Neill Roberts is a retired South Africa

soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

who spent six seasons in the

North American Soccer League The North American Soccer League may refer to: *North American Soccer League (1968–1984), a former Division I league *North American Soccer League (2011–2017) The North American Soccer League (NASL) was a professional men's soccer league b ...

and four in the Major Indoor Soccer League. Roberts spent seven years as a professional in South Africa. In 1979, Roberts signed during the season with the

Atlanta Chiefs The Atlanta Chiefs were an American professional soccer team based in Atlanta, Georgia. The team competed in the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) in 1967 and the North American Soccer League (NASL) from 1968 to 1973 and again from 19 ...

of the

and promptly scored fourteen goals in nineteen games. During the offseason, the

Tampa Bay Rowdies The Tampa Bay Rowdies are an American professional Association football, soccer team based in St. Petersburg, Florida. The club was founded in 2008 and first took the pitch in 2010. Since 2017, the Rowdies have been members of the USL Champions ...

purchased his contract from the Chiefs. However, his goal production dropped with the Rowdies. He played the 1980 and 1981 outdoor seasons with the Rowdies, scoring twelve goals in fifty-three games. Following the 1981-1982

indoor Indoor(s) may refer to: *the interior of a building *Indoor environment, in building science, traditionally includes the study of indoor thermal environment, indoor acoustic environment, indoor light environment, and indoor air quality *Built envi ...

season, the Rowdies sent him to the Edmonton Drillers. Roberts began the 1982 season in Edmonton before being sent to the

Toronto Blizzard Toronto Blizzard may refer to: *Toronto Blizzard (1971–1984), the original soccer club, a franchise of the North American Soccer League *Toronto Blizzard (1986–1993), the later club and franchise of the Canadian Soccer League *Toronto Azzurri B ...

in June. He was the league's 6th leading scorer in 1982 with 42 points in 12 games. Before the 1984 season, the Rowdies acquired Roberts. He was the 15th leading scorer in 1984 with 23 points in 23 games. He was the league's 24th all-time leading scorer with 156 points in 143 career games. At the end of the 1984 outdoor season, the Rowdies sold Robert's contract to the

Chicago Sting The Chicago Sting (1974–1988) was an American professional soccer team representing Chicago. The Sting played in the North American Soccer League from 1975 to 1984 and in the Major Indoor Soccer League in the 1982–83 season and again from 1 ...

as the Sting prepared to enter the Major Indoor Soccer League. The move to the Sting also saw Roberts move to the backline as Chicago coach

Willy Roy Willy or Willie is a masculine, male given name, often a diminutive form of William or Wilhelm, and occasionally a nickname. It may refer to: People Given name or nickname * Willie Aames (born 1960), American actor, television director, and scree ...

converted Roberts to a defender. On 1 March 1986, the Sting sold Roberts contract to the

Wichita Wings The Wichita Wings were a professional indoor soccer franchise based in Wichita, Kansas. The Wings were admitted to the Major Indoor Soccer League as an expansion team on August 21, 1979.

for $30,000. The Wings released him at the end of the season. In November 1987, Roberts signed as a free agent with the

Minnesota Strikers The Minnesota Strikers were an American soccer team that competed in the North American Soccer League (NASL) for the 1984 season and in the Major Indoor Soccer League from 1984 through 1988. The team was based in Minneapolis/St. Paul metropoli ...

. The Strikers released him in 1988. In 1990, he joined the newly established, independent amateur club, the

Minnesota Thunder Minnesota Thunder was an American professional soccer team based in Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1990, the team played in the USL First Division (USL-1), the second tier of the American Soccer Pyramid, until 2009. The team played its hom ...

.Sunny ''outlook – Thunder awaits soccer boom'' Star Tribune: Newspaper of the Twin Cities – Friday, 3 August 1990 Roberts currently coaches the U-11 (Mutiny) boys team of F.C. Tampa youth soccer organization in

Tampa, Florida Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and ...

References

External links

NASL/MISL stats
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Neill 1954 births Living people Sportspeople from Durban South African people of British descent American Soccer League (1933–1983) players Atlanta Chiefs players Chicago Sting (MISL) players Edmonton Drillers (1979–1982) players Eredivisie players Expatriate footballers in the Netherlands Expatriate soccer players in Canada Expatriate soccer players in the United States FC Amsterdam players Major Indoor Soccer League (1978–1992) players Minnesota Thunder players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) indoor players North American Soccer League (1968–1984) players Sacramento Gold (1976–1980) players South African expatriate soccer players South African expatriate sportspeople in Canada South African expatriate sportspeople in the Netherlands South African expatriate sportspeople in the United States South African soccer players Tampa Bay Rowdies (1975–1993) players Toronto Blizzard (1971–1984) players Wichita Wings (MISL) players White South African people Association football defenders Association football forwards