The most clean sheets

KYLE BERGER

Many professional athletes can probably recall a point in their life when they were labeled “the youngest to” accomplish something in their sport. Very few of them are doing it while they are professional athletes, however.

Zac MacMath is goalkeeper for the Philadelphia Union of Major League Soccer (MLS). Before hitting the pitch for their game against the Vancouver Whitecaps earlier this summer, he held the record for the most clean sheets (or shutouts, for all you hockey fans) in the MLS under the age of 22. He had 17 career clean sheets coming into the game, which is nothing short of astonishing for a player only 21 years young.

Of course, the word “Jewish” can always be added to that prestigious title, as MacMath is proud to be one of only a few Jewish professional soccer players in North America.

“There’s not very many of us in our particular sport,” he said in an interview with the Independent. “But [representing the Jewish people in the MLS] is something that I take pride in and my family takes pride in.”

MacMath has taken to Philadelphia’s Jewish community and has worked with a few charities there. In particular, he has done what he can to help out Team USA with the Maccabiah Games.

“I had the opportunity to play in the Maccabiah Games in Israel in 2009, I have a lot of good friends in the organization and I like to help them out when I can,” he said.

The self-proclaimed “sweeper-keeper” said he was 11 years old when he decided to chase his dream of making a living playing soccer. When he was 17, he made the U17 Residency program in Florida and, at that point, he knew he had a real shot to make it in the pros.

Despite the fact that he has made his career as a goalkeeper, he believes he could have made it on the field, as well.

“It would have been a different path with different hoops to jump through, but I would like to think that I have the skills to be a professional as a field player,” he said confidently. “I take a lot of pride in playing with my feet, and there are times when we are maybe losing late in the game or trying to tie and I like to kind of go up there and maybe try to score.”

Much like in Vancouver, the MLS is a growing interest in Philadelphia and MacMath has been happy to be part of the action.

“Even before the team was here in Philadelphia the fan support was amazing,” he said. “And, each year, more and more fans come out and [there are] more season ticket holders. Everyone who comes to a game, once they have come one time they always want to come back because the atmosphere in Philadelphia is fun,” he continued. “Regardless of whether we win, tie or lose, we have a good time and they enjoy the show.”

Other than the obvious combination of hard work and dedication, MacMath said he attributes much of his success to his father’s support and suggestion at a young age that he play in goal. He said he is lucky to have been surrounded by positive support.

“From coaches, to players, to family and friends, I attribute most of my success to the people I have been around for the last 10 years,” he said. “Those people push me like I would have never been pushed and it’s a big reason why I am here today.”

Professional athletes are always working on their game. Despite his early career success, it’s not different for MacMath, who says he needs to work on his consistency.

“I think I have a lot of good attributes in my game already,” he analyzed. “It’s about making those attributes consistent each game, through each season and being the best goalkeeper I can be.

“It’s tough mentally and physically to go out there each game and put your best game forward, but that’s something that I’m working on and trying to get better with this season.”

His team has been working on a similar concept as a group. With only one loss in the two months leading up to the Vancouver game, MacMath said their weak spot has been allowing teams to score late goals to end with a single-point draw instead of an important three-point win.

“We’re about to go through a tough stretch of games so we’ve just got to buckle down and make sure we stay in playoff position,” he said.

His success is something that members of any Jewish community can support. Except for when he plays against the Whitecaps.

Kyle Berger is a freelance writer in Richmond.

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