GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) — The Grand Rapids Football Club will kick off its second season Friday.

Their first game will be against Grand Valley State University at the Allendale campus.

“We had a great first year. We didn’t expect that the crowds we got last year, we didn’t expect the success on the field would come that quickly,” said Matt Roberts, the president of the Grand Rapids Football Club.

The team formed very quickly for their 2015 season and expectations for big crowds were set at what they thought was an achievable level. But West Michigan embraced the team more than it ever expected.

“When we started this we legitimately thought we would get 1,500 to 2,000. That was our goal was to get to 2,000 and our first game we had 2,400 and we ended up at 6,600 at the end of the season. We were shocked that it grew so quickly. The challenge now is how do we take another step forward,” Roberts said.

The second year has brought a larger schedule and more home games at Houseman Field. They have also moved up a league this year, going from regional to national.

“Our goals and expectations are very high. We have a group of talented players and we’re very excited as a coaching staff to start working with them,” said head coach George Moni.

Last year the team went 5-5-3. This year Coach Moni expects an even better record.

“Our goal is to reach as high as we can and at the same time we want to lay the foundation for bigger things to come,” he said.

The team is not only excited to return to the field but also to see their fans, who they call the Grand Army.

“We have a very big fan base — the Grand Army — they have been fierce supports of our team and we expect them to come and lead the way this season,” Moni said.

The game on Friday starts at 7 p.m.

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