For the record, I have a few friends I have met through supporting Toronto FC that work at The Score Sports Channel. None of them are named Kristian Jack.

I have never met the man but I consider myself a fan of his work. I watch the Footy Show religiously and download/listen to the podcasts whenever I can. My only issue with the man is his choice of English Premiership sides he supports. He can’t be blamed for being a Villa Fan I guess.

Connected TFC fans will of course know that Kristian has been quite critical of many things Toronto FC, especially the product on the pitch. And he certainly has not been alone on that front. However I think some fans are not getting the fact that journalism and opinion are two different things. Sometimes outspoken journalists can at times appear to have an agenda and they use their reporting to push a specific agenda along. I do not think that is the case with Kristian Jack.

In the press conference announcing the retirement of Captain Jim Brennan, a reporter asked Jim and Mo to comment on a piece written by Kristian that stated that there were serious issues between groups of players in the locker room during the tail end of Toronto FC’s unsuccessful campaign in 2009 to get into the playoffs. Both Mo and Jimmy then proceeded to state that this was an outright lie and that the source of the piece (Kristian) could not be trusted to report the truth. It was arguably the biggest slap down a journalist has received from TFC since the inception of the team.

 In the last 10 days Kristian has scored interviews with both Ali Gerba and former Interim Head Coach Chris Cummins that in both instances confirm what Kristian alleged about the dissention in the locker room was absolutely true. Here is the interview: 

Some TFC fans are questioning both the content of the interviews and the timing of their release. The Score confirmed that the interview with Cummins was done yesterday afternoon, so there was no inherent “plan” to try and get back at TFC for slagging them

It is not Kristian Jack’s job to break news at a time and place of Toronto FC’s convenience.

It is his job to try and get interviews and break news that others do not have. With Gerba and now Cummins, he appears to have done that. And the fact that in certain aspects of each interview two separate sources are publicly backing KJs previous assertion, that Mo and Brennan BOTH denied by the way, of dissention in the locker room last season is newsworthy is it not??

Some fans on the message boards are implying that he was sitting on this interview for a bit and intentionally posted this today just to take the piss out of TFC after a nice win yesterday. I don’t buy it.

Ben Knight said in his excellent Onward Soccer blog last week that the talk in the press box, where he watches each home game, is that virtually all of the Toronto press that cover the club do not believe most of what comes out of the mouth of Mo Johnston anymore. If that is again the case where is the “agenda”???