CHAMPIONSGATE, United States — After signing with Toronto FC in December, it didn’t take veteran defender Drew Moor long to figure who his new enemy was.
"It’s very evident around here how this whole organization and certainly the fanbase feels about Montreal," the former Colorado Rapids captain said after practice Tuesday. "In fact my Twitter feed, when I first came over, was filled with ‘OK, No. 1, we hate Montreal.’ And that was all that a lot of them said.
"I’ve been in some pretty good rivalries in MLS myself, this will be a new one and it probably runs deeper than any I’ve played in so far," he added. "So I’m looking forward to Wednesday night. A result is important at this point because winning needs to be a habit, it needs to be something we’re pushing for."
Toronto and Montreal renew their rivalry in the Suncoast Invitational in St. Petersburg in a pre-season matchup that comes almost four months after the Impact unceremoniously bundled TFC out of the playoffs.
"They kicked our ass," said Toronto’s Polish international defender Damien Perquis, who was forced to watch the 3-0 shellacking due to a hamstring injury. "And it’s a bad memory for me because I was not on the pitch because of my injury.
"I was devastated when I saw the way of the game — 3-0 at halftime, it was a shame. "
The Impact needed just 39 minutes to build that lead before a drum-beating, bell-ringing crowd on a chilly late-October night at Saputo Stadium. Given Toronto had waited nine seasons to make the playoffs, the quick and painful post-season exit has only upped the stakes when the two clubs meet.
Making matters worse, a 2-1 loss in Montreal in the season finale — combined with other results — dropped Toronto into sixth position in the East and forced it to play the Impact on the road in the playoffs.
Toronto won the two previous regular-season meetings in 2015, both at BMO Field, and holds a 5-4-3 edge in all-time league meetings including the playoffs.
Toronto head coach Greg Vanney played down Wednesday’s matchup, saying it was "just another opportunity for the group to get minutes together."
"I don’t think we need to get into that in pre-season," he said of the rivalry. "I would rather us just get off the field healthy and get some repetitions for what we want to do. But obviously when the season comes, we’ll want to make a statement for ourselves and for what we’re trying to accomplish this year, which is take things farther than we did last year.
"We’ll get there when the time is right. I don’t think (Wednesday night) will be the time, though."
Star TFC strikers Sebastian Giovinco and Jozy Altidore are both unlikely to play against Montreal. Giovinco, with ice on his knee, watched practice Tuesday after playing 90 minutes in a 2-1 loss Sunday to Orlando City.
"He got beat up just a little bit but it was nothing that’s significant," said Vanney. "It was more to give him a chance to recover."
Altidore left Tuesday’s practice — at the team hotel some 40 kilometres southwest of Orlando — early after feeling some tightness. "We’ll assess him and see where he’s at with it," said Vanney.
Other Toronto players nursing injuries are fullback Steven Beitashour (quad strain) and midfielders Collen Warner (hamstring) and Marky Delgado (groin).
Toronto faces Philadelphia on Saturday before returning home Sunday. Due to ongoing BMO Field renovations, TFC plays its first eight games on the road, starting with the New York Red Bulls on March 6, before hosting FC Dallas on May 7.
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