Number six in our countdown brings us to a striker whose Lincoln City record is as devastating as it is efficient, a centre forward whose goals arrived in clusters and whose spell at Sincil Bank remains one of the most productive the club has ever seen.
McNeil scored 53 goals from just 97 appearances for Lincoln City, a return that works out at 0.55 goals per game.
It is a strike rate that places him comfortably among the most ruthless finishers to have worn the red and white, achieved during a relatively short but hugely influential Imps spell in the early 1970s.
Dixie McNeil (0.55 goals per game)
Born Richard McNeil in Melton Mowbray in January 1947, Dixie’s route into senior football was anything but straightforward. He spent time on the books at Leicester City without making a first team appearance before making his Football League debut with Exeter City, where his scoring rate hinted at the natural finisher he would become.
A spell outside the league followed at Corby Town before Northampton Town recognised his potential, signing him in 1969. It was there that McNeil began to establish himself properly, scoring regularly in a side that included an FA Cup outing remembered chiefly for George Best’s six goals for Manchester United.
City moved for McNeil in January 1972, bringing him to Sincil Bank from Northampton Town at a time when goals were badly needed. What followed was immediate and emphatic, a debut goal againsty Brentford in a 4-1 win, another against Grimsby as we drew 2-2 and a third in as many games as Doncaster were beaten.
McNeil settled quickly, offering a blend of sharp movement, penalty box intelligence and unshakeable confidence in front of goal. Across the remainder of that season and the next, he became the focal point of City’s attack, twice finishing as the club’s leading scorer and quickly earning a reputation as one of the most dependable strikers in the division.
Headlines included a brace at Barrow as we won 3-2 with promotion still a possibility, and a run of ten in nine matches in 1973/74, with a hat-trick at Mansfield (we lost 4-3) and a brace against Chester.
The numbers underline just how effective he was in Lincoln colours. 53 goals in 97 outings is not the product of longevity, but of relentless consistency. McNeil did not require a volume of chances, and he rarely went through prolonged barren spells. His goals came at key moments, often turning tight games in City’s favour, and his presence alone altered how opponents approached matches at the Bank. Defenders knew that any lapse would be punished.
By the summer of 1974, McNeil’s form had inevitably attracted attention. His move to Hereford United for £15,000 ended his Lincoln spell, but not before he had firmly cemented his standing as one of the most clinical forwards the club had seen. While his later achievements elsewhere, including remarkable scoring feats and promotions, would elevate his wider reputation, it was at Lincoln City that his identity as a prolific Football League striker truly took shape.
McNeil’s time with the Imps was relatively brief, yet its impact has endured. A goals per game ratio of 0.55 ensures his place high in this countdown, and serves as a reminder that greatness at Sincil Bank is not always measured in years, but in goals delivered when they mattered most.
I’ve been waiting for this one to come up… Dixie McNeil my favourite Lincoln City striker during that period 👍