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TORONTO — Canadians Dwayne De Rosario and Pat Onstad hardly had enough energy left to whimper "Let's play two" last night after helping the Major League Soccer all-stars defeat West Ham United of the English Premier League 3-2.
They were playing in their second game in the same day after each played the full 90 minutes for the Houston Dynamo in a 2-0 victory over D.C. United in an MLS game at RFK Stadium, which was delayed because of severe weather and did not end until early yesterday.
It turned out to be a particularly sweet homecoming for De Rosario, a native of Toronto, because he scored the winning goal in the 69th minute on a penalty kick before a record BMO Field crowd of 20,844.
And Onstad, a native of Vancouver, who took over in goal for the final 20 minutes, made a late-game save to ensure that MLS would win its fourth consecutive all-star game against European competition.
Chicago Fire forward Cuauhtemoc Blanco was named the game's MVP. (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
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Canadians Dwayne De Rosario, Pat Onstad and Jim Brennan all play a role as the Major League Soccer all-stars defeat West Ham United 3-2.
Los Angeles Galaxy star said all the right things on the eve of his MLS all-star game appearance Thursday
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Oh, yes, celebrity midfielder David Beckham played his first game at BMO Field after an injury and international duty with England prevented him from playing there in two visits by his Los Angeles Galaxy.
His presence set off a few flashbulbs in the park and he provided some booming shots and long passes.
Beckham also helped set up the all-stars' first goal, by Christian Gomez in the 27th minute, which answered Dean Ashton's 26th-minute goal. Ashton also scored in the 67th minute to tie the score on a shot that bounced off a couple of defenders.
Cuauhtemoc Blanco, who had a goal and set up another with a deft pass in the first half, was chosen as the most valuable player of the game.
It made it all worth the trouble for Onstad and De Rosario.
"It was a long one," Onstad said. "I never thought I would play two games on the same calendar day. We finished the game at 12:30 and I had 2 1/2 hours sleep.
"I have to thank [all-star coach] Steve Nicol for not throwing me in for the whole 45 minutes — I think I might have just passed out. I'm exhausted. I'm looking for my bed right now."
The Washington game was originally scheduled for June 4, but was postponed because of severe weather. It was postponed again on Tuesday when there was a power failure at the stadium and the surrounding area.
"We got in town at 8 o'clock," De Rosario said. "My flight was delayed and I was supposed to get in at 7 o'clock."
Nicol, who coaches the New England Revolution in MLS, said that if the two had not played on Wednesday, they would have played 45 minutes each last night.
The only Toronto FC player in the all-star game, defender Jim Brennan, a Toronto native, got into the game at the same time as De Rosario, in the 60th minute after the crowd had chanted "We want Brennan" most of the evening.
After he entered the game, the crowd started to chant "T-F-C, T-F-C."
Ashton said the atmosphere of BMO Field was such that it could have been at any stadium in England, and it surprised him a bit.
Brennan, who played on Tuesday in a 1-1 tie against the Montreal Impact, which gave the United Soccer Leagues team the Canadian championship, was touched by the reaction at his hometown crowd.
"It was up there with one of the best moments in my career hearing the fans call my name all game," Brennan said. "It was amazing and something I will always remember."
It was an entertaining game with some pretty goals produced by the MLS team. Then there was De Rosario's penalty kick, a shot that bounced on the cross bar but came down inside the goal.
"I was a little worried and sort of hesitant when I saw it bounce up and hit the cross bar a couple of times, but thankfully, it ended up in the back of the net," De Rosario said. "For me, this is a dream come true, growing up in Scarborough not too far from here, always wanting to play in your hometown, your home stadium, especially a game of this magnitude.
"People don't realize how important this game was for our league. The last few years, we have been playing against some world powerhouses and have been victorious."
The penalty shot was awarded after De Rosario was brought down by defender Lucas Neill, and De Rosario said there was no question who was going to take it.
"No," he said, "as soon as I got the penalty, I wasn't going to move from that ball. It would have been a long argument — had there been one."
In 2005, the MLS all-stars defeated Fulham 4-1, in 2006 they defeated Chelsea 1-0 and in 2007 they defeated Celtic 2-0.
But the timing of the all-star match means the European teams are early in their training camps.
