The Toronto Football Club played its first home game at BMO field since the sudden removal of both the Director of Soccer, Mo Johnston, and the Head Coach, Preki Radosavljevic, and sputtered its way to a 3–2 loss against the San José Earthquake on Saturday.

Johnson and Preki were fired on Sept. 14 following an embarassing 1–0 home loss against DC United three days earlier.

In the DC game, fans turned on their beloved Reds. They booed the players and chanted “We’re not going to take it.” Season-ticket holders were shaking their heads in disgust as they filed quietly out of the stadium.

“It was humiliating and embarrassing,” said Tesla, a TFC fan who had witnessed the game. “DC United is the worst team in [Major League Soccer]. And if TFC was hungry enough for the playoffs they could have beaten them.”

The firings mark the end of a tumultuous four-year reign in Toronto for Johnston. Though he has guided the team since its inaugural year, the patience of fans has since run thin. Many have called this move one that was overdue by a season at least.

Given the fact that the TFC has failed to reach the playoffs in its three years of existence, and likely won’t again this year, it is easy to see why this frustration has been building to a point of anger.

As for Preki, he was not an easy coach to play for. About halfway through his first season of coaching for the TFC, it appeared that his hardnosed coaching style strained relations with the team.

With the double firing, however, it seems as if the TFC might have found a second wind. In their first official game following the changes in head office and on the bench, the TFC won a rare road game against Houston on a last-minute free kick goal by captain Dwayne De Rosario and put the Reds up 2-1.

The TFC also drew a tie when it played a Confederation of North, Central American, and Caribbean Association of Football — or CONCACAF — game against the top-ranked Cruz Azul in Mexico.

Despite the fact that the TFC played strong while away, it came up short at its first home game.

Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment have recently revealed that they are raising season ticket prices for TFC games, in spite of their history and record so far.

The TFC will be back on home turf at BMO field this Tuesday Sept. 28 against Real Salt Lake in a CONCACAF game.