Sounders work to integrate S2 into first team

Now that Seattle Sounders FC2 (commonly referred to as S2) have finished their inaugural season in the United Soccer League (USL) after losing 2-0 to Colorado Springs Switchbacks FC last month, some of the club's players have been spotted training with their parent club this week. Seattle Sounders head coach Sigi Schmid said on Tuesday that, while he didn't have the details on players' contracts and such, some S2 players would be training with the first team until at least October 17th.

"We're working with Ezra (Hendrickson), there are times like today where we'll be incorporating them into our group, sometimes we'll drop a few guys when our group is too big, back down to them."

S2 coach Ezra Hendrickson told the official Sounders website that S2's inaugural season went so well, that there are a number of players on the verge of minutes with the first team. We've already seen Andy Craven make the leap from S2 to the Sounders first team, due to a combination of his excellent form for S2 and the mid-season injury crunch that the Sounders faced. Players returning from injury and an injury of his own have kept Craven off the pitch for quite awhile now

Sporting Director Chris Henderson, reiterated this, telling Sounder at Heart a couple weeks ago that "there are a number of guys from [S2] that we’re looking at like ‘hey maybe this is a guy that we keep after the season’ and after they’re done he stays with us and trains with the first team leading into the end of the year."

Henderson hesitated to name too many specific players at the time, the only exception being Brazilian midfielder Sérgio Mota. Specific contract info hasn't been discussed too much yet, but everyone in Sounders management seems happy with the current squad that S2 has and it seems like we'll be seeing a majority of those players back next season.

Since S2 is still quite new, having just finished its inaugural season as a club, its role in the Sounders FC organization is still being defined. Connecting the first and second teams through practices is one way to do that.