MetroFanatic: How was your first preseason since returning from injury?
Ryan Meara: I think preseason went great, we had the perfect set-up down in Orlando. You definitely couldn't complain about the weather after coming back up here and seeing how brutal it's been! On the field, I think we're happy where we're at. We put in a lot of hard work down there and we should be excited about the upcoming season. Keeping most of the team from last year together is going to help us a lot, I think we're going to hit the ground running on Saturday and pick up where we left off last season.

MF: With Luis Robles starting every game last year, do you feel you've been given a fair chance so far to win back the starting role?
RM: Yeah, I think that's been the case so far, we've been competing all through training camp. No matter what my role ends up being, I try to approach training every day with the exact same mentality. I'm going to do my best to improve every day, and I think if I get a chance to start a few games, I'll be ready for the opportunity and run with it.

MF: One of the big stories last year was how significant your injury from the prior season turned out to be and how much time you missed as a result. What was it like working through that lengthy rehabilitation period?
RM: It was pretty brutal, there's really no other way to put it. Knowing that you're not able to do what you love to do, and having the thought that you're letting your teammates down, it's difficult. Even though the team was doing well, I didn't feel like I was really a part of it. Not traveling or training with the team is really hard on you. Obviously it's very tough physically to come back from a serious injury, but the mental part of it is hard as well. I was lucky that I'm from New York and I had all my friends and family nearby to help me get through it, they were a big help to me. There are also a lot of really good guys on this team that kept my spirits up and kept up with how I was doing. The one thing I can say for certain is that I'm glad it's in the past, and I'm ready to go this year!

MF: No one would ever question your dedication to your teammates or the club, but are you secretly just a little happy that they didn't win everything without you last year?
RM: No, not at all! Whether you're hurt or on the bench, even when you're not playing you're pulling for the rest of the guys. There's what, about thirty guys on the team, plus the coaching staff and the front office? Every one of those people come to work every day with the goal of winning the MLS Cup. Whatever my role on the team is, it doesn't matter, I want them to succeed.

MF: How do you see things playing out for you this year?
RM: I think if you asked anyone that question, they'd say that they want to be starting and playing a significant role on the team. Obviously, I had a taste of what that was like my rookie year, and I'm going to work as hard as I can to get back into that position. I just hope I can earn that opportunity and take advantage of it when it comes.