Willie MacDonald

Joiner and shinty administrator Born: June 29, 1932; Died: July 5, 2015. WILLIE MacDonald, who has died aged 83, served the game of shinty to an extraordinary degree locally and nationally and was a recipient of the highest awards for service to the game.

Having married into a legendary Ballachulish shinty family in the mid-1950s, it was inevitable that Willie “Can” MacDonald would become immersed in the game, although he was never, by his own admission, amongst the ablest of exponents of the caman.

One of a family of five, who was born and brought up in Ardgour opposite Fort William, young William went to the local primary school before moving on to the “old” Fort William Secondary School across Loch Eil.

While he played shinty at school, he never pursued an active playing career, with a motorbike accident in his younger days perhaps a contributory factor.

He began his working life as an apprentice joiner to Carly Campbell in Fort William and cycled the 11 miles from Conaglen to Treslaig, to catch a ferry to the Fort and fulfil his day’s work, repeating the journey in the evening.

It was in the mid-1950s that he met and married Margaret Lawrie, a niece of the legendary “Seedy” Lawrie of Ballachulish fame.

They made their home in Park Road and his lifetime of community service to the village began, serving for fully half a century on the Jubilee Parks Committee and in vir tually all the administrative positions of the shinty club as a committee member, secret ary, treasurer, president and honorary president.

He latterly looked after the new clubhouse facility.

He experienced all the highs and lows of the community’s great interest in shinty with the club folding in 1958, and its resurrection through his own and others’ efforts six years later.

By then he had taken up employment along with many others in the British Aluminium Company works in Kinlochleven where he stayed all his subsequent working life as a joiner and latterly estimator.

He was never a referee, although it is through this aspect of the game that he made his longest lasting impression.

He served on the ruling body’s disciplinary committee for 40 years and more and continued to be a referees’ assessor.

He guided younger officials and monitored those who knew better until his death.

Indeed, he was offering advice on the positioning of officials when corner hits were to be taken to a friend from Ballachulish f rom his hospital bed.

He also served on numerous man of the match selection panels at cup finals and was a member of the referees’ working group which chose officials for cup finals and major matches.

His lifetime achievement in shinty was recognised in 2011 when he was awarded the Marine Harvest Centenary Award, in the same way as Jack Asher of Glasgow, who died just a few days before him.

Mr MacDonald was probably never more proud as a shinty man than back when his son Willie Junior won the Camanachd Cup with a man-of -the-match performance winning him the Albert Smith medal in the early 1990s, albeit with local rivals Fort William.

An accomplished runner of the Ben Nevis race, Willie Jnr has a nephew, John, who has also distinguished himself in football and shinty, and wore the red and white of Ballachulish to great effect, as well as the Fort’s colours, where he too won the Camanachd Cup.

Mr MacDonald was immensely proud of both individuals.

Incidentally, the name “Willie Can” or “Old Can” has attached itself to Mr MacDonald.

In fact, the name “Can” was bestowed on Willie Jnr by his father as a consequence of the younger man’s penchant for using a tin can to practise his “keepy-uppy” skills with the caman when a ball was not available.

Mr MacDonald was a quiet man who died peacefully in the Belford Hospital after a relatively short illness.

Pre-deceased by Margaret some two years ago, he was a gentleman and a much respected figure and he will be sorely missed for his West Highland humour and sage-like advice, as well as his knowledge of the local area.

He was also a church elder in St Mundas, the local Church of Scotland, as well as session clerk.

He is survived by Willie Jnr and a daughter Mary, who have, between them, five grandchildren.