FOXBOROUGH, Mass.—The New England Revolution have locked down their last line of defense, announcing Monday they have re-signed starting goalkeeper Bobby Shuttleworth to a contract extension.
Club policy does not allow for the release of details in player contracts, but the seventh-year 'keeper expressed his excitement to remain with the only professional club he’s ever known, and said he's “happy to be able to stay a couple more years.”
Undrafted out of the University of Buffalo, Shuttleworth signed with the Revs in Summer 2009 and bided his time in a third-string role. Working hard under the influence of then-starter Matt Reis, now the goalkeepers coach for LA Galaxy, Shuttleworth was prepared when opportunity arose in his fifth season.
Shuttleworth earned the bulk of the Revs' minutes in 2013, when Reis went down with an injury. Taking full advantage of 22 starts, Shuttleworth set a club record with 395 consecutive scoreless minutes, posting a career-best nine shutouts in the process.
“It’s been a long process,” Shuttleworth said. “I’ve been here for seven years now. I couldn’t be happier and I’m very grateful to the club for giving me time to develop.
"It was a slow process, but they gave me the games when they could. Fortunately enough, I was able to do well enough to continue to grow. I’m just really happy to get the chance to continue to play here.”
Shuttleworth has established himself as the man between the posts in New England, making 76 starts and posting a 31-31-15 mark, with a 1.3 goals against average, helping lead the Revs to the postseason in each of the last three years.
The 28-year-old has also developed into a dedicated leader for the club.
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“We have a young team, but we have a lot of guys that have good experience for being so young,” Shuttleworth said. “I think in our locker room, it’s a combination of a lot of different things, a lot of different guys. When people need to step up and take a leadership role, that happens a lot.”
Having come such a long way with the Revs, Shuttleworth wanted to extend the stability he built during the last seven years.
“I’ve been here for a long time and I’m settled,” he said. “It was a process to get to where we got to, but I think both sides are happy. I’m glad to continue to play here.”
