The MLS season kicked off this weekend with some eye-opening numbers. Let's start with  a sequence of 2-0, 3-0, 4-0.

Heavy pre-season favorites, D.C. United, were dumped 2-0 by an unfancied Kansas City squad looking to have coped quite nicely with the departure of striker Eddie Johnson.

New England Revolution made abundantly clear their sense of purpose this year with a 3-0 thrashing of Houston Dynamo. Apparently, Revs' striker Tyler Twellman twanged a knee just prior to game time and couldn't play. Or was it something to do with him still being petulant about not being allowed to transfer to Europe after last season? The Revs rolled on without him.

And what do we make of Ruud Hullit's Halaxy, who went down like a bag of kittens in a creek, or in this case, the Rapids of Colorado, by a score of 4-0. After a controversial, injury-filled debut season, an instant club crisis to start year two is not what David Beckham signed on for.

Now add in 20,272, 18,713, 17,540 and roughly 2,500.

Those all correspond to home opener attendances achieved, respectively, in Salt Lake City, Denver, Dallas and Columbus. The first three, all very respectable numbers, represent the total number of fans attending games in the first three cities listed. Home openers traditionally draw good crowds in any sport, but the teams involved will be pleased these crowds watched games that weren't against traditional rivals and produced good results for the home teams. The building of new stadiums in Denver and Salt Lake have sent strong signals to fans about the security of their teams' futures.

The fourth number listed is perhaps the most interesting as it's the approxiamate number of away fans who turned up on Columbus Saturday to cheer on their beloved Toronto FC, an eight-hour bus trip each way across a not-so-undefended border.

Although the presence of  large numbers of away fans is considered routine in many European leagues, to the point where leagues have configured percentages of seats to be made available to them, it's much more of a rarity in MLS. Geography plays a big role there, as a relatively small number of teams on a big continent can make travel arduous. The only natural derbies at present are L.A.-Chivas and Houston-Dallas

By most accounts, the Canadian invasion of Ohio was a big hit, though the idea of these two teams playing annually for a drummed up trophy seems a little contrived. Boisterous away fans brought the stadium to life and two goals from the home side ensured it stayed that way at game's end. If attendance at Crew games can't climb above 11,000 or so home fans, they may well be inviting the Toronto fans back at regular intervals.

MLS officials must be pleased at the thought of what their future expansion plans might bring in charging up rivalries within a league in need of some emotional ####ing up. Philadelphia's presence will liven up games involving Red Bull New York or D.C. United. Seattle's future presence will spark up west coast matches with San Jose and especially with Vancouver, once their stadium-building process makes their presence in the league possible. Talk of placing a future team in St. Louis will be welcome news in Kansas City.

Stirring up rivalries and passions is all well and good if everyone behaves themselves. In places like Italy and Argentina this past year, we've seen the dark side of fan fanaticism. No one's suggesting for a minute that American fans are likely to #### bad behaviour, but some Toronto fans got a little out of hand Saturday.

At home, that enthusiasm is governed by the knowledge that bad behaviour could cost you your prized season tickets forever. On the road, however, there was less at stake and some fans resorted to lighting smoke bombs or flares and throwing them, or full plastic bottles onto the field. Not the smartest behaviour in a terror-wary America.

Outside the stadium after the game, the local police weren't shy about resorting to heavy manners to keep the rowdiness in check. One man was arrested after urinating on a chain link fence near a church. Others were pepper-sprayed when they weren't co-operating with police instructions. Nothing serious to dampen an overall enjoyable day, but not something the league wants to see continue.

Growing a league and growing attendances by fueling rivalries are all well and good. It's important to make sure the fans who take these rivalries to heart are reminded to grow up a little too.

If MLS is persuaded to let Montreal join the league, the impending rivalry of a French-Canadian club with the old enemy of Toronto, the Two Solitudes as the competing cultures are known, could create one serious ongoing uproar with more problems than anyone might care to count.

But if it produces a rivalry with the intensity of Manchester United-Liverpool, Rangers-Celtic, Barcelona-Real Madrid or Boca Juniors-River Plate, the league will count that as a blessing.

There wasn't much doubt that we were in for a challenging evening when we climbed toward our upper deck seats and found one side of the stairwell draped in red and white, the other side ablaze in orange.

Dwayne De Rosario's family, friends, and social associates were in the house.

On a night when rain fell like a bad Bible story, and roads around Toronto's BMO Field clogged like bad arteries, the reward for the Toronto FC fans who arrived early was the sight and sound of Club De Rosario.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

De Rosario was back in his Toronto home and supported by several hundred of his most ardent supporters. Though some speculate the number climbed above 1,000, the truth is, he had a stadium full of admirers. It's no secret that T.O. wants De Ro.

Canadian soccer fans want this country's player of the year to come home and play where he'll be utterly adored. He's aware of that. But he's also been the complete professional and refused to demand that it happen at once.

Playing on a championship team is not something every player gets to enjoy. So many professionals spend entire careers chasing titles that never arrive. When a player finds himself in a winning situation, it's hard to give in to more basic instincts and head for home at all costs. De Rosario has one title under his belt and, perhaps more importantly, the respect of North American soccer fans for sticking with his team. It would be easy for him to leave if he wanted to.

Club De Rosario was there to remind him he's loved no matter what shirt he wears. Toronto FC fans were there to remind him he'll be loved more than ever if he makes both parties happy and moves home. The chants went up from both camps, increasing in volume and intensity as the wind and rain did likewise. Through it all, the mood stayed positive. There was laughter and good cheer everywhere.

It didn't hurt that Toronto fans were singing in the rain after a first half lead supplied by Andy Welsh's unstoppable header, the finishing touch to an inviting free kick from Ronnie O'Brien. 

Despite wearing a knee brace to offset the effects of a ligament injury, O'Brien's skill with either foot has proved to be a creative spark for a Toronto team now rebounding nicely after four straight losses to start the season.

That both players would combine to score the only goal in a 1-0 victory was appropriate. It's no coincidence that the return of O'Brien's cultured touch on the right wing has given Toronto an equally potent option to Welsh's crafty play down the left. The result is an invitingly open middle, drawing creative play from midfielder Maurice Edu, or even surging runs from the back by standout defender Marvell Wynne.

Toronto manager Mo Johnston stayed calm in the midst of an opening run of four goalless losses, preaching patience. His vision of what this team could become has slowly but surely materialized and it's beginning to look like the heightened expectations formed by a good pre-season performance were not entirely out of place.

If Toronto fans had doubts about his ability to build a team, and do it making quick, instinctive decisions about personnel, they've been well put to rest. When disgruntled midfielder Richard Mulrooney forced a trade, it was to Houston for defender Kevin Goldthwaite, the scorer of Toronto's first-ever winning goal against Chicago.

When Goldthwaite spilled Mulrooney with a harsh challenge early on, it brought a strong response from the crowd.

Whether De Rosario or his legion of supporters noticed such subtleties is unknown. But he has to be aware that this is already one of MLS' strongest franchises. The man at the helm is showing he knows what he's doing. The fans in the stands are proof of approval.

If De Rosario loved winning an MLS title in Houston, he has to know now that the only way to top that will be winning one with his hometown team. Here's betting that it will be sooner than later.