TORONTO — Duncan McGuire scored two goals 11 minutes apart in the second half and Orlando City beat Toronto 2-0 on Saturday night to spoil captain Michael Bradley’s final game before retirement.
Orlando (18-7-9) is 6-0-1 in the last seven meetings with Toronto after going 2-8-2 in the first 12 matchups. OC had won the last two by 4-0 scores. Orlando, which already set club records for points and wins, tied the club record with 55 goals this season.
“I think in the first half the boys sustained,” Lions coach Oscar Pareja said. “Toronto brought a lot of energy. This allowed us to bring the other players that were on the bench, that have been more regular in the lineup, with more space and then sent a good message about having in depth in our squad. Players that are committed with our ideas and they know what we’re doing. I’m happy to see Duncan scoring again. And again, I think it’s the whole team, not just what happened in the second half, but the work, that the boys did in the first half was important.”
Toronto (4-20-10) ends the season on a seven-game losing streak, having won just one of its last 18 games in all competitions.
McGuire, a second-half substitute, passed Damani Ralph for the second-most goals (13) by a draft pick in their first MLS season out of college. Only Cyle Larin (17) in 2015 had more in his first MLS season.
lt was Bradley’s 308th game in all competitions for Toronto.
Backup goalkeeper Mason Stajduhar posted the clean sheet for Orlando City.
“[This] put an exclamation point on the end of the regular season and keep the momentum going for the playoffs,” he said. “Keep it rolling. It’s going to be huge for us. And then, personally, it obviously means a lot.
“Unfortunately, as a second goalkeeper sometimes you don’t get the opportunities, you need to be ready when your name is called.”
