It is a dreaded way to end any significant soccer game in the eyes of many — last year’s MLS Cup final still stings deeply in these parts — but it’s the reality of the sport, and Toronto FC needed to prepare for all eventualities as Sunday’s second-leg playoff game with the New York Red Bulls approached.
Penalty kicks — the last-resort way to decide something as important as a playoff series — are a possibility to determine the winner of the Eastern Conference semifinal, so practise them they did.
“I think it’s part of preparation,” TFC coach Greg Vanney said Saturday.