Comesanas Takes Charge as New East Haven Boys’ Soccer Coach
East Haven has brought in town resident Paul Comesanas as its new boys’ soccer head coach for the 2015 fall season. Paul is a state police officer with a military background and hopes to use that experience to give the Yellowjackets the push they need to achieve success.
“I think that as a state trooper—boys know what I do—it gives them a role model and it gives them some more guidance and direction knowing that I’m there for them,” says Paul. “I think it’s a good fit for me and the boys. It gives them somebody to emulate right from wrong.”
One big positive for Paul is that he comes from a Hispanic heritage with a Cuban father and Ecuadorian mother, which allows him to effectively communicate with Spanish-speaking players and their parents.
“I think it’s a huge plus because, when we’re training, I can convey myself to them very easily by doing so in Spanish. They grasp it and we move onto the next task at hand,” says Paul. “It helped the learning curve—the fact I’m able to speak with them. More importantly, I can better communicate with the parents where English may not be their first language.”
Athletic Director Anthony Verderame feels Paul will be a great asset to the school, community, and boys’ soccer program moving forward.
“He coached youth for a while, but he has the fire in him. You can see it. He has that fire and passion and it’s contagious. It’s a beautiful thing,” says Verderame. “The kids are focused, the kids are engaged, and they’re all moving. There’s not a lot of downtime during his practices. It’s well-planned. Everyone is focused, the energy is positive, it’s a perfect environment—the respect the kids have for him and he for the kids. It’s two ways. You just see it. You see the intensity and fire and the kids respond well.”
Paul grew up in New York state, played soccer throughout high school, and continued to compete when he went to the United States Marine Corps. Paul and his military mates would travel the country and compete against members of the Navy and Air Force. Paul was selected to the All-Marine Team in both 1984 and 1986. He’s been a member of the United States military for 30 years and was deployed to Iraq from 2004 to 2005.
With the state police, Paul is nearing 18 years on the force and works a schedule that’s favorable to East Haven’s soccer’s slate.
“It works well with my schedule. I work the midnight shift from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., so I get home and sleep, then we have practice in the afternoon,” says Paul. “I can put in for time off if needed and I’ve already planned out my schedule throughout the season.”
Paul has two sons on the soccer team and has coached in the youth ranks for seven years. Although this is his first test at varsity level, Paul feels his prior coaching experience in East Haven gives him a leg up to succeed in his new position.
“I think for me, coaching is coaching. At its core, coaching is coaching. I have a great bunch of guys. What we’ve done is basically integrated JV and varsity. We do everything together and the only real time we’re not together is during a game,” says Paul. “JV is the future, so that was one of my biggest things coming into this. I wanted to break down that wall. We’re East Haven soccer and we’re going to work together as a team. The younger guys are doing well with it, so we’re going to keep it going and hope it continues to blossom.”
As the season has just gotten underway, Paul can’t wait to see what’s in store for his squad and having his sons by his side is an added bonus.
“I think a lot of it was to help the school, help the community, and give back to the community. This is my town and I want to do everything possible to get East Haven on the map for something good. By doing so and bringing my background and everything I’ve been through to these kids, hopefully, we can build this program up and get it to the level of everyone else in our division,” says Paul. “Both of my sons are on the team. I wouldn’t say it was the whole reason. The program needed a little kick start. When the opportunity presented itself, I applied. Having my boys on the team is just icing on the cake.”