William Neil was a Scottish footballer who played as a right half or inside right.[2] He spent most of his career with Airdrieonians, initially playing in midfield before Tommy Preston became established in that position, then taking up a more advanced role after Willie Russell left the club.[3] As well as contributing to the Diamonds sequence of four consecutive runners-up finishes in the Scottish Football League in the early 1920s, he was part of the squad that won the Scottish Cup in 1924, although he only played in one round and was not selected for the final. He also had short spells with Third Lanark (on loan from Airdrie), Ayr United, Derry City in Ireland (on loan from Ayr) and Cowdenbeath before returning to Airdrieonians for a short time prior to retiring.[2][3]
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Place of birth | Glasgow, Scotland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)[1] | ||
| Position(s) | |||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| – | Parkhead | ||
| 1919–1928 | Airdrieonians | 229 | (28) |
| 1925 | → Third Lanark (loan) | 4 | (0) |
| 1928–1930 | Ayr United | 30 | (4) |
| 1929–1930 | → Derry City (loan) | ||
| 1930 | Cowdenbeath | 2 | (0) |
| 1931–1932 | Airdrieonians | 6 | (1) |
| Total | 271 | (43) | |
| International career | |||
| 1927 | Scottish League XI | 1 | (0) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||
Neil was selected for the Scottish Football League XI on one occasion,[4] a 2–1 win over the Irish League representative team in October 1927. He had earlier played for Scotland at Junior level in his early career.[5]
References
edit- ^ Season preview 1927/28 – Airdrieonians F.C., The Athletic News, 1 August 1927, via Play Up Liverpool
- ^ a b John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine.
- ^ a b Greatest XI - 6. Central Midfielder, Airdrieonians FC, 18 March 2016
- ^ "[SFL player] William Neil". London Hearts Supporters' Club. Retrieved 10 October 2020.
- ^ Junior Scotland 1889 to 2019: The Players and Matches, Douglas Gorman, Tom McGouran; Lulu.com, 2019
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