The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
Referee and Wimbledon umpire dies at 85
Bill MacDonald, who served as an umpire at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships and a referee with the Scottish Football Association, has died aged 85.
His son Derek said: “He will be sadly missed but he leaves us with fond memories.”
Born in Crieff in 1934, Mr MacDonald was the eldest of three children. He had a brother, Roderick, and a sister, Lily.
He married Jean Craig Brown in 1956 and they had three children, Brian, Carol and Derek.
After Jean’s death in 1983, aged 46, he married Mary Thatcher in 1985, whom he was with for 15 years. Mr MacDonald had a long association with the Darnhall Tennis Club from the 1960s.
He was instrumental in changing the club’s fortunes, helping create a new club house and three new tennis courts, after battling the local council to make that dream a reality.
Mr MacDonald was first a member then president of the club for many years and rose in the Scottish Lawn Tennis Association ranks.
This led to him rubbing shoulders with iconic players of that era, including John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors and Martina Navratilova.
His son Derek said: “Each time Wimbledon came round, our father would contact us to let us know which matches he was covering.”
He also saw Andy Murray’s potential in his junior days and believed in his ability to become one of the world’s top players.
Derek added: “Of course my father was so proud when Andy won his first grand slam, the US
Open, and was ecstatic when he won the first of his two Wimbledon championships.”
Mr MacDonald’s other sporting passion was football, for which he also officiated.
He refereed at the top level in Scotland and Europe and ran the line in a European Cup tie between Real Madrid and Ajax.
Mr MacDonald also played in goal for Stanley, Jeanfield Swifts and Perth Celtic.
He was a St Johnstone supporter and, for over 20 years, commentated on home games for Perth Hospital Radio. Derek said: “He leaves a legacy that, as a family, we are all so proud of.”