Thursday’s Toronto Sun attempted to chronicle Jermain Defoe’s tricky, injury-plagued transition from the EPL to Major League Soccer, essentially calling the former West Ham/Tottenham striker a malingerer and even worse, a mamma’s boy. And what a mamma! Defoe’s mom, Sandra St. Helen (above), stands accused of having engineered her son’s previous transfer deals and allegedly, has a return to England already in the works for Toronto F.C.s very pricy acquisition. Even worse, she’s compared to Vince Carter’s mom!
Perhaps it was the specter of the Raptors-eschewing VC that drove TSN’s Kristian Jack to distraction, arguing that TFC’s burial of Defoe’s mother proves the 8-year old franchise, “still has many things to learn”.
So much for an amicable parting.
It didn’t have to end like this. Defoe’s commitment and health has been questioned by fans and many members of the media but this latest report will hurt him the most. By targeting the woman who he loves the most, the club will mean nothing to him from now on. There will be many that will be disappointed with the allegations made against his mom in the report but they should be more alarmed by the story itself.
Defoe is weeks away from becoming an ex-TFC player. Meanwhile, the club will carry on and has a reputation to rebuild. Leaks to the press about what a player has been up to when he is already leaving is nothing more than a childish way of trying to win the battle of public opinion.