Music: {allcanada} Henry goal ends TFC's playoff hopes

Saturday, October 1, 2011

{allcanada} Henry goal ends TFC's playoff hopes

TORONTO -- Thierry Henry scored a late goal Friday to lift the New York Red Bulls into 1-1 draw with Toronto FC, officially ending Toronto's chances of a post-season berth.

Danny Koevermans scored for Toronto FC (6-13-13), who appeared poised for victory and ready to deal a harsh blow to the Red Bulls' playoff chances.

But Henry sent Toronto FC fans home unhappy on a chilly, blustery night at BMO Field, redirecting a corner kick on the 88th minute that pulled New York (8-8-15) even.

Henry taunted the TFC fans behind the Toronto net after he scored.

Koevermans scored in the 50th minute, taking a pass from Ryan Johnson at the left corner of the box and calmly slotting it past New York goalkeeper Frank Rost.

The goal was the seventh in eight starts for the six-foot-three Dutch striker, who was given a rousing standing ovation when he was subbed out of the game in the 71st minute.

While Toronto entered the game with almost no chance at a playoff berth, the Red Bulls arrived in Toronto clinging to the fourth and final MLS wild-card playoff spot. But for most of the night, New York didn't play like a team with their post-season hopes on the line, as more spirited Toronto side maintained possession.

New York's high-priced stars Henry and Rafael Marquez, who was coming off a one-game suspension for criticizing his teammates, alternated between looking frustrated and disinterested until Henry's heartbreaking late strike.

Henry did show the odd flash of brilliance. The former Arsenal and Barcelona striker had an excellent scoring chance in the 64th minute, firing a shot from the left corner of the box that Toronto 'keeper Milos Kocic dove left to save. Six minutes later, he sent in a lovely cross to Jan Gunnar Solli, whose header was just wide right of the net.

The Red Bulls had routed Toronto 5-0 when the two teams met on July 6, but Toronto's starting lineup was almost entirely different that game, played before the addition Koevermans and German captain Torsten Frings.

The two, acquired in late June, once again proved their worth Saturday, Koevermans responsible for most of the home team's scoring chances, and Frings patrolling the back line as a sweeper. In the span of a few minutes late in the first half, Frings lunged to head away a shot from Solli that looked destined for the left side of Toronto's net. Then at the other end of the pitch, Koevermans had Toronto's best scoring chance of the first half, launching a shot from outside the box that sailed just over the crossbar.

Ashtone Morgan, called up earlier this week to Stephen Hart's 18-man roster for Canada's upcoming World Cup qualifiers, and Matt Stinson were strong on the back line, Morgan on the left and Stinson on the right.

Toronto is still alive in CONCACAF Champions League play, but needs to beat MLS rival FC Dallas in Texas on Oct. 18 to advance to the quarter-finals in March.

Toronto has two more MLS games, Oct. 15 at Philadelphia and at BMO Field on Oct. 22 versus New England.