Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | July 16, 1954 | ||
Place of birth | Kearny, New Jersey, United States | ||
Height | 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) | ||
Position(s) | Forward / Midfielder | ||
Youth career | |||
Scots American FC | |||
University of Bridgeport | |||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1976 | Hartford Bicentennials | 16 | (2) |
1976–1977 | Rangers (loan) | 15 | (2) |
1977 | Connecticut Bicentennials | 3 | (1) |
1977 | Dallas Tornado | 2 | (0) |
1978-1979 | Memphis Rogues | 12 | (2) |
1979 | New Jersey Americans | 16 | (4) |
1980 | Cleveland Force (indoor) | 15 | (1) |
1981-1982 | Carolina Lightnin' | 40 | (8) |
*Club domestic league appearances and goals |
Hugh O'Neill (born July 16, 1954) is a retired American soccer player who played professionally in the North American Soccer League, Scottish First Division, American Soccer League and Major Indoor Soccer League.
Born and raised in Kearny, New Jersey, [1] O'Neill graduated from Essex Catholic High School before playing soccer at the Scots Club, and the University of Bridgeport where he was a 1973 and 1975 All American soccer player. [2]
In 1975, O'Neill turned professional with the Hartford Bicentennials of the North American Soccer League.
The following fall, the Bicentennials sent him on loan to Glasgow Rangers F.C. of the Scottish League. The Bicentennials failed to perceive that O'Neill's Roman Catholic faith and his family history of supporting Celtic could present a problem. Despite this, O'Neill played every reserve game that season, except for the games against the Celtic reserves. [3] The Bicentennials became the Connecticut Bicentennials for the 1977 season. The Bicentennials sent him to the Dallas Tornado during the season.
In 1978, he became the first player signed by the Memphis Rogues. He later played for the Carolina Lightnin' of the American Soccer League. In September 1981, he scored the game-winning goal as the Lightnin' took the ASL championship. [4] He continued with the Lightnin' in 1982, but lost part of the season when he returned to New Jersey to be with his dying father. [5] He played the 1980 indoor season with the Cleveland Force of the Major Indoor Soccer League.
O'Neill played for the 1976 U.S. Olympic Soccer team during its qualification campaign for the Olympic tournament.
Kearny is a town in the western part of Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, and a suburb of Newark. As of the 2020 United States census, the town's population was 41,999, an increase of 1,315 (+3.2%) from the 2010 census count of 40,684, which in turn reflected an increase of 171 (+0.4%) from the 40,513 counted in the 2000 census.
The Connecticut Bicentennials were an American soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1975 to 1977. Originally founded as the Hartford Bicentennials, the team relocated to New Haven, Connecticut after the 1976 NASL season. At the end of 1977 season, the team was sold and relocated to California becoming the Oakland Stompers.
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The Carolina Lightnin' was an American soccer club based in Charlotte, North Carolina that was a member of the American Soccer League. The Lightnin' played home matches at American Legion Memorial Stadium. Attendance at home games averaged 6,000 spectators. 20,163 fans attended the September 1981 match against the New York United in which the Lightnin' won the American Soccer League championship by a score of 2–1.
Kearny High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school serving students in ninth through twelfth grades from Kearny in Hudson County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey, and operating as the lone secondary school of the Kearny School District.
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