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Welcome to the first article in the TFC top 40 countdown. Toronto FC used 40 players in all competitions in 2011, so what better way to rank them than with a good old fashioned countdown. The question was simple, who had the most positive impact on TFC's season? The votes are in (to all who participated, a big thank you) and for the next 40 days, every morning at 8:30am, we'll be revealing the rankings of TFC's 2011 squad, from worst to best, from Griffit to, well you'll see. We'll profile each player as we go, with thoughts from Dave, Keaton and myself, as well as comments from our esteemed voters, feel free to add your own thoughts, memories, critiques etc in the comment section. So come back every day to see how it unfolds, for now, in with a bullet at number 40, it's Leandre Griffit.
Average Rank: 38.818
Highest Rank: 35
Lowest Rank: 40
Duncan: 40. Arrived as part of the Tchani/Iro trade with Columbus. Wingers are notoriously flaky, as an Englishman, you can probably guess my prejudices against French footballers, add in the fact that the man had barely ever played at any of his previous clubs and well, let's just say my expectations weren't high. He was injured when he got here, recovered to play less than half of the postponed CCL game against FC Dallas, didn't really do much, and then that was it. One appearance, probably only because a good chunk of the first team was a bit tired from playing the night before. Expectations firmly met.
Dave: 39 What is there to even say about Griffit. He only played in one match and that was in the CCL against FC Dallas. His claim to fame in my eyes will likely be that he was the most useless part of the trade that saw Toronto pick up Andy Iro and that is certainly saying something. The Frenchman will likely be another forgotten Red.
Keaton: 39 Griffit saw limited playing time the past year at TFC. He's pretty much that dude that got thrown in with Iro during the Tchani trade, and Mariner and Winter were like "oh ya we got this guy too..."
More thoughts on the legend that is Leandre Griffit after the jump
Alex: Léandre Griffit. Who is he? Some people say that he is brother to Peter from Quahog, others suggest that he is the voice of Shaggy. What is known? He played for Southampton, Crystal Palace, and even Leeds United. He failed a trial with Houston Dynamo and ended up being signed by Columbus. Next thing we knew? He was thrown into the deal for Tony Tchani to sweeten the Andy Iro pot. He made one appearance for TFC this season, in a CCL game against FC Dallas, in the replay version no less, when he replaced Gianluca Zavarise in the 56th minute of a 1-0 loss. He didn't really stand out, but at least he played. Right?
James: He played too? Enjoy hearing people try to pronounce his name, though it makes me disappointed in our supposedly bilingual country.
The Yorkies: Most mysterious Frenchman since Inspector Clouseau
Jimmy Stone: Paying him money he doesn't deserve sadly.
Canadian Texan: He's French...that's good enough for me.
We'll end with probably the most balanced and generous view of his time here.
Blindfolded Tank Driver: Injuries hindered his time here. More to see with reserves.