California Boys Coach of the Year: E.B. Madha

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The reading of the accomplishments of Birmingham High boys soccer coach E.B. Madha is one that will simply leave people saying the word "wow."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Madha has coached at Birmingham for 22 seasons. He has 326 wins in those 22 seasons, which is approximately 15 wins a year. How's that for consistency? He has five 20-win seasons, he has seven CIF Section title game appearances, five CIF titles, and has been in the SoCal State semifinals four times, reaching the finals twice.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>One of those two times was this past season as the Patriots reached the Division I Regional final after winning yet another LA City Section title. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Yet, this is not the driving force behind the selection of Madha as PrepSoccer's California Boys Coach of the Year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>If you talk to people in the coaching community you will hear words like "direct", "honest", "character", "leader." Madha has a reputation for telling his players, his friends and opposing coaches how things are, with honesty, when they ask for his opinion. Patrick Thomsen, the former head coach at Notre Dame-Sherman Oaks and now assistant at St. Augustine, knows this well.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Thomsen got to know Madha after he started coaching at Notre Dame and came to respect him, and that respect soon turned into a friendship as Madha became someone he could call for advice.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"He's gonna tell you how it is," Thomsen said. "He's gonna be honest."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Another word used to describe Madha is "discipline" and not with the negative connotation we usually associate that word with. What you will see from Madha's players is that they play with discipline and they are a shining representative of their community when off the pitch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"What I have always enjoyed with his teams is the discipline his players have," Thomsen said. "And not just in the style of play, but their behavior and how the act on, and off, the field."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>When you sign up to play for Madha, you are essentially signing a contract that says you will carry yourself accordingly and represent the program positively.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"That's one of the first things we teach our players, to respect the game, the school and their opponents," Madha said. "We teach them to play with class and humility. That is part of the discipline we instill. It's something that's not just said, but something that we do."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>What earns Madha the respect that he has from his players, and from non-players, is that he will shoot them straight. He will be direct with them and this carries a lot of weight because athletes and coaches do not like to be misled nor given false promises or hope.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"I am very direct with players and coaches, and I am extremely honest," Madha said. "If they ask a question they know I won't BS them and that has served me well, and it serves them well. I think honesty is the reason that kids gravitate towards me."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>And the kids do gravitate towards him. With hundreds of kids coming to try out every season, with alumni players and past coaches continually showing up to be a part of the program and help keep this tradition of excellence alive. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->