Toronto FC ties San Jose 1-1 in serious blow to MLS playoff hopes

TORONTO - The scenario was all too familiar for Toronto FC.

Another late goal allowed, another opportunity squandered and it left Toronto head coach Chris Cummins fuming and his team with only the faintest hope of reaching the Major League Soccer playoffs.

Toronto appeared to have victory and three points locked up on Nana Attakora's 46th-minute goal until second-half substitute Cornell Glen scored deep into the four minutes of stoppage time to give the San Jose Earthquakes a 1-1 draw before a crowd of 20,571 at BMO Field.

Toronto entered the match needing to win its final three games of the season to have a good chance of earning its first MLS playoff berth. Now it needs help from others and even that might not be enough.

Cummins talked bravely about "not throwing in the towel" but was scathing in his assessment of the way the team dropped too far back late in the game, which cost his team valuable points in the standings again.

"We dominated the game and we've given an awful goal away," Cummins said. "I'm fuming with that goal. We dropped deep and were sloppy and people were out of position."

It was the 15th goal allowed in the final 15 minutes of a game by Toronto (9-10-9) in 28 games this season and about half of the goals have cost the team points, whether it meant a loss instead of a draw or a draw instead of a victory.

"The fans did their part today," Cummins said. "And again we haven't turned up for the last few minutesa and we spoiled what would have been a decent performance. I'm fuming to be honest with you."

It's not that Cummins has not tried to get his point across this season.

"Listen you say the same things every week," he said. "It's basics.

"We keep dropping deep, I'm screaming for 20 minutes about keeping up, pushing up, pushing up," Cummins said. "They come in, they're arguing with each other and they say that's why we dropped deep. Well I can't go on the pitch and be pushing them up myself.

"Do they drop deep because they get nervous because they know that we concede goals in the last few minutes? I don't knowa"

Defender Jim Brennan said the result left him almost speechless.

"You've got to waste time, play the ball in the corner, and kill the game off," he said. "We let them come at us, come at us, come at us. That's the problem, we just are dropping deep and you're inviting them to come at you.

"It's not nerves, it's mistakes, simple mistakes that kill you. We're holding the lead at home, which we wanted, to get three points and we came away with one. It's not good enough. We're still in it (the playoff hunt), it's just frustrating because we let ourselves down."

The Earthquakes had already been eliminated from playoff contention.

The situation was not ideal for Toronto, which went into the game with four regulars missing.

Midfielder Amado Guevara was with Honduras for World Cup qualifying matches, midfielder Carl Robinson was out after surgery for a facial fracture incurred during training on Tuesday that ended his season, defender Marvell Wynn was out with a quadriceps injury and goalkeeper Stefan Frei was out with a dislocated finger.

Brian Edwards started in goal for Toronto for the first time this season in a regular-season game and made two saves.

Toronto came closest to scoring in the goalless first half in the 23rd minute. San Jose goalkeeper Joe Cannon made a fine reflex save on Attakora's header that came from Adrian Serioux's long throw-in. After Cannon's save, Shea Salinas cleared the ball off the line.

It was one of five saves made by Cannon in the match.

Toronto started brightly in the second half and Cannon couldn't stop Attakora in the 46th minute when he put home a diagonal pass sent by Dwayne De Rosario into the box.

It was the second goal of the season for Attakora whose residence is in Orangeville, Ont.

Three minutes later Toronto put on more pressure but Chad Barrett couldn't apply the finishing touches.

San Jose defender Jason Hernandez was taken off on a stretcher in the 59th minute after a scramble around the goal after Cannon stopped De Rosario. Cannon fell into De Rosario on the play that was ruled offside. Quincy Amarikwa took over from Hernandez.

Late in the game San Jose pressed and Brennan's block appeared to have given TFC a reprieve but seconds later Glen scored.

"This lifts the team's spirits a great deal," Glen said. "For the whole season things weren't really going out way. Even the bounce of the ball was going the other way so it was great to finally get some luck."

Notes: TFC wore pink uniform jerseys for the game to show support for breast cancer researchaThe final regular-season home game for TFC is next Saturday against Real Salt Lake and the final game is Oct. 24 in New YorkaSaturday was the first home game for midfielder Julian de Guzman, a Toronto native, since he was signed as a designated player on Sept. 12.aBoth teams began the game wearing black socks and San Jose switched to white socks at the half because referee Mark Geiger said that on some calls he was having an identification problem.