Ed Leigh

Longtime Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer coach Ed Leigh passed away Thursday night. Here he is pictured with Maddy Evans after their FC Bucks Vipers team won the 2009 US Youth Soccer National Championship.

Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer has learned of the passing of longtime coach Ed Leigh at the age of 63. Leigh was an indelible fixture in soccer, specifically in the Philadelphia area.

He played for the great Walter Bahr at Frankford High School and again at Temple University. It was Bahr who, in colleague and friend John Oberholtzer's words, gave Leigh his "positive direction in soccer." After graduating from Temple, Leigh continued his amateur career first with the United German-Hungarians and then with the Ukrainian Nationals.

Leigh later turned his attention to the sidelines, where he accumulated numerous accolades. At the high school level, he led Archbishop Ryan to four Philadelphia Catholic League girls titles between 1996 and 2002. At the club level, Leigh won 21 Eastern Pennsylvania State Cups and is one of two two-time winners of the Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer Girls Travel Coach of the Year Award. In 2009, he led FC Bucks Vipers to the US Youth Soccer National Championship. The Vipers were the first Eastern Pennsylvania girls team to win the national title. One of the players on that team, Maddy Evans, won the golden boot and went on to a professional career in the NWSL.

"He did so much for me growing up," Evans told Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer in 2016. "I can't say enough good things. The whole team stuck together from under-13 on. That's a testament to Ed Leigh."

Leigh was by all accounts ahead of his time. He liked to say "the game is the best teacher."

"Eddie was incredible," remembers Oberholtzer, whose daughter Julie played for FC Bucks Vipers, "because he was a player's coach. Kids loved playing for Eddie Leigh."

While other coaches valued results above everything, Leigh preached patience and development. He had a rule that if a child signed up, he or she would get at least one half of play. In other words, he played everybody.

"Don't worry about wins," Oberholtzer says of Leigh's philosophy. "They'll come as you get older."

That mentality influenced everyone who came in contact with Leigh, including Oberholtzer: "He changed my view on youth soccer."

In 2016, Leigh was elected to the Southeastern Pennsylvania Soccer Association Hall of Fame and was honored with Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer's Service to Youth Award.

“Eddie had a deep appreciation for Philadelphia soccer’s history and traditions," says Eastern Pennsylvania Youth Soccer CEO Chris Branscome. "He embodied that tradition as a player and as a coach. He added some special moments in our recent history through the successes of his players and championship team. Ed left a positive imprint on the game and throughout our community."

Leigh remained close to FC Bucks and Council Rock United Soccer Association, where he was Director of Coaching, until his death.

"People like that just stay with you," says Oberholtzer. "He won't be very far from me.

Source: http://www.epysa.org/resources/rest_in_peace_eddie_leigh/