Les O'Neill made 177 appearances for Carlisle and scored 25 goals during his 5 seasons with the club. He helped United to win promotion to Division One and even led the goalscoring charts in the countries top division at one stage. Working along side the tenacious Ray Train, the pair were widely acknowledged as amongst the best in Division Two at winning the ball in the middle of the park. Les had the added ability of being able to run with it, with often devastating effect, once he had it.

Les was born in Blyth on the 4th December 1943, and was picked up by Blyth Spartans shortly after leaving school. However, his part time football career often came a poor second to the shift system he found himself caught up in as he earned his living down the local coal pits. Newcastle United were to be his saviour, and he earned a place in their Youth side at the beginning of 1962, enabling him to say goodbye to life as a miner. He finally broke in to the Magpies first team in 1963 but suffered an awful injury that kept him in the treatment room for nearly 11 months. His battle back to fitness was hard, and he knew he needed first team football, so he accepted a move to Darlington in early 1965 in an attempt to get things back on track. He enjoyed four good years with Darlington, winning promotion to Division Three with them in 1967, but was keen to broaden his horizons as the Quakers lost their way and dropped back to Division Four. Bradford made an £8,000 bid in the summer of 1970 and Les found himself at Valley Parade.

Bradford were also struggling in Division Three and suffered the drop in O'Neill's second season there. Fortunately, he had been a long time target of United manager Ian McFarlane and was delighted to have the chance to play in the Second Division with the impressive Cumbrian outfit. He arrived, having cost a bargain £6,000, just in time to play in the Anglo-Italian Cup competition in July 1972 and was an immediate hit with the fans. He slotted in to the team perfectly, working along side Balderstone, Bowles and Train as if he'd been there all his life.

His first season with Carlisle was a difficult one for the club. They had to work hard to avoid relegation, eventually finishing 18th, and showed only glimpses of the flowing football that was to come in following years. O'Neill made 36 appearances that year, scoring 3 goals, and made the attacking midfield berth his own. His first goal for the club came in the 1-1 home draw with Liverpool in the League Cup on September 5th, a memorable way indeed to open your account for a new club. Although United found scoring difficult that year, it was the industry and ability of O'Neill that led to alot of the chances that were created and scored.

The 1973/74 season was a complete contrast. The football was a delight to watch and Carlisle achieved the ultimate reward for it. Their third spot finish secured promotion to Division One, and won over alot of neutral fans. Les made 44 appearances, scoring 7 goals, and was a massive factor in the success enjoyed that season. He also notched his first double strike for the club, netting two of the three goals in the 3-0 away win at Notts County in September that took Carlisle, believe it or not, off the bottom of the table after a bad start. It was the New Year, and the climax of the season in particular, that witnessed United really begin to click and brought the charge to promotion that no-one could have guessed would happen.

The historic First Division journey brought 3 goals in two games for Les and had him topping the scoring chart in the countries premier division for what was a brief but unforgettable period in time. Coincidentally, it was also the same period that had Carlisle United sat proudly on top of the pile. His goal at Stamford Bridge and his two at Ayresome Park in United's opening two fixtures were surely more than he had even dreamed of. To then be part of the team that beat Spurs at Brunton Park in Carlisle's first ever home game in the First Division must have been Roy of the Rovers stuff for him. He scored a fantastic 9 goals in his 41 appearances but could not prevent an over-powered and, if we're honest, out-classed United from finishing in bottom spot and from dropping back to Division Two.

As is often the case with relegated sides, Carlisle found the 1975/76 season very difficult. Les made 34 appearances and netted two more goals for the club as they battled hard to stay afloat after the euphoria of such a wonderful experience in top flight football. The 1976/77 season was to be his last with Carlisle and it was another difficult one, both for the club and for him personally. An injury picked up pre-season kept him out of the side for long periods and robbed Carlisle of one of their key men. He managed only 22 appearances and was visibly impaired by the knee that was causing him so much trouble. He did play in the last game of the season, away to Cardiff in May 1977, and scored his last goal for the club in a 1-1 draw. Sadly, United had needed to beat the Welsh side in order to stay up. The point was enough for Cardiff to maintain their Division Two status at our expense.

He was released by Carlisle in the summer of 1977, aged 33, and spent a year with Queen of the South. Famously, he also purchased a milk round in Carlisle and became one of the best known milk men on the beat. Brief coaching spells at Brunton Park were punctuated with brief management spells at Workington and Penrith, before he joined John Gorman at Swindon as a scout/coach in 1991. The pair made a bid to become joint managers of United but were beaten off by Mick Wadsworth in 1993, and Les O'Neill can still be found scouting for various clubs to this day.

Les was a popular and hard working midfield dynamo who was an integral part of the exciting and succesful period of the early 1970's. His ability to both dig in, and then ghost past opponents, was at times frightening. He won a large band of followers during his time here and was, on his day, up there with the best of them. His injury troubles perhaps brought a premature end to his playing days and it almost certainly had a hand in the reason why United suffered relegation to Div 3. To have one of your most creative players sidelined is never a good sign. A very popular footballer, Les O'Neill has every right to be included as a United hero.