The inaugural season for Greenville FC is over, but recently, I was able to sit down with the team’s brotherly duo of Marco and Richard Carrizales for an interview for my podcast, Yeah, THAT Soccer Show. The guys were kind enough to spend an hour reflecting on the team’s inaugural season with me.

It was such a good interview that I decided to share a piece of it here in written form on Soccer ‘n’ Sweet Tea. You will also find the podcast embedded at the end of the story if you want to hear it right from the brothers themselves.

Before we dive into any specific moments from the 2018 season, I would love to hear your overall thoughts on how the season turned out.

Marco: Coming in with the condensed time frame, we had to put together a staff and build a roster was a challenge. The first few games were a little shaky. We had our growing pains in the first couple of games. Once we found our form through the development of team chemistry and proper positioning, we started to go toe-to-toe with some very good teams.

We barely missed out on the playoffs. We didn’t miss it by a landslide. With all the constraints we faced from the late start, the players did a great job of quickly developing team chemistry and falling in love with the city and our supporters to really play for them. So, no playoffs, but I’m happy. It was successful.

Richard: The passion that the players brought to the club and organization, many of them having never even been to Greenville, as well as the passion that the fans brought to a first-year team, was a really cool thing to see throughout the season. We went through phases of losing and drawing matches and everyone stuck with us.

The fans constant support online and at games really affected the players on an emotional level that helped them feel connected to the fans and the city that they may not have expected. They were no longer just playing for themselves and their futures. They were playing for this club, for this city, and for these fans.

Everything from top to bottom this season has left us happy and pleased with the way things have gone. This gives us tremendous excitement to continue to build on this momentum into the off-season and looking towards next year.

Give me one or two specific moments that stood out to each of you.

Marco: The first home game was really special, but there are so many moments that could compete with that.

Regsan’s 90th minute equalizer against Chattanooga at home is a definite high point. Chattanooga is a team we have really looked up to throughout the whole process of starting this team. That game meant a little bit more to us and when that goal went in and the stadium erupted, it was special.

It was a perfect picture of the season. We were fighting from behind the entire match, into stoppage time, and the fans and supporters never let up.That drove the players to finish that game and pull that point back.

Richard: There are so many high notes. Watching the excitement grow early on as we launched the team and saw our online presence grow was really cool to see. Seeing the Mill Town Operatives come to life out of nothing and grow into a tremendous supporter’s group before our eyes was something really special.

Our first win on the road in New Orleans, under those conditions, was a really big moment. Winning both legs of the Carolina Clasico was definitely a big one because of our relationship with those guys. It was really fun to hoist that first trophy of the Greenville FC era. That’s an image that will stick out in my mind for sure.

Walk me through that very first home game and what that day was like for you.

Marco: We were up until 4am the night before and woke up at 6am. It was almost like Christmas Eve. We had laid the groundwork and promoted it as hard as we could, but there was no way to really predict how many people would show up. We showed up early, as we always do, to get the stadium framed out and make sure everyone from the referees, the other team, the food trucks, etc. were able to get where they needed to be.

Then in the lead up to the game we started to see people trickle in and it is exciting, but we are not just sitting back and taking it in at that point. We are still busy moving towards game time. As we moved towards kickoff we started to see the stadium filling up and when the Mill Town Operatives marched in it started to feel real.

We obviously were aware of the Ops existence at that point and recognized there was a group of people who wanted to be a part of that experience, but we didn’t really know what to expect. So to see them walk in with a drum corp and everything and we were amazed.

The stadium was packed with over 2,000 people. I played at Furman in college and had never seen the stadium so full. The culmination of all the work we had put in was pretty unreal. Our parents were here that day and I remember us all looking at each other and saying, “Wow. We’re fully in this now.”

Richard: The first game was really special. When you plan a party, you can set all the decorations up and set all the food up, but you never know how many people are going to show up, if any. It’s always a give and take. The crowd was amazing.

I remember Malcom scoring that first goal and we had these amazing photos of him running over towards the crowd. I asked him if he did that intentionally and he told me he just blacked out and ran towards all the noise.

You can plan and prepare and walk through everything hundreds of times, but until it actually happens you can never predict what is going to happen. It was a first for everyone from the team to the interns. Having it go so well was a blessing and really cool to watch.

Marco: In planning everything we had talked a lot about competition for people’s attention and time. The wasn’t a Drive game that day, but Artisphere was going on that weekend. Even without that, for every home game, we have to compete with downtown Greenville.

This city is so great and there are so many great things to do that we are always having to be mindful that people have to want to come and check us out. So to see an average of about 1,700 per home game this season was unreal to us. It felt like we won.

What about the first win? It came on the road against New Orleans. Tell me what that was like for you guys.

Marco: We took a bus down the day before and came back the day after because of the length of the trip. Richard and I went downtown for the day becasue we don’t usually get too involved in the team management side. We are really just there for logistical support.

The guys are pretty much in game mode all day getting ready. The stadium is unfamiliar. We had a long day of travel and you never know if they’ve recovered their legs at that point. It was incredibly hot that day. The Jesters are a great team and had a great turn out that night.

We had a lot going against us, so to see the guys compete like they did to get that first victory on the road was pretty incredible. It meant a lot to the players. It’s definitely not an easy trip, but since we left with three points, it was a great trip.

Richard: It’s a weird situation for the players to be in on a trip like that. We are in this incredible city, but they don’t really get to see any of it. They are pretty much cooped up in the hotel all day. They almost look bored and even a little sleepy at times.

From a fan perspective in that moment, you hope they can be ready by gametime, but they have done this before so they know how to prepare themselves in those situations. One of the things we did for that match in particular was to ask fans to write notes for the players about what they mean to them as fans. We were able to put those notes in their kit bags and it really touched the players to see those. It really meant a lot to them.

The Carolina Clasico feels like it was the high point of the season. First, I would love to hear you talk about the first leg on the road in Asheville.

Marco: That was a game we always had circled on the calendar. Asheville was one of the places I would go as we began to plan and dream about our team. We met with the Asheville City guys and they were a huge help for us early on in the process. When we would go to games there, we were always visualizing what it would be like to play them in that atmosphere.

We have such a great relationship with the guys in their front office that we began to discuss ways to make this matchup a bigger deal than it already would be. We are big on the idea of just laying the foundation and seeing what happens.

So the two front offices decided to create this rivalry and name it. We talked about potential trophy concepts, and the Ryan at Asheville City brought up the idea of bringing the supporter’s groups into the mix in some way. So, ultimately, that game had a little more meaning to us becasue obviously there was hardwarre on the line. When we get to Asheville and the guys get off the bus, they are excited to play in front of a good crowd with something on the line.

Richard: This game was a big one for us because of everything we’ve already mentioned, and that idea trickeled down to the coaching staff and the team. You can manufacture, as you said, a rivalry, you can design a logo, create a trophy, and say “Hey, we are rivals,” but I think what ultimately helped fan the flames of this rivalry going forward was how it came down to our two teams for the final playoff spot.

Like so many things we have tried to do, our approach here was to put in place the framework and allow this to grow organically into a real rivalry. And now with the way the season ended, I think letting those feelings fester in the offseason will even grow this rivalry more. That has been the coolest part of it all to see how big of a rivalry it actually became.

So the boys take the first leg, setting up a big time game at home on July 4th with a lot on the line. Walk me through that final home match.

Richard: From the team side, we were really coming into form around this point. That’s not to say we were over-confident, but we felt good about our chances heading into that game. The guys were fired up because they knew there was a trophy on the line.

We knew we were in good position having won at home and with the Mill Town Operatives sweeping the supporter’s challenges. The atmosphere was incredible that night. I know it was so special to the players to see all of the flags from their home countries out there.

Marco: Definitely for me, it felt like there was the most passion from everybody in that game. The players knew it was the last game and wanted to perform well. It seemed like the supporters wanted to go all out. It felt like everyone wanted to hit their peak in that last home game.

And at the same time, we knew we were competing with July 4th. The game was definitely too stressful for me with the back and forth on the scoreboard. But I was excited to finally get out to a tailgate for the first time all season to see what that was all about. We are usually so busy before the games but I wanted to make it a priority to get out there and check out the atmosphere. Across the board, it was everyone’s peak performance. I mean, there was a live band at the tailgate.

Richard: It was such a great evening all around. It was one of those things you want to keep going. At the same time, it left everyone hanging on a high note and gave us great momentum as we look towards next year. It was ideal to end on such a high note with our first home win, our first trophy, and the amazing atmosphere that night.

We have covered a ton of the high points from the season, but we have to talk about that final match on the road in Nashville. We were not able to watch on a stream, so this may be the best chance we have had to really hear what happened.

Marco: It was my first time live tweeting so apologies for the job I did. We were constantly checking the other scores that impacted our status. Updated tables were constantly coming out and we knew exactly where we were at all times throughout the game. We went up early and really dominated the first half. We go into halftime feeling very confident. But it is always hard to maintain momentum in a soccer game through a halftime break.

So when we come out for the second half, it is a new game. The first 15 minutes were wide open and neither team takes the reigns of the momentum. They get one back off of a deflection but the game is still wide open. Then they made some critical substitutions and changed their formation and that is when they started to really take control.

When they went up 2–1, I was still feeling confident in whatever was going to happen. We equalized with a penalty late in the game and we were in the last ten minutes plus stoppage time at that point. You really started to see the guys charging at that point. They knew the situation and knew what needed to happen.

That was the most passion I have seen all season. I was feeling confident we would pull it out just based on their effort. We had so many great chances that just couldn’t find the back of the net and they grabbed that goal in the 93rd minute to take the lead.

At the end, everyone felt a little stunned. None of us really knew what to do. Towards the end of the match it gave me the sense of being in a relegation battle of sorts. It was a tough loss, but I was just so proud that we were in contention right up to the last minute of the season.

Richard: It was tough loss for sure. They were a good team who was only boosted throughout the season with USL loanees from Nashville SC, so we knew it would not be easy. Their field is also very narrow and tight, which presents its own difficulties. There was a lot of aggressive play and a lot of shots taken.

The whole match it felt like anything could happen at any minute. They came out firing in the second half and found a good little stretch where they took control of the game. We were really pushing towards the end and it really felt like we were going to get a game-winner, but every attempt was deflected or blocked and we couldn’t find the back of the net. They had a fresh striker come in and he was able to push them ahead.

When it was over there was just this stunned feeling in everybody. There was such a sense of disappointment amongst the players when they knew Asheville had won and knocked them out of the playoffs. The trip home was special that night and guys stayed up later than usual just chatting and soaking in the last bits of the season. It was definitely tough, no one had their heads down. We were all proud of what we had accomplished in this first year.

At the end of it all, would you consider this first season a success?

Marco: 100%

Richard: Definitely. There are obviously opportunities to improve and we want to consistently be growing and getting better, but it was a huge success in my mind.

What were the challenges from this season that kept you up at night?

Marco: A lot of it was before the season. The fundraising side of everything and the push to finalize getting into the league were definitely the biggest things in this whole process. But, we definitely didn’t sleep a ton during the season. We would stay up and prep jerseys and do laundry amongst other things, so we definitely had many late nights during the season. That’s not a big deal to us, but folks have been fascinated by it. There were obviously times like the night before the first home game where my mind would race and keep me up, but that was to be expected i suppose.

Richard: Operationally, the game day checklist would always have my mind occupied the night before games. It was a combination of thinking through everything that needed to be done the next day combined with a childlike excitement that kept me up most of the time. The night before the last game in Nashville we were up late analyzing every possible scenario that could play out that next day and that was the most stressful of all the evenings for sure.

One of the big sadnesses of lower division soccer is the potential for squad turnover. What do you anticipate the team looking like next season in terms of returning players?

Marco: I think you’ll see a lot of familiar faces next season. It’s hard to build team chemistry if you have to start from ground zero every year. For some of these guys, they may not have the opportunity to play at a higher level anytime soon so this provides them the opportunity to continue their development as a player in hopes of furthering their careers. Having the momentum of the first season, we have grown a reputation and a following now that will make players want to come and play here, either as returners or as new players.

It’s not that easy to be a professional soccer player in the US, so teams like Greenville FC provide opportunities to players in all sorts of circumstances to get out on the pitch, improve, and get noticed. A lot of these guys want to come back and we want a lot of them back. It is also important for the supporters to see those familiar faces and continue to develop an affection for this team and the players on it.

Richard: Many of the guys have showed their desire to return by jokingly commenting “If you’ll have us back.” That shows us that these guys have enjoyed their experience and want to be a part of this team and this community. At the same time, it will be exciting to see the new players we are able to bring in to continue to improve the squad. It will be an entirely different experience this offseason to start with a solid core of guys and then add some significant pieces around them as we look to year two.

Do you have any final words you would like to share with the fans to wrap up the inaugural season.

Marco: We are going to be so active going forward with all the offseason stuff. We are planning to go see some of our players facing off against each other in some college matches this fall. We are planning to be very active in the youth community and in the event space, so stay tuned.

Richard: I would just want to say “thank you” for believing in a first year club and taking the chance on us. Thanks for giving your time and effort and energy and money to supporting this team. You could be anywhere else most nights and it means so much that you gave your energy to supporting this team. We want to continue to give back to this community that has given us so much this year.

Listen to the full interview with Marco and Richard at this link or embedded below, if your browser allows it.

Make sure you check out this link for all of our Greenville FC coverage from 2018, and stay tuned to Soccer ‘n’ Sweet Tea for all your upstate soccer news in the coming months. We’ll be branching into college soccer as those seasons get underway. Follow us on Twitter and Facebook and subscribe to our newsletter below.