Born in Manchester, McNeil played local football in the Middleton Sunday leagues and Rochdale Saturday leagues until the age of 20. He then played a few games for Curzon Ashton Reserves before being spotted by the Altrincham Reserve team manager, Bernard Taylor. After turning out good performances in the reserves, he then progressed on into the first team scoring a goal on his debut. He then came on as a substitute in the league cup final against Gainsborough, helping the team to come from behind to win the cup after extra time.