Links United A.F.C.
Links United Amateur Football Club are a football club from Edinburgh in Scotland. Formed in 1955, they started life playing at Leith Links in the local Edinburgh Amateur Leagues. Success was not plentiful in the early years, although by 1967 they had managed to win promotion to the top division in their local league.
From the late 1960s onwards though the club grew in stature, winning many trophies. The pinnacle of their achievements was in 1977 when they reached the final of the Scottish Amateur Cup, although they were edged out in a 4–3 defeat to Morriston YMCA. In 1978 they switched from the Edinburgh League to the Lothian Amateur League, and continued with much success.
In 1995 they switched league competitions again, moving to the Caledonian Amateur Football League. They continue to compete in that competition, playing their home games at the Civil Service Sports Ground in Marine Drive in Edinburgh, home of East of Scotland Football League club Civil Service Strollers.
In 2009/10 season Links United won the Caledonian cup at the Livingston stadium and this sparked big changes. The management team and many players moved on and Links also moved back, to LEAFA, back to where they started.
For the 2010-11 season, the club were under the management of Colin Campbell and Gavin Thomson, with Steven Osbourne having moved on to Edinburgh United in the junior ranks, with the club having rejoined the main amateur association in the East of Scotland for the first time in many years.
A year on With Gavin and Colin having moved into a behind the scenes roles and making sure the club keeps going, they now have appointed 2 new managers. Gary McCardle and David Hughes took over at the beginning of the 2011/12 season and it was a good year,the team now play their home games at Forresters High School on the much sought-after 5g pitch. Links finished 2nd in the league and gained promotion to Lothian West, they also won the Dunedin cup and were runners up in the Anderson Cup to team of the season Mayfield + Easthouses.
Season 2012/13 will be a challenge, but the plan is for another promotion and hopefully some more silverware.
Notable former player
- Allan McManus
- Stuart Fenwick
- Laurie Ellis
- Jamie Smart