FOXBROUGH, Mass. — Former Kentucky midfielder Jason Griffiths participated in an international friendly for Major League Soccer’s New England Revolution against Portuguese powerhouse SL Benfica, on Wednesday at Gillette Stadium.

A native of Bracknell, England, Griffiths saw his first action after being drafted in the third round by the Revolution in the 2009 MLS SuperDraft. Griffiths came on in the 46th minute and played the remaining portion of the contest.  

Benfica posted a 4-0 win in the friendly, just 10 days after securing its 32nd Portuguese Liga title.

“It felt good,” Griffiths said. “It was tough playing against Benfica, but it felt good to be out there. I think I did alright and I look forward to coming up next week and training with the team. (Revolution Vice President of Player Personnel) Mike Burns actually called me last week and asked me to come up a bit early. I was meant to come up next week, so he asked me to come up early and play in this game … I was surprised and happy. It felt really good to come up here and meet the lads; it’s been great.”

“I think they all worked extremely hard,” Revolution head coach Steve Nicol said about the four players participating in trials for New England, including Griffiths. “They’re all in different situations. As far as the effort and work rate, they did well enough.”

Griffiths, a two-time team captain, appeared in 65 career games for UK, totaling 12 goals and 10 assists.