The Courier & Advertiser (Perth and Perthshire Edition)
Wife of ex-Pars footballer dealing with Alzheimer’s calls for hardship support
Urgent need to help sporting families in financial difficulty
The wife of a dementia-stricken former Dunfermline footballer has called for financial support to be introduced by sporting bodies to help alleviate hardship for families.
Jimmy MacLean, 82, started out at Ayr United and captained Dunfermline Athletic FC until an injury forced him into retirement aged 30.
He was friends with Celtic legend Billy McNeil and the pair both captained their teams during the 1965 Scottish Cup Final at Hampden, which Celtic won 3-2.
Jimmy was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2015 at the age of 78 and his wife, Mary, 58, said he is unaware he has the illness.
She is adamant her husband’s footballing career contributed to the disease and believes headers – which could be banned for under-12s by the Scottish Football Association – were particularly to blame.
Mary said: “I’ve always maintained that it was caused by his years heading the ball – without a shadow of a doubt.
“A lot of his footballing friends have died of dementia, like Billy McNeill.
“Jimmy knew Billy well, they played at the same time.
“In Jimmy’s case it’s been a steady decline – he doesn’t think he has got dementia, he thinks he’s OK.
“He isn’t on any medication and I think personally that has helped him.
“When I looked at all the side effects I felt it was better to leave him as he is.
“He doesn’t remember what he’s done five minutes ago but I took him to the football memories project at Ibrox and they were shown pictures and he knew who everyone was.
“As time goes on, obviously that’s going to get worse. In his general health he’s fine – it’s just all in his head. “We are just taking a day at a time.” The couple live together in sheltered housing in Glasgow’s West End.
Mary wrote to the Scottish Football Association (SFA) last year to ask if there was any funding available for former players affected by dementia but says she was told there was not.
The FA does not offer any help either but the Professional Football Association (PFA) has a benevolent fund which offers limited support.
Mary said: “In England they get support, it might be £100 a month.
“I wrote to them and got a letter back saying ‘we are really sorry to hear about your husband but there is no funding for ex-footballers’.”
Jimmy attends the Fred Paton day centre a few times a week, run by the charity Glasgow’s Golden Generation, but Mary is apprehensive about the financial burden they will face should he need to move into a care home.
She said: “A support network needs to be put in place for dementia carers.”