Ahead of the team’s first postseason appearance at North Carolina FC Saturday, we spoke to Loudoun United coach Ryan Martin Wednesday afternoon about the season and look ahead to Saturday. Note: This interview has been slightly edited for clarity.

District Press: So how does it feel to be coaching in November? And when was the last time you did?

Ryan Martin: To be honest with you, it feels great! I think we set off this year to get into the playoffs as our number one goal, and when we achieved it in Detroit, it was an incredible feeling for myself, for the players, for the team, for everybody that was a part of this journey. The last three years we revamped ourselves a little bit, so to be coaching this week is fantastic. A year ago, we were doing exit meetings and exit physicals, and now we’re preparing for an opponent in a one off match where anyone can win and we feel pretty good about it.

In terms of last time I coached a tournament type game, (I did it) as an assistant at Wake Forest, (and) as an assistant at FC Cincinnati, and then the (D.C. United) academy went year round. It’s what you work all year for. People say, you started fast, or different things happen, (but) the reality is every team is different from March until now, and we’re one of 8 in the Eastern Conference that has the right to play for a trophy. To do that is tremendous, especially with some adversity along the way, internally and externally.

DP: There was faith in the boys coming out of last year into this year, and (you said) you were confident they can do it. But has there been anything you even didn’t expect or that you’ve had to adjust to, that you didn’t anticipate?

RM: Yeah, I didn’t expect to have my goalkeeper (Hugo Fauroux) get Tommy John surgery and miss this part of the season, and (have) three center backs out. But when you go through this season in professional soccer, adversity just comes at you, and you can either use your energy and piss and moan about it, or you can say, ‘okay, next man up,’ and continue going. And that’s where we are, we’ve got Cole (Turner) and Bolu (Akinyode) up and Ryan Jack in goal. We’re thankful for everything Yanis (Leerman), Garrison (Tubbs), Jake (Erlandson), and Hugo did this season to get us here, because they were all a part of it.

DP: This is the 4th one this year between you and North Carolina. It seems like, both in person and on TV, there’s a growing, uh, I don’t want to say hate, but distaste for one another. Is that safe to say when it comes to you and NCFC or you and John (Bradford, NC Coach)?

RM: I actually quite like John, we did our pro license together, and I’ve got a lot of respect for what he has done, and I think we go through some similar challenges at our clubs that we can relate to; if you look at both of our rosters, his situation’s not dissimilar to where we are in terms of injuries. He had three or four goalkeepers rostered two weeks ago, and he’s made one sub in the last two games, so he’s going through his own adversity there. But I’m fortunate enough to have worked with a lot of players in the North Carolina roster, whether it was Colin Martin and Akira Fitzgerald at Wake Forest or Bryce Washington here, I’ve been fortunate to work with quite a few of them, I like a lot of their players. I think they’re good players they’re good people. I think probably what you get is we are probably the closest team in proximity to them. You could throw Pittsburgh in there as well. ,When you can bus to each other, you’re close enough to be very competitive in what you’re trying to do. (NC and Pittsburgh) are 2 that we play in preseason. So you add an extra game each year, the Open Cup is proximity based, it just feels like we’re always playing against each other.

DP: Even with the players that have gone down, you’ve also picked up guys like Bolo and Quimi (Ordonez). When it comes to midseason acquisitions, getting a guy with senior team, national team experience and another with 275 or 280 games in the league. How did those acquisitions shake out? Did Alen (Marcina, Loudoun scouting director) contribute to or something where they just came onto your radar?

RM: No, it was when Nico (Eckart) was here, he was a big part of bringing them both in, and Omari (Glasgow) as well. The Omari came through Chicago, the Fire reached out, they thought our game models were similar, and they want to build a relationship with Loudoun based off how we play and how they play, and it’s their best scenario for helping their younger players adjust to Greg’s system. Some of that probably comes the fact that I work through Greg and really, really respect a lot of what he’s done. Victor (Lonchuk) was able to get through Quimi through a connection to Central America. And when Bolu became available, he was someone I always admired in this league and always thought really high of. So when his agent reached out and said he might be available, Nico was able to, with the support of ownership, to get it done.

DP: How have they settled in?

RM: It’s all been pretty easy, Quimi played at FC Cincinnati with Flo (Valot), and he knows Tommy (McCabe) and Ben (Mines), then you’ve got Bolo with the Miami guys. So you look at the overlapping pieces, so we knew, culturally, we’d get a good fit with them coming into it, the process has been pretty, pretty seamless for all 3 of them.

DP: How has the mood changed before and after last weekend? How quick did the boys sort of like bounce back into knowing that this is still gonna go on?

RM: I think that night when all the games were announced, who’s playing who, and we saw we got North Carolina again. It’s hard to play and beat a good team twice. We’re excited because we know them, they know us and it’s going to be a really good energy and intensity match, good focus from both teams. Our guys turned the corner pretty quick, we’ve been wanting this moment for this year, some of us, multiple years. The focus and intensity and training is, you know, what you would expect in a playoff week.

DP: How has being a new dad this year changed you or changed your process in terms of like coming into like practice and to games now?

RM: For home games, I went from yard work and preparing for the opposition to taking my son for a walk and doing different things with my wife and him. Something that I’ve always been a big believer in is how do you care for people? I’ve always believed (as a coach) that you’re dealing with someone else’s son or daughter, and it’s important to treat people with respect, treat people how you’d want to treat your own son. That’s something that’s given me perspective as well, and patience, how you talk to people who handle situations, it gives you a zoomed out lens. A win or a loss is a big deal, but at the end of the day, it’s the people in your life that make all the difference, (from) my players to my family, my son’s really given me a good perspective of that. I didn’t want to lose last Saturday to North Carolina, but when you’ve got, you know, a son who’s all smiles, laughs, and giggles, iit makes you realize what’s really important in life, and I think that’s a big lesson for me in this chapter of my life.

DP: If this is it, what would you want fans to know about, about you and Loudoun United when it comes to 2025?

RM: Well first of all, I think I’d like the fans to know how much we appreciate all they’ve done for us. When we go on the road and we hear “Let’s go Loudoun!” from directly behind our bench in Detroit, it really means a lot. When Greg Baroni and I spoke about how we wanted to build this team in particular, and then Ollie Gage joined in, how the three of us wanted to really build the team. It was a team that would make the community proud, would be good role models for local youth soccer players, would play an attractive, attacking style of play, and play for a purpose bigger than ourselves. I believe that we’ve given everything we can in terms of accomplishing those goals. And if this is it for 2025, you want to leave something better than you found it, and I can sleep at night knowing that, and I’m just thankful for the people along the way that have shared the experiences with us, because it’s a truly special place, and it’s been an incredible journey. And I’m just very grateful for everybody that’s played a part, the fans, and people of the community, yourself included.

You are all big pieces of the puzzle, and we would really be nothing without everyone.