MacDonald Malcolm “Malky” Image 2 Brentford 1948

Description

South Uist, Hebrides born inside forward or right back who also played as a “utility” player at half back, Malcolm “Malky” Macdonald was raised in Glasgow and began his football career with Linwood St Conval’s  and St Roch’s, then St Anthony’s in 1931 from where he signed for Glasgow Celtic in March 1932, making his Scottish League debut at Partick Thistle the next month, scoring twice on his debut in a 2-0 victory, soon becoming a regular performer for The Bhoys. Although limited by injury that season, he won the Scottish League Championship with Celtic in 1936 and again won it in 1938, and he was part of the memorable capture of the Empire Exhibition Trophy the same year. In the summer of 1939, he made 8 appearances for the Scottish FA XI on its tour of Canada and the United States.

His career  was then interrupted by the Second World War, by when he had scored 37 goals in 149 matches for Celtic, during which he was a regular for six wartime seasons, also playing for The Scottish League in 1941 and being capped 3 times for Scotland in unofficial wartime internationals. In December 1945 he joined Kilmarnock after 58 goals in 388 matches in all competitions for Celtic, although he only played 8 matches for Killy during 1946-47 before a move to First Division club Brentford for a £1,500 fee in late October 1946, making his Football League debut that November against Bolton Wanderers, but where as an inside forward he couldn’t help them avoid relegation and played two further seasons at Griffin Park mainly at right back, scoring once in 93 matches for The Bees, and latterly he was player-coach.

MacDonald returned to Kilmarnock as player-manager scoring once in two further matches in 1950-51 before hanging up his boots and he remained as Kilmarnock manager until 1957. He became Brentford’s manager in May 1957 and led them to runners up in the Third Division (South) in his first season, and although they were relegated to Division Four in 1962 he immediately won the Fourth Division Championship in 1963 to return to the third tier, eventually leaving Brentford in January 1965. For his achievements with the Bees, MacDonald was later inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame. MacDonald briefly managed the Scotland team on a caretaker basis in late 1966 and presided over two 1966-67 Home Championship matches: a 1-1 draw with Wales and a 2-1 victory over Northern Ireland. MacDonald then scouted for Tottenham Hotspur from the late 1960’s until the mid 1970’s, working for his friend Bill Nicholson.