Montreal Impact vs Toronto FC : Some Moments To Build A MLS Rivalry

Rivalry Week has come to town and with it Toronto FC and 3-4000 fans wearing TFC Red. With both cities with professional teams in MLS, we hope to see more exciting ''derby'' games than in 2012.

''Montreal vs T-dot'' one might say with all the history between both cities whether it is at the economical, political, linguistic and naturally the sports level. Unfortunately, you cannot just transplant the Habs-Leafs rivalry into a MLS rivalry that has struggled to find momentum in 2012. Though, the Impact did have its share of strong moments against Toronto.

First MLS Win: April 4th 2012

Looking for its win in its MLS history, the Montreal Impact could not have selected a better team to get that win. Not as dominating as expected, the Impact still managed to score 2 nice goals via Sinisa Ubiparipovic and Andrew Wenger.

Fans laughed and laughed at Toronto and Donovan Ricketts almost castrated poor Danny Koevermans

Marco Di Vaio's not so Welcoming First Game: 0-3 At Joey's House

I could not agree more. It was probably the worst score ever and the worst start ever to welcome your first Designated Player in MLS history. I actually had hope for a rivalry to really kick-off from there, especially after getting humiliated at Stade Saputo.

A glimmer of hope came to me when Patrice Bernier dangerously tackled Ryan Johnson at the end of the game, alas it was not meant to be.

The Voyageurs Cup That Ruled Them All: 2008

One of the most defining moment for the Montreal Impact was the 2009 CCL run that finished dramatically in the Quarter-Finals against Santos Laguna. That would never have happened without the Voyageurs Cup win in 2008 against Toronto FC.

The defining game was the 1-1 tie at BMO Field led by ex-Impact player and then head coach, John Limniatis. It does not get better when you beat a MLS team.

What will happen in 2013?

This might be Year 0 for this MLS rivalry to really start and involve players, staff, fans and media alike. One thing both clubs have in common is 2 head coaches that are coaching in MLS for the first time. One rookie New Zealander coach against a veteran Swiss coach should make for some interesting puns and headlines.

You want to make a big splash and announce your new head coach to open up the New Year? Welcome to Montreal Marco Schällibaum. In a typical Torontonian way, TFC drowns the Montreal news in its typical dysfunctional fashion by hiring a head coach that never was one, who was still playing in the EPL with QPR.

Read Our Friends From Waking The Red's take on the history of the Montreal-Toronto Soccer Rivalry