Willie MacFarlane (footballer)
Encyclopedia
Willie MacFarlane was a Scottish
football player and manager, most notable for playing for and managing Hibernian
.
for Hibernian
in the 1950s, when the club featured the forward line known as The Famous Five
. He was born in Leith and brought up in the same area (Hutcheson) as goalkeeper Tommy Younger
, with whom he played for Hutcheson Vale and the Army. Both players were then signed for Hibs by manager Hugh Shaw
. He was taken by Hibs on a tour of Brazil in 1953 to play in three games in the Maracana
stadium against Vasco da Gama, Botafogo
and Fluminense
. MacFarlane also played for Hibs in the first season of the European Cup, playing in five of the six matches possible. Hibs eventually lost to Stade Reims
in the semi-final, where MacFarlane was pitted against Raymond Kopa
.
Former teammate Tommy Preston
described MacFarlane as "resolute", "strong" and capable of striking a good free kick
.
MacFarlane played for Raith Rovers
and Morton
later in his playing career.
club Hawick Royal Albert
. He joined Stirling Albion
in March 1968, before taking a similar post at Hibernian in 1969. Chairman William Harrower appointed MacFarlane to replace Bob Shankly
, who had resigned. Despite suffering early exits in the two cup competitions, Hibs qualified for the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
by finishing third in the Scottish League. During that first season, MacFarlane's team set a club record for consecutive wins. Hibs beat Malmö
and Vitória de Guimarães to progress to the third round of the Fairs Cup, where they would lose to Bill Shankly
's Liverpool
side. That tie with Liverpool led to MacFarlane's departure from Hibs. Chairman Tom Hart, who had just bought the club from Harrower, overruled him on team selection and sacked MacFarlane prior to the match.
MacFarlane "oversaw the early stages of one of the finest ever Hibernian sides". Having signed Erich Schaedler
in his previous managerial post at Stirling Albion, MacFarlane made Schaedler his first signing as Hibs manager. He moved John Brownlie
from playing in central defence to an attacking full back role, an "inspirational" choice. Having sold Peter Marinello
to Arsenal
for a record transfer fee, MacFarlane then signed Falkirk
player Johnny Graham, who scored a hat-trick
in his first game. He also signed Arthur Duncan
, who went on to set the record for most league appearances for Hibs. Former player John Fraser
, who worked as a coach
for MacFarlane, described him as an "enthusiastic" manager, who established a good rapport with his players.
After leaving Hibs, MacFarlane had a spell as manager of Meadowbank Thistle
between 1978 and 1980. MacFarlane also ran a bookmaker
s business in Edinburgh and regularly attended matches at Easter Road. He was also a keen golf
player and karaoke
singer. MacFarlane died in hospital on the morning of 11 March 2010, after a "short illness".
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
football player and manager, most notable for playing for and managing Hibernian
Hibernian F.C.
Hibernian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Leith, in the north of Edinburgh. They are one of two Scottish Premier League clubs in the city, the other being their Edinburgh derby rivals, Hearts...
.
Early life and playing career
MacFarlane played as a full–backDefender (football)
Within the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to prevent the opposition from attacking....
for Hibernian
Hibernian F.C.
Hibernian Football Club are a Scottish professional football club based in Leith, in the north of Edinburgh. They are one of two Scottish Premier League clubs in the city, the other being their Edinburgh derby rivals, Hearts...
in the 1950s, when the club featured the forward line known as The Famous Five
The Famous Five (football)
The Famous Five is the collective term for Hibernian's forward line of Gordon Smith, Bobby Johnstone, Lawrie Reilly, Eddie Turnbull and Willie Ormond. The north stand at Easter Road was named in their honour when it was rebuilt in 1995...
. He was born in Leith and brought up in the same area (Hutcheson) as goalkeeper Tommy Younger
Tommy Younger
Thomas Younger was a Scottish professional footballer of the 1950s and 60s who played as a goalkeeper.- Club career :Born in Edinburgh, Scotland, Younger signed for his hometown club Hibernian in 1948...
, with whom he played for Hutcheson Vale and the Army. Both players were then signed for Hibs by manager Hugh Shaw
Hugh Shaw (footballer)
Hugh Shaw was a Scottish association football player and manager, most notably with Hibernian. He played for Hibs during the interwar period, making his debut during the 1918–19 season...
. He was taken by Hibs on a tour of Brazil in 1953 to play in three games in the Maracana
Maracanã
Maracanã may refer to:* The Red-shouldered Macaw, a bird known in Brazil as Maracanã* Maracanã , a neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil* Maracanã , a stadium located in Maracanã neighborhood...
stadium against Vasco da Gama, Botafogo
Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas
Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas , also known as Botafogo and familiarly as Estrela Solitária, is a Brazilian sports club based in Botafogo, neighborhood of Rio de Janeiro, best known for its football team. They play in the Campeonato Carioca, Rio de Janeiro's state league, and the Campeonato...
and Fluminense
Fluminense Football Club
Fluminense Football Club is a sports club based in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Founded in the beginning of the 20th century as a single-sport institution, Fluminense is today an umbrella organization for several teams in more than 16 different sport activities. The most popular endeavor of Fluminense,...
. MacFarlane also played for Hibs in the first season of the European Cup, playing in five of the six matches possible. Hibs eventually lost to Stade Reims
Stade Reims
Stade de Reims is a French association football club based in Reims. The club was formed in 1911 under the name Société Sportive du Parc Pommery and currently play in Ligue 2, the second level of French football having achieved promotion to the league following the 2009–10 season...
in the semi-final, where MacFarlane was pitted against Raymond Kopa
Raymond Kopa
Raymond Kopa , is a former French football offensive midfielder, integral to the French national team of the 1950s....
.
Former teammate Tommy Preston
Tommy Preston
Tommy Preston is a Scottish former footballer, who played for Hibernian and St. Mirren. Preston appeared for Hibernian in the 1958 Scottish Cup Final and made over 300 appearances for the club in all competitions. He also scored a goal in a famous victory for Hibs against FC Barcelona.- References :...
described MacFarlane as "resolute", "strong" and capable of striking a good free kick
Direct free kick
A direct free kick is a method of restarting play in a game of association football following a foul. Unlike an indirect free kick, a goal may be scored directly against the opposing side without the ball having first touched another player.-Award:...
.
MacFarlane played for Raith Rovers
Raith Rovers F.C.
Raith Rovers Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in Kirkcaldy, Fife. They are members of the Scottish Football League, currently playing in the First Division, having secured promotion from the Second Division as champions in 2009. Rovers have won one national trophy, the...
and Morton
Greenock Morton F.C.
Greenock Morton Football Club are a Scottish professional football club, who currently play in the Scottish Football League First Division. The club was founded as Morton Football Club in 1874, making it one of the oldest senior Scottish clubs....
later in his playing career.
Managerial career and later life
MacFarlane began his managerial career with East of Scotland LeagueEast of Scotland Football League
The East of Scotland Football League is a league of football teams from south-east Scotland formed in 1923. It is one of Scotland's three "senior" non-leagues which sit below the Scottish Football League , the other two being the Highland Football League and the South of Scotland Football League...
club Hawick Royal Albert
Hawick Royal Albert F.C.
Hawick Royal Albert F.C. are a Senior football club based in Hawick, currently playing in the East of Scotland Football League.Founded in 1947 following a breakaway from Hawick Railway F.C., a number of players in these early “Albert” days were from the local Denholm Village team and they initially...
. He joined Stirling Albion
Stirling Albion F.C.
Stirling Albion F.C. are a Scottish football club currently playing in the Scottish Second Division. The club are nicknamed The Binos . They play at Doubletree Dunblane Stadium in Stirling, on the outskirts of the city near the River Forth...
in March 1968, before taking a similar post at Hibernian in 1969. Chairman William Harrower appointed MacFarlane to replace Bob Shankly
Bob Shankly
Robert "Bob" Shankly was a professional football player and manager. from the village of Glenbuck in Ayrshire, Scotland....
, who had resigned. Despite suffering early exits in the two cup competitions, Hibs qualified for the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup
The Inter-Cities Fairs Cup was a European football competition played between 1955 and 1971. The competition was the idea of Swiss pools supremo Ernst Thommen, Ottorino Barassi from Italy, and the English Football Association general secretary Stanley Rous, all of whom later became senior officials...
by finishing third in the Scottish League. During that first season, MacFarlane's team set a club record for consecutive wins. Hibs beat Malmö
Malmö FF
Malmö Fotbollförening, also known simply as Malmö FF, are a Swedish professional football club based in Malmö. The club is affiliated with Skånes Fotbollförbund and play their home games at Swedbank Stadion. The club colours, reflected in their crest and kit, are sky blue and white...
and Vitória de Guimarães to progress to the third round of the Fairs Cup, where they would lose to Bill Shankly
Bill Shankly
William "Bill" Shankly, OBE was a Scottish football player and manager, most noted for managing Liverpool between 1959 and 1974. One of Britain's most successful and respected football managers, Shankly was also a fine player whose career was interrupted by the Second World War...
's Liverpool
Liverpool F.C.
Liverpool Football Club is an English Premier League football club based in Liverpool, Merseyside. Liverpool has won eighteen League titles, second most in English football, seven FA Cups and a record seven League Cups...
side. That tie with Liverpool led to MacFarlane's departure from Hibs. Chairman Tom Hart, who had just bought the club from Harrower, overruled him on team selection and sacked MacFarlane prior to the match.
MacFarlane "oversaw the early stages of one of the finest ever Hibernian sides". Having signed Erich Schaedler
Erich Schaedler
Erich Peter Schaedler was a Scottish professional footballer of German extraction, who played as a left back. Schaedler was the son of a German POW....
in his previous managerial post at Stirling Albion, MacFarlane made Schaedler his first signing as Hibs manager. He moved John Brownlie
John Brownlie
John Brownlie is a Scottish former football player who played for Pumpherston Juniors, Hibernian, Newcastle United, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool United, Berwick Rangers, Blyth Spartans and Scotland. He was a right back....
from playing in central defence to an attacking full back role, an "inspirational" choice. Having sold Peter Marinello
Peter Marinello
Peter Marinello is a Scottish former football player.Marinello started his career at Hibernian, and could play either as a forward or right winger. He was regarded as being talented enough there that he was dubbed "the next George Best" by the British press...
to Arsenal
Arsenal F.C.
Arsenal Football Club is a professional English Premier League football club based in North London. One of the most successful clubs in English football, it has won 13 First Division and Premier League titles and 10 FA Cups...
for a record transfer fee, MacFarlane then signed Falkirk
Falkirk F.C.
Falkirk Football Club is a Scottish professional football club based in Falkirk. It is one of two professional football teams from the town, the other being East Stirlingshire...
player Johnny Graham, who scored a hat-trick
Hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick in sport is the achievement of a positive feat three times during a game, or other achievements based on threes. The term was first used in 1858 in cricket to describe HH Stephenson's feat of taking three wickets in three balls. A collection was held for Stephenson, and he...
in his first game. He also signed Arthur Duncan
Arthur Duncan (footballer)
Arthur Duncan is a retired Scottish football player, who was capped six times by Scotland and currently holds the record for the most number of league appearances for Hibernian....
, who went on to set the record for most league appearances for Hibs. Former player John Fraser
John Fraser (footballer born 1936)
John Fraser is a retired Scottish association football player, who played primarily as an outside right for in the late 1950s and early 1960s. After a brief spell with , Fraser returned to Hibs as a coach, a position he held for 10 years under three different managers.Fraser signed for Hibs in...
, who worked as a coach
Coach (sport)
In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
for MacFarlane, described him as an "enthusiastic" manager, who established a good rapport with his players.
After leaving Hibs, MacFarlane had a spell as manager of Meadowbank Thistle
Livingston F.C.
Livingston Football Club is a Scottish association football club based in Livingston, West Lothian. The club currently plays in the Scottish Football League First Division.The club was founded in 1943 as Ferranti Thistle, a works team...
between 1978 and 1980. MacFarlane also ran a bookmaker
Bookmaker
A bookmaker, or bookie, is an organization or a person that takes bets on sporting and other events at agreed upon odds.- Range of events :...
s business in Edinburgh and regularly attended matches at Easter Road. He was also a keen golf
Golf
Golf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
player and karaoke
Karaoke
is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...
singer. MacFarlane died in hospital on the morning of 11 March 2010, after a "short illness".
External links
- Willie MacFarlane, Post War English & Scottish Football League A - Z Player's Database
- Obituary in The HeraldThe Herald (Glasgow)The Herald is a broadsheet newspaper published Monday to Saturday in Glasgow, and available throughout Scotland. As of August 2011 it had an audited circulation of 47,226, giving it a lead over Scotland's other 'quality' national daily, The Scotsman, published in Edinburgh.The 1889 to 1906 editions...
, 13 March 2010