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ORLANDO - Julio Cesar would have preferred a different start to his Toronto FC career. The Brazilian international goalkeeper was beaten twice in the first 12 minutes of his Reds debut in a 3-1 preseason loss to Columbus Crew in Florida earlier this week. There wasnt much Cesar could do about Federico Higuains excellent free-kick, or the thunderbolt from Josh Williams that followed shortly after. Despite conceding the goals, it was a relatively quiet afternoon for the World Cup winner. Cesar was rarely called into action, but that didnt mean he wasnt involved. When Toronto FC announced Cesars signing on loan from Queens Park Rangers last week, Reds head coach Ryan Nelsen talked about the leadership and organizational skills the veteran will bring. That was clearly evident in Orlando against Columbus as Cesar talked his way through the game, managing his teammates in front of him. "It is part of the job of the goalkeeper because he can watch all of the games," Cesar told me following the game at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex at Disney. "Many times I like to talk with my defenders and the midfield. We need to work hard tactically especially. The most important thing is to understand the coach and what he wants. "I am a little sad because it was my first game and we lost, but I am happy because I am back to playing after eight months and that was tough for me. I am really happy because the coach gave me the opportunity to start with the team." A key figure amongst the defenders in front of Cesar will be club captain Steven Caldwell, and the former Scottish international is well aware of what the Brazilian can bring to the team. "Its fantastic to have him behind us with his experience," said Caldwell. "Hes very comfortable on the ball and strong playing out of the back. Its going to be a great experience for everybody who has the privilege to play with Julio and so far he just seems like a fantastic guy. Were all going to learn off him and it is an honour for this football club to have him play for us." One of the things that has been lacking in past seasons at Toronto FC has been leadership on the pitch, but that certainly cant be said about this squad of players. With Cesar in goal and Caldwell in the centre of defence they have two excellent communicators. When you add in US international Michael Bradley as the general in the centre of midfield, TFC has a very strong leadership core. "You want every guy taking a big role in the team with personality and leadership and commitment," said Bradley. "When you walk in that locker room there is a team full of guys who are ready to do that, so thats nothing but positive." Toronto FCs next test in preseason is on Saturday when they will return to action in Florida in their second match of the Walt Disney World Pro Soccer Classic against hometown team Orlando City. Management and players alike will be hoping to see further improvement and progression as the team builds towards its March 15 season opener in Seattle. "For us its about building the understanding and working on the things we have been working on in training," said Dwayne De Rosario. "We will continue to build and there is still a long way to go. The game (against Columbus) brought us back to reality and showed us things that we need to work on. Now we need to improve on those things that they exposed us on. Were where we want to be but there is still a lot to do." "Against Columbus we had a few guys that were having their first minutes of preseason," said head coach Ryan Nelsen. "We needed to see a few of the weaknesses that we have so that we can work on it. Theyve just got to play together. They have to get used to each other and get minutes under their belt. We will progress on from here." Adidas NMD Heren Sale .J. -- Having Ondrej Pavelec earn his 100th NHL win and seeing Mark Scheifele and Evander Kane break goal droughts were nice highlights for the Winnipeg Jets. Adidas NMD Nederland .Y. - His opponent couldnt stop him, and LeBron James didnt quite know what to think when his coach tried. http://www.nmdtekoop.com/superstar-sneakers.html.com) - The New York Jets have named Mike Maccagnan their new general manager. Adidas NMD Te Koop . The day began ominously for the Rangers when star pitcher Yu Darvish was scratched from his scheduled start with stiffness in his neck. Fill-in Scott Baker gave up three hits over six innings and Chris Gimenez hit a tiebreaking two-out RBI single in the sixth off Phil Hughes. Adidas NMD R1 Kopen . Having won the first leg 1-0 in Barcelona, Madrid entered the match at the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium already in control and quickly sealed its place in the semifinals when Jese Rodriguez scored in the seventh minute. TORONTO -- The family of a Canadian skicross racer killed two years ago at a World Cup event feels vindicated now that sport authorities no longer blame him for the tragedy and instead have made safety improvements to course design, their lawyer said Monday. Lawyer Tim Danson said the family of Nik Zoricic feels his legacy has become something positive and to be celebrated. "We were not prepared to accept that Nik was responsible for his own death," Danson told The Canadian Press. "We just wanted the truth to be acknowledged." In the immediate aftermath of his fatal crash at an event in Grindelwald, Switzerland, on March 10, 2012, ski officials angered the family and others in the skiing community by suggesting Zoricic, 29, was to blame for his death. The family responded by arguing the death was "entirely avoidable" and blasted the course finish line for being a "death trap." In a letter to his parents this month, the International Ski Federation (FIS) called Zoricic a "talented, experienced, and skilled" World Cup skier who did not take unnecessary risks. "It would therefore not be right to describe his accident as a freak accident or pilot error, the federations president and secretary general wrote. The letter further states that the federation has updated its safety guidelines and beefed up the staff and experts who help organizers construct a course and its safety measures. In skicross, several racers hurtle down a mountain at the same time, making jumps and taking curves on the way. Zoricic, who grew up in Toronto, had raced on the World Cup circuit for more than three years and was competing in his 36th event in Grindelwaldd when he was killed at the finish line of a tight three-way race.dddddddddddd Video showed he was going as fast as 90 km/h when he veered to the right after the final jump, landing about a metre to the right of the official course line in "crud" rather than on a groomed shoulder. He snagged safety netting and tumbled into hard-packed snow, smashing his head. Among more stringent guidelines now in place is one calling for a much greater distance between the finish-line post and fencing. Hard objects, such as large mounds of packed snow, will no longer be allowed near the finish. "The fact that were making these significant changes is that there really are lessons learned from his death that will hopefully mean this kind of tragedy will never happen again," Danson said. The International Ski Federation also said it would commit $250,000 over five years to the Nik Zoricic Foundation, which aims to improve skicross safety. Neither Zoricics father Bebe, himself a veteran ski coach, nor his mother Silvia were immediately available to comment. Danson said it was a "difficult time" for them given the second anniversary of their sons death, but said they were "delighted" their son had been vindicated. At the Sochi Olympics last month, Canadian skicross racers wore denim-style ski pants as a tribute to their late teammate, who was known for wearing jeans on the mountain. Zoricic was born in Sarajevo, Bosnia-Herzegovina and moved with his father to Canada at age 5. He raced on the World Cup circuit for more than three years, placing fifth in the 2010-11 World Cup standings and eighth in the seasons world championship at Deer Valley, Utah. ' ' '