Absolute euphoria erupted inside the confines of “The Hawk” in Farmington Hills, Michigan on a picturesque afternoon. The scoreboard read 3-2 for what could arguably be called the biggest upset of the 2023 Midwest Premier League season, as Troy United shocked 1927 Sport Club Fort Wayne.

What started as an idea by Joey Verhelle, inspired simply by “see a need, fill a need”, finally saw concrete justification that the need was being unequivocally filled. The internal feelings of uncertainty and doubt dissipated.

After volunteering with a few local clubs and trying to recruit Troy Utd. President Louis Osowski, Verhelle and Osowski linked up and the collaboration began. “That is where the idea started but it wasn’t until right in 2021 that we pitched the club as what it is now,” Verhelle said.

The Troy school district boasts a great deal of international diversity among its study body, serving as the genesis of Troy United’s story. Verhelle, a teacher with the Troy High School, overheard a French student bemoaning the lack of access to lower league soccer in the area during his virtual classrooms in the COVID-19 pandemic. “In my head I was like, ‘I bet there is a lot of kids who feel like that.’ They don’t have a club in this city, and we have kids from all over the world.”

Troy United celebrate its extra time winner against Cedars FC June 20, 2023. Photo Courtesy of Troy United.

There is no secret that amateur soccer in the United States is not a revenue generator (In most cases) so to get the right people to buy in was a struggle. “Would you be interested in volunteering for this club that doesn’t really make any money, you won’t get paid, you just got to do it for the love of the game. Theres tons of preparation that needs to happen even BEFORE we take the pitch,” said Verhelle.

Osowski mentioned that he was “Hook, Line and Sinker” with Verhelle’s emotional dialogue at the first meeting. In recognizing the twilight of his playing years, the chance to gain another perspective was a tantalizing worm on the end of the line. “I have done coaching, and I have done officiating. So, this was time to see what it would be like on the other side of it. So I was really drawn to the idea of creating Troy United,” said Osowski.

Rivalries are undoubtedly a part of human history and that presented an interesting opportunity to play peacemaker with two nearby schools, Troy High School and Troy Athens High School. What better than to gather the adolescent factions under a united banner? “I thought it was a meaningful name and a meaningful club that we can put our hearts into. Lower tier soccer in Metro Detroit, there are a lot of clubs that focus on play and not so much on becoming a club,” Osowski went on to say.

Verhelle and Osowski had their hands full purely on league logistics, marketing and branding which left little time to get down to the bottom line...how they are going to fund their vision. Generating funding via sponsorship in the landscape of lower league play in the United States is a toilsome undertaking. Often offering nothing more than scant exposure with a side of little to no return on investment.

Enter Vice President, Steven Guipe.

“The first season we definitely had to put in some of our own money to just keep the club afloat,” he said. “That was something really difficult for a club that has never played a match. A bunch of young-looking guys running it and to say to a business ‘Hey I know you have very minimal profits but hey can you give some money to us?’” That was something that was a challenge, but we definitely overcame that better in the second season.”

Troy United huddle during their preseason game vs. Lansing Common FC on May 13, 2023. Photo courtesy of Troy United.

It goes without saying that image is a crucial facet to any organization. The ambitions were solidified and “Troy United” was the name chosen to celebrate and bring together their incredibly diverse community. Purse strings need to be tightly monitored in the initial goings of any organization, so when the badge design only set them back one Alexander Hamilton, it was a budgetary masterstroke. “I just went on Fiverr and asked someone to make me a badge only because I wanted to pitch to people about a potential club. The people who joined thought it was cool so we kept it,” Verhelle said with a chuckle.

Troy Utd made their debut in the Michigan Premier Soccer League in 2022, focusing primarily on the southeast region of the state. “It helped us get a layout and a foundation to figure out how to do this thing,” said Verhelle. Although they were in the MPSL, club leadership had their eyes set on a league that could provide a higher level of play and more focused on community building. “The MPSL is a great local league, but it didn’t really provide us with what we were looking for in terms of standards for our opponents and ourselves,” Verhelle added.

Current Detroit City FC Youth Director Dougie MacAulay was the first head coach in club history and provided more than just guidance for the players. He was an instrumental part of helping Verhelle & Co. navigating their first season. “He definitely lent us a lot of calm,” Osowski said. “We had no idea what we were doing and there was a lot of things would go wrong.” Whereas some coaches would bristle at the inconveniences that arise under the responsibility of a novice group, MacAulay reassured them that situations would come up and that its parts of the game.

After a year of self-discovery for the club, former player Kahner James was handed the reigns for their inaugural MWPL season. A search was initiated but the high level of character, dedication, and a family lineage of skilled coaches, James was the only logical choice. Osowski described the initial conversation as an upfront presentation with two choices. Stay in the MPSL or move to the MWPL and sacrifice funding. James didn’t hesitate in sacrificing to achieve the club’s bigger goals. “A huge step of us going to the Midwest Premier League was Kahner being audacious enough to suggest that we do it in our second season and two…him putting his money where his mouth is and being not only ‘Can I do this? Can I coach in this league? But I am willing to show you guys by taking less money,” said Osowski.

Only a new standard of player was going to be giving opportunities to represent the club. The initial season was admittedly a struggle with player attendance so there was a concentrated effort to mitigate potential roster issues with entering a more prominent league. Under the leadership of James, the club could rest easy knowing that a roster of dedicated players would be ready. As amateur soccer faces plenty of unknowns every year and roster turnovers are no secret. Troy Utd were adamant in their desire to elevate the quality, only three players from the previous season were retained for the 2023 season. “Only one of those players played real significant minutes,” said Guipe. “We were essentially started with a brand-new roster and a brand-new coach.”

James is not concerned with what level you play ball. What matters is if you can PLAY ball and be a good person while doing it. “Skill ranges I personally think at every level. From non-collegiate to D1 collegiate you can find diamonds,” he said. “In terms of character that was the biggest thing starting the first year in a new league at that level.”

Sometimes social media works in mysterious ways and for former Inter Detroit midfielder Adrian Lopez he decided to display his skills in hopes the club would desire his services for 2023. “I saw them pop up on Instagram for tryouts and I saw that this was their first year in the MWPL so I decided to sign up,” he said. Throughout the season, it was apparent to him that the club was aiming for more than what shows up in the table. “For me it just shows a feeling of passion and pride about more than what’s on the field,” Lopez explained. “At the end of the day were are trying to win but, at Troy it feels like everyone is taken care of and they really care about the club. Not only just the players, but the whole staff.”

Guipe saw something in the 2023 roster as it began to reach completion. He thought the top half table was a real possibility if the team can acclimate and excel in enough time. Unfortunately, that was not the case this year as the first half of the season was not a disaster but wasn’t exactly something to write home about. Opening 2023 with three straight losses being outscored 8-3, the reality check was swift and unforgiving, but James dug into his bag of coaching skills to help accelerate the acclimation. “Obviously the beginning wasn’t quite what we were hoping for but I think the team as a whole was just building chemistry,” he said. “Couple guys from same schools so I was kind of talking to the team through that.” Despite his efforts to right the ship, the specter of doubt began to creep into the mind of the club. It wasn’t the coaching of James that was the issue, it was the potential ripple effect a destitute season could cause.

Osowski confessed the Troy Utd leadership privately had a high level of concern with potential waning fan engagement and players not wanting to return. “We talked to the coach, and he told me that the players seem great. That didn’t seem like that would be possible but when I went in and listened to the players talk, they were committed to this project like we were. That was really humbling for us. Like holy moly these guys are inspired by this challenge rather than driven off.” Guipe recalled the phone call with Verhelle after their second game on the road against United West, a 2-1 losing effort in which Troy Utd controlled much of the match. “Joey and I had a phone call that night and we were a little bit concerned about what are the players going to think, we were still getting to know these guys and never know, because the results are coming will they bail on us?”

Troy United leadership. Photo courtesy of Troy United.

Their worries were the furthest thing from reality as two weeks later their dreams culminated in a 3-2 upset win over future Great Lakes Champions, 1927 Fort Wayne Sport Club. “We had the mindset that we were going to play them straight up,” he explained. “And not really have the high expectations we would have for other teams.” It was a back-and-forth affair with each goal a statement of intent by Troy Utd. “At the end of the game everyone felt a sense of relief because I think that set the standard for our run,” Lopez added. Not only was this Troy Utd’s first win of the season, but it would also kick off a four-game winning streak. “It felt just amazing,” said Guipe. “It was somewhat unexpected given the circumstances, but at the same time it felt right because of how the game ended.”

Finishing the season in seventh place in the Great Lakes East on the outside may not seem like a success by any stretch of the imagination. But through their experiences this year on the field and off the field they have found inspiration in how other clubs operate. “We had a preseason game against Lansing Common, did not get a good result but Lansing is a club we looked up to. They really got their whole thing down. The Lansing fans treated us so well, during the game providing us with snacks & beverages and taking us under their wing,” Osowski said. He talked about Troy Utd stopping by their official postgame meetup location, Ozones Brewhouse, and had people lining up to buy them a drink. “It was a very surreal moment. We gave them one of our scarves for the brewery and I am not sure if this is true because I haven’t been back but supposedly, they’ve hung it up in the men’s room so that’s pretty funny.”

Despite a rollercoaster season athletically and emotionally, James thinks the club is in a great spot to further cement their rightful place as a member of the MWPL. “The players that we had I was super happy with from character and ability. Seeing people be interested in the club, seeing people invested in the team, next year is just taking a next step up in terms of standing in the table.” The core is set, and now the next challenge for James is to find those missing pieces to make a run.

“I think we could hope for good things next year.”

- Rich Schenck