Toronto 5, Montreal 1
Q. Was that what you were expecting when you get the full crew?
JOHN HERDMAN: I think we are still missing a couple with Oso and Long, there's a few out tonight. But there was a mentality from the group, they were absolutely committed to that performance tonight and to the fans. Yeah, proud of them. They put a hell of a shift in. We asked them to bring a lot of passion and to bring the discipline around the tactical identity. We knew we had a lot of quality on the pitch. But you have to use it and I thought we did that tonight on many occasions.
Q. Do you need nights like this --
JOHN HERDMAN: Can you just enjoy the Montréal win? You've been a TFC fan for a long time.
I think tonight the lad brought it together, they really did. When you see the passion, the intensity, the willingness to fight for each other; they knew how important it was for the lads to get that result. We talked about how many people are from this city, our parents, grandparents that created opportunities.
It wasn't really our derby. We said we would represent tonight. We made an absolute commitment that we would represent every man that wasn't from this city. We'd show up with a passion and an energy to make sure that those Toronto lads could walk down the street with their head up the next day and go to lunch and dinner we are their heads up. That was a big focus today, team performance and building on this.
Q. Talk about letting the Toronto boys speak before the game.
JOHN HERDMAN: As I say, right at the front of the game, we went through the tactical keys and I made it clear to them that I'm not from this city, and my derby -- for this player, this derby is this. But when we signed with the club we took on the responsibility for days like this and we would do it for the six, seven lads in the room. We would do it for them today. That was the start, and I let Jonathan finish it. He took the room himself. Yeah, you know, he said what needed to be said. He cares. He cares a lot.
Q. What's impressed you the most about --
JOHN HERDMAN: You know what, Josh is just there. He's a really caring man. Like from what I can see, he's a good dad and he's a great teammate and he's really taken on that leadership role. The same sort of -- it was special because ten games it was tough for him. He was struggling inside. Everyone is asking the question, is he ever going to score for Toronto and we just knew it would come. It would come.
I think what you've seen, the New England game where he plays the ball off the line in the 95th minute, he's the last defender. His teammates have seen that. He has massive respect from the fans and his teammates. For periods I think he carried the team.
Q. The three goals --
JOHN HERDMAN: Well, I was watching with Newcastle for a period of time, and what I seen was a young player that burst on to the scene and over time lost his confidence. With his injury, the club took a gamble to bring him in. You know you're always going to get a work ethic from lads from Newcastle. They are going to put a shift in. That's the starting point and the club really needed that. I think what you've seen this season is his quality. He's got real quality and he can pick those passes. He's got the energy to join the box.
How about Flores tonight? That was his best game for Toronto. He brought exactly what we wanted to see, that warrior, a general in the middle, creating attacks. For me, I thought he was the pick of the bunch in the midfield tonight. I thought it was a solid performance.
Q. The celebrations after the match, I thought I saw -- --
JOHN HERDMAN: Look, they wear -- they love their fans. The fans love them. I don't know who it was.
Q. Sig.
JOHN HERDMAN: Oh, big Sig.
Q. Inaudible.
JOHN HERDMAN: It's not the way we want to be seen, that's for sure.
Q. Vanney, after his team beat Portland 3-2, he said maybe his team was the best team in Canada, the team that was at the top in his words, do you think a win like tonight for your team, maybe kind of counteracts that claim by just a little bit?
JOHN HERDMAN: I think Vanney is right to say that. I think Vancouver have done a hell of a job building that club. So I can't really say too much about that sort of stuff. But I would say they have just done a hell of a job. They are the reigning CONCACAF Champions. They played in the CONCACAF Champions League, and I have respect for what the club have done. Axel and Vanney he's been brilliant for the city and Vancouver.
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FastScripts Transcript by ASAP Sports