George O'Neill
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 26 July 1942 | ||
| Place of birth | Port Glasgow, Scotland | ||
| Height | 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) | ||
| Playing position | Left Wing | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps† | (Gls)† |
| 1963–1964 | Celtic | 0 | (0) |
| 1964–1965 | Barrow | 7 | (0) |
| 1964–1965 | Ayr United | 4 | (0) |
| 1965–1966 | Dunoon Athletic | ||
| 1966–1970 | Partick Thistle | 72 | (5) |
| 1969–1971 | Greenock Morton | 36 | (2) |
| 1970–1972 | Dunfermline Athletic | 25 | (3) |
| 1972–1973 | St. Mirren | 2 | (0) |
| 1973–1976 | Philadelphia Atoms | 52 | (4) |
| National team | |||
| 1973 | United States | 2 | (0) |
| Teams managed | |||
| 1978–1980 | Philadelphia Fever | ||
| 1980 | Philadelphia Fury (assistant) | ||
| 1993 | University of Pennsylvania (interim) | ||
| 1994–1997 | University of Pennsylvania | ||
| * Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals). | |||
George O’Neill (born 26 July 1942 in Port Glasgow, Scotland) is a former Scottish-American soccer forward. He began his career in Scotland, playing with eight clubs over nine seasons before moving to the Philadelphia Atoms of the North American Soccer League. He retired from playing professionally in 1976. In 1973, he earned two caps with the U.S. national team.
Scotland
O’Neill signed for Scottish club Celtic in 1963, but never entered the first team. After one season, he moved to Barrow A.F.C. of the English Football League Third Division North for the 1964–65 season. He played seven games with Barrow before transferring back north to Ayr United. He finished out the 1964–65 season with Ayr, playing only four games. He then moved to Scottish Amateur Football League club Dunoon Athletic for the 1965–66 season. Whether this was a loan from Ayr or a transfer remains unknown. In 1966, he joined Partick Thistle where he finally found significant playing time. Over his four seasons with the club, he played 72 games and scored five goals. He then moved to Morton for a little more than a season before transferring on March 16, 1971 to Dunfermline Athletic. He saw time in twenty-five games before moving to St. Mirren in 1972. He played only two games with St. Mirren before leaving Scotland for the United States.
NASL
In 1973, O’Neill signed with the expansion Philadelphia Atoms of the North American Soccer League. That year, the Atoms won the NASL championship. He remained with the team until it folded following the 1976 season.
National team
In 1973, O’Neill earned two caps with the U.S. national team. The first came in a 1–0 loss to Haiti on November 3, 1973. The second was another 1–0 loss to Haiti two days later.[1]
Coaching
In 1978, O’Neill was hired to coach the Philadelphia Fever of the Major Indoor Soccer League until he was fired in 1980. He then replaced Derek Travis as the assistant coach of the Philadelphia Fury of the NASL. He spent several years as a coach with the Philadelphia Inter Soccer Club before becoming the interim head coach of the University of Pennsylvania men's soccer team on Aug. 18, 1993 after Steve Baumann resigned. He led the team to a 5–10 record before being named to the head coach position. He was then hired as the team’s head coach in January 1994. O’Neill was fired following the 1997 season after he amassed a 28–47–4 record over his five seasons as head coach.