EAST RUTHERFORD, NJ - The high-powered Red Bulls offense proved to be too much for a patchwork Toronto FC squad as Bruce Arena's boys calmly defeated the Canadian club 3-0 on Sunday night.

The pairing of Juan Pablo Angel and Jozy Altidore propelled the Bulls to victory, with Angel scoring one and Altidore netting two. The two, though talented, hadn't seen a mutual understanding come to fruition - that was, until today.

"We haven't played that much together and I think today we found each other a couple of times," said Angel. "We scored a few goals, and that's good. We have to build that partnership."

Arena was also happy with his burgeoning forward pairing, saying, "They had a good mentality today, and they worked well together the last couple of weeks. They worked hard in training. Jozy's getting very comfortable with Juan, and vice versa. So, that was a real positive."

The 16 days between games for the Red Bulls seemed to help not only the strike pair, but the entire team. Long layoffs can often be a cause for concern, but the result shows that the rest period was exactly what New York needed.

Arena viewed the time off as a blessing, saying, "We've been physically just beat up the whole season. To have a little time off and to re-evaluate each player individually, which we did over these two weeks with them in a form of ways, is important. So hopefully we can build on this and get a few more games where we get three points."

Early on, New York looked the side more likely to get the three points. Dave van den Bergh hit the post and forced a diving save out of Kenny Stamatopoulos, both in the first five minutes.

Claudio Reyna then happened onto a bouncing ball at the top of the box, but his volley went harmlessly over the Toronto net.

Ten minutes in, the Bulls kept pressuring as the ever dangerous Dane Richards broke in on goal, only to have his shot stopped by Stamatopoulos.

A minute later, Toronto's first real action of the game came when Collin Samuel was issued a yellow card for a foul on Seth Stammler. In committing the foul, Samuel picked up an injury that led to him being subbed out for Joey Melo in the 47th minute.

A quick free kick from Reyna found Van den Bergh, who crossed into the box. The ball eventually found the head of Angel, who forced a diving stop from the Toronto keeper.

Reyna soon found Van den Bergh again, and the winger's cross came to Altidore, who attempted a Johan Cruyff-style flick that was saved by Stamatopoulos.

Richards continued pressuring as his long run eventually saw him pass to Altidore, who failed to make contact.

In the 22nd minute, Reyna was replaced by Clint Mathis. The injury seemed to come out of nowhere, but it was revealed to be right groin strain for the former American skipper.

Mathis put his mark on the game almost immediately after coming on. In the 24th minute, the ex-Hannover man drove in a hard ball that deflected off of Tyrone Marshall and found Angel. The Colombian striker wasted no time as he one-timed past Stamatopoulos to put his team up 1-0.

After the goal, Toronto continued with its direct play in trying to find the lone forward, Andrea Lombardo. The route-one play, though, continued to be ineffective.

Three minutes after the goal, Dane Richards broke past Todd Dunivant, but a sliding Stamatopoulos stopped the speedy Jamaican.

Minutes later, Richards was through on goal again after another Cruyff flick from Altidore, but Stamatopoulos foiled the right winger once more.

Richards, not discouraged by the missed chances, nutmegged Dunivant and drew a free kick near the top of the box. Mathis drove the free kick into the wall and the ball was then cleared.

Lombardo, who must've been frustrated from a lack of chances, hit Hunter Freeman with a sucker punch in the 40th minute. The punch went unseen by the refs, but Lombardo can probably expect to be hearing from league authorities in a matter of time.

New York continued its pressure into the second half, starting with a cross from Chris Leitch that was blocked with what looked to be the hand of a Toronto defender. No whistle was heard and play continued, despite protest from Leitch.

Five minutes into the second half, the pressure paid off for the Red Bulls. Altidore stripped Tyrone Marshall of the ball and sprayed it wide to Angel. The former Villa front man then served across the box, where it ricocheted off Adam Braz and towards an empty net. Keen to make sure that it didn't go down as an own goal, Altidore powered the ball into the net right before it crossed the line.

Five minutes later, Altidore nearly doubled his tally when he broke in on goal and tried to round the keeper. He was taken down in the box, but the ref awarded a goal kick for Toronto.

Stammler - a "yo-yo" as described by Arena for his constant movement between positions - came close to putting his name on the score sheet after a long run was rewarded with a pass, but his shot went straight at Stamatopoulos.

In the 60th minute, Mo Johnston, desperate for a goal, brought on Andrew Boyens for Andy Welsh and moved center back Marshall up to forward.

Three minutes later, Altidore capped the scoring for the Bulls. Jon Conway, who was given an assist on the goal, cleared the ball up field towards Angel. The striker headed the ball on to Altidore, who flicked the ball over the defender and wrong footed the keeper, allowing him to pound the ball across the goal line for his fifth goal of the season.

Although the third goal probably sealed Toronto's fate, Chris Pozniak put a stamp on the result when he was harshly issued a red card for a tackle from behind on Richards.

The final 20 minutes were highlighted by the return of Mike Magee, who hadn't played since last October 7th against Colorado.

"Today was one of the best days I've has in a long time," said Magee told American Soccer Daily. "By the fourth or fifth time I got the ball, my mind was slowing down. I think I just jogged at three-quarter speed for all 20 minutes I was out there. I was too nervous to sprint."

After Magee's introduction, the Red Bulls had a few chances that came from Van den Bergh crosses, but none resulted in goals.

With Marshall playing up top, the Toronto attack gained some life, but still could not create any chances. Conway did not have to make one save during the game as the organized Bulls backline kept Toronto from even sniffing goal.

The masterful defensive performance, combined with a dominant midfield and potent strike force, added up to a complete performance for the Red Bulls.

"It was a far better performance overall," said Angel. "We looked more stronger and more confident as a team, and we got the three points. We really needed to win today and we did a great job. I think we've proven so many things today, defensively and offensive."

With the inevitable talk of David Beckham preceding his arrival, Angel took a positive outlook.

"It's gonna be the first time we're gonna see the stadium full, and that hopefully will be a good experience for everyone in here," he stated. "Hopefully, the people that come around, enjoy a good show, good game, and we have them more often."

Scoring
NY - Juan Pablo Angel 10 24'
NY - Jozy Altidore 5 50'
NY - Jozy Altidore 5 (Juan Pablo Angel, Jon Conway) 63'

Line-ups
TFC - Kenny Stamatopoulos; Adam Braz, Tyrone Marshall, Marco Reda, Andy Welsh (Andrew Boyens 59'), Jim Brennan, Chris Pozniak, Carl Robinson, Todd Dunivant, Collin Samuel (Joey Melo 49'), Andrea Lombardo

NYRB - Jon Conway; Hunter Freeman, Jeff Parke, Seth Stammler, Chris Leitch, Dane Richards (Mike Magee 70'), Claudio Reyna (Clint Mathis 22'), Dave van den Bergh (Sinisa Ubiparipovic 83'), Joe Vide, Jozy Altidore, Juan Pablo Angel