Hernandez’s call easy to defend

Freshly re-signed Jason Hernandez has been starting in league play. No time to ease in for veteran returnee and no place he’d rather be

Toronto was the only place where veteran defender Jason Hernandez wanted to spend his 14th Major League Soccer season, after becoming a free agent last fall. The reason, he said, is obvious. “Did you see last year?” Hernandez quipped, less than a week after re-signing with Toronto FC.

With the Reds, the 34-yearold defender said, he feels like he’s part of something special — not just in the short term, but for years to come.

“It’s a great opportunity to be part of something bigger than yourself.”

After missing out on the entire pre-season, Hernandez is playing catch-up. But there isn’t much time for cramming with Toronto’s demanding schedule and the club using all hands on deck between league play and the CONCACAF Champions League final against Chivas de Guadalajara, which wraps up Wednesday in Mexico.

With the Reds putting an emphasis on winning the Champions League trophy, Hernandez was thrust into the starting 11 just a day after returning — in a 2-0 league loss on the road against the Colorado Rapids. Playing at high altitude puts a premium on fitness. Plus, along with defender Drew Moor and goalkeeper Clint Irwin, he was a veteran presence looked to by a young roster featuring three first-timers and six players with fewer than15 league appearances under their belts. A similar split squad travelled to Texas on Friday, for Saturday’s road date with the Houston Dynamo.

In Colorado, Toronto’s makeshift side conceded a secondminute goal, but coach Greg Vanney said he was pleased to see the inexperienced Reds largely keeping pace with the home team until a 78th-minute penalty sealed the deal.

“For all of them, it’s just learning at the MLS level how quickly things happen and the sophistication of some of the players they play against, and or the teams,” Vanney said. “Things are a little bit quicker and it’s just kind of keeping up with speed and staying in tune with some of the things that happen within the games and making decisions. It’s the same for all of them.”

Houston, up next, sits ninth in the West with a win and a loss at home this season. The Dynamo have lost three of their last four home games, conceding two goals in each defeat. But prior to that, Houston’s BBVA Compass Stadium was something of a fortress for Wilmer Cabrera’s side, which had been on a 12-1-6 roll at home.

Irwin is expecting lots of pace up front from a team that flourishes on the counterattack. Strikers Mauro Manotas and Alberth Elis have five goals between them, while midfielder Tomas Martinez was included in the MLS team of the week after a goal and an assist against the San Jose Earthquakes. To quell those threats, Irwin said, it will be important to stay orga- nized defensively and minimize turnovers in dangerous positions. “That can be very deadly against a team like that,” he said.

While Irwin knows there will be ups and downs with a young team, he also knows it’s important for Toronto to start putting points on the board. The defending champions sit last in the East with three points through four games.

“The squad that we take to Houston, our expectation is to go and get a result,” he said. “That’s the mission.”

Getting young guys some minutes bodes well for the future, Hernandez added.

“These are players that, whether in the short term or the long term, we’re going to be relying on to contribute, so the more experience that they can have in matches like that, the better.”