Following on from our comprehensive run down of all of the players that have worn the Harrisburg shirt this season, we bring you even more information about our opponents this evening as we take a look at the guys behind the team - Head Coach Bill Becher and Assistant Coach Steve Widdowson

Bill Becher
Head Coach

With a sharp eye for talent, an incisive tactical mind, and an emphasis on effort and consistency, Bill Becher turned his Harrisburg City Islanders from expansion team to Champion in only four years.

Harrisburg's improbable run to the 2007 title was fueled primarily by perhaps the league's best defence, led by central back Dustin Bixler, one of Becher's 2005 discoveries. Around Bixler, Becher placed new acquisitions Tim Velten, Anthony Calvano, and Ryan Pierce, and another newcomer behind them, veteran goalkeeper Matt Nelson, who posted easily the best season of any keeper in team history.

The focus may have been on defense, but Becher got a career performance out of one his original City Islanders, veteran Mo Oduor, a typically defensive-minded player who posted six goals for the champs. Rookie Brian Ombiji, who also found the net six times, joined Oduor on the All-League Second Team. The team emphasized balance in the attack, receiving goals from 12 different players throughout the year. USL-2 Teams of the Week featured 14 different City Islanders throughout the year, and five Isles won Player of the Week honors. Nelson joined Oduor and Ombiji on the All-League Second Team.

Defense was again the key in the playoffs, as the team went 195 postseason minutes before surrendering a goal in the Championship match. Resilient to the end, Becher's tireless squad completed a grueling 240-minute postseason marathon by topping the Richmond Kickers in penalty kicks.

Harrisburg also qualified for the U.S. Open Cup for the first time in 2007, defeating the amateur Aegean Hawks and the PDL's Ocean City Barons before achieving a historic 1-0 victory over D.C. United of Major League Soccer on July 10. It was the first time that D.C. United had fallen to a Second Division side in the Open Cup, and only the third time they had lost to a USL club at any level. Harrisburg's Open Cup dreams ended on August 7, with a 2-1 loss to MLS's New England Revolution - the eventual Open Cup champs - in their Foxboro, Mass., home.

In some ways, 2007 was just a return to form for Harrisburg. The 2006 City Islanders vied for the playoffs throughout the season and posted several memorable performances, but failed to reach the postseason. Becher kept the core of his team intact entering 2006, with Dustin Bixler, Adam Clay, Sumed Ibrahim, Dave Kern, Mo Oduor, Derek Potteiger, David Schofield, and Matt Tanzini all slated to play key roles. To that group, Becher engineered the addition of several prominent veterans (Jamaican international Teofore Bennett, explosive striker Jamel Mitchell, and stalwart defender Chris Morman) and a handful of promising youngsters (highlighted by Messiah College product David McClellan, who tied for second on the team in goals). City Islanders were named to the USL-2 Team of the Week 18 times in 2006. The side fell short of its championship aspirations, but the groundwork for a 2007 resurgence was laid.

In 2005, Becher and his staff assembled a squad that went 12-3-5, came within three points of winning the regular season title, and took the eventual champion Charlotte Eagles into overtime of their Semifinal playoff series. Of the 25 players used by Becher last year, 23 made at least one start. The City Islanders went undefeated in a franchise record 16 consecutive games (12-0-4) from May through August, and the City Islanders posted a five-game winning streak and a four-game home winning streak, both club marks. Harrisburg finished with the league's second-best home record at 8-1-1, and posted the third-best road mark (4-2-4). In addition to 15 different City Islanders being named to the Second Division Team of the Week (five of whom earned Player of the Week honors) in 2005, Shane Crawford and Sumed Ibrahim were honored on the 2005 All-League First Team, with forward Chad Severs and Schofield on the Second Team. Severs also won the league's Rookie of the Year Award.

In 2004, Becher led his expansion club to a 10-7-3 record and a playoff berth. The City Islanders also enjoyed notable success on their new home pitch, going 7-2-1 at Skyline Sports Complex; only Pittsburgh, Charlotte, and Utah had more home wins. With a group of accomplished veterans leading the way, Becher deliberately developed a handful of talented youngsters throughout the year, and several shrewd acquisitions rounded out the roster of the club's playoff run. Of the 28 players (including seven rookies) used by Becher in 2004, 17 of them were named to the Team of the Week at least once during the season.

One of Harrisburg's most recognizable soccer personalities, Bill Becher brought decades of playing experience to his first pro head coaching job. After winning a national title with Sagamon State University in 1986, the St. Louis native enjoyed an acclaimed and lengthy professional career in the MISL (formerly the AISA and NPSL), scoring 280 goals and assisting on 254 others in 458 games.

Becher spent the bulk of his indoor years with the Harrisburg Heat, with whom he notched 227 goals and 209 assists in 315 games from 1991-99 and served as the team's captain from 1997-99. Becher also played indoors with the Hershey Impact, Ft. Wayne Flames, New York Kick, and St. Louis Ambush of the MISL and Arizona Sandsharks of the CISL, and outdoors with the Colorado Foxes of the APSL.

Since 1996, Becher has served as Coaching Director for the Lower Dauphin Soccer Association. He and wife Dawn reside in Lower Paxton Township with sons Jackson and Ryan.

Steve Widdowson
Assistant Coach

Steve Widdowson enters his fifth year as Bill Becher's assistant. Originally focused on working with the team's goalkeepers, Widdowson's role has evolved far beyond the nets to include a wide range of responsibilities as Bill Becher's right-hand man.

During his tenure, Widdowson helped greatly in the development of two local products who emerged as solid pros: Dave Kern, the club's all-time leader in nearly every goalkeeping category, and Sam Bishop. Widdowson also coached future MLS keeper Michael Behonick, who went 4-3-0 with a 1.11 GAA while on a loan stint with the City Islanders in 2004. In 2007, he helped veteran Matt Nelson post the finest season of any keeper in team history (10-4-4, 0.61 GAA, 10 shutouts).

Widdowson, who hails from England, currently serves as the Head Coach for the Millersville University Men's Soccer Team. Before moving to Millersville, he spent time as the Assistant Coach at York College and Head Coach at Centenary College (Hacketstown, NJ). Widdowson has also acted as the Coaching Director for the Metro Soccer Club of York.

Widdowson played professionally for the Reading Rage (now of the USL's Premier Development League), and graduated from Rutgers University where he is still among the school's all-time leaders in saves, shutouts, and games in goal.