the scoring for Toronto, which finished 6-17-7. Dichio had scored Toronto’s first-ever goal on May 12.
Still, the 20,374 at BMO Field came back to life with the hometown comeback, and ended the season with a major thrill as Dichio, who was making his first appearance in eight games after being out with an ankle injury, connected in the final minute, hammering in a hard shot from just outside the 18-yard box.
And while Toronto did set a new MLS record for longest stretch without a goal, they also promise to set several league attendance numbers, drawing an impressive average of roughly 20,000 fans each game.
Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd., which also owns the Toronto Raptors and Maple Leafs, capped season tickets at 14,000 for its first year – an MLS record – and the franchise is boosting that to 16,000, which it expects to sell out, for next year.
