For the first time in three seasons, Harry Shipp isn’t going anywhere.
Shipp joined the Seattle Sounders last offseason, moving on to his third club in three years. After a budding career as a Homegrown Player for the Chicago Fire that included a 2014 Rookie of the Year nomination, his hometown club sent him to the Montreal Impact in 2016 before landing in the Pacific Northwest as somewhat of a journeyman only four years into his professional career.
“When I came last year, I wanted to make sure I had a two-year contract here just because I didn’t want to have to move again,” Shipp said candidly. “I can’t tell you how excited I am to not have to do the whole adjustment process again.”
Life off the field while in Montreal had been difficult. His then-girlfriend was living in Chicago, and Shipp said last year that he never fully acclimated in Quebec. Despite 20 starts for the Impact, they were willing to part with him in exchange for allocation money.
When he and his now-wife moved to Seattle, they were excited about taking a breather and settling in, which wasn’t easy for Shipp on the pitch right away either. Hampered by an injury early in the season followed by a broken arm midway through, he fought to retain his spot on the field, something he eventually earned as the season’s most critical games approached. He scored twice and added an assist in 18 regular-season games, but had two crucial assists in three postseason matches to spur the Sounders to a second straight MLS Cup appearance.
“We have a very competitive roster with a lot of talented players, especially in the midfield,” he said. “I came in and was going to be patient, I knew I wasn’t going to start right away based on who they had and the success they had had.
“For me it was about figuring out my role in the team,” he continued. “Whether I’m playing my preferred position or not, I want to figure out what I need to do to get on the field. I was proud of the fact that I played some toward the end of the year and stepped into key situations going into the playoffs and then the first couple games of the playoffs and was able to get us on into the final.”
Shipp enters this preseason feeling as content as ever despite a short and eventful offseason that saw him get married a week after MLS Cup and take an Australian honeymoon. He’s turned his attention quickly back to playing and how he can continue to make significant contributions in 2018.
“My first two offseasons, we didn’t make the playoffs, and so you have three months off,” Shipp said. “You set all these goals in the offseason because you have three months to get stronger in these areas, both in the gym and on the field. This time, you’re playing so late.
“This preseason, because I’m comfortable with the players and the coaches, it’s about figuring out little things I can figure out getting better doing over the next month or two.”
A No. 10 out of Notre Dame, where he was a MAC Hermann Trophy finalist as one of the nation’s top collegiate players, Shipp has excellent vision and creative ability on the ball, being able to pick out pinpoint passes and unbalance defenses in the final third. It’s critical, he said, to have a deep understanding of his teammates’ tendencies — where they like to run in space, where they like to receive the ball, where they don’t — in order to succeed.
“I’m really looking forward to this year because a lot of the core guys who are coming back, I have a really good idea of what they like to do on the field,” Shipp said. “I’m looking forward to getting opportunities to show that comfort level.”
As for where Shipp sees himself beyond the end of his second season in Seattle, he’s not sure. But he does like the idea of more years in a Sounders kit.
“I think everything is setting up for me to be successful on the field in 2018,” he said. “I’m not a guy who has an ego. I’ll do whatever [the staff] wants as long as I get a fair shot to play. Hopefully it works out here, I do feel comfortable and want it to work out long-term.”
