Republic FC kicked off its preseason training camp tour on Wednesday morning with a trip to the Pacific Northwest to square up against the reigning Major League Soccer champions, Seattle Sounders FC.

The business trip, which ultimately was a 120-minute closed-door scrimmage, allowed the boys in Old Glory Red to play against championship competition and test their current fitness levels.

Everybody who traveled got to play 60 minutes, including the top crop from the Republic FC Academy system. The ultimate takeaway from the match was far from the final score line, rather, it was recording valuable minutes against some of the best in the game.

Especially for the youngsters Aris Young, Julian Chavez, Diego Ramos, Rafael Jauregui and Hayden Sargis who recently signed with the first team.

“It was great for us as an organization to be able to take Rafa who is 15-years-old, Aris Yang, Julian Chavez, Diego Ramos, and Hayden Sargis, who's part of the first team now, up to play Seattle’s best eleven,” Republic FC Head Coach Mark Briggs said. “It’s a great experience for them because they’re going to be utilized this season.”