John Barrie MBE

Badminton player

12th December 1933

died 6th August 2017 aged 83)

1948 was a momentous year for a man (whose name has not come down in the annals of history) who had the misfortune to fall into the River Clyde at Hyndford near Lanark. A non swimmer, he would surely have drowned had it not been for the prompt intervention of a certain John Barrie, then aged 15, a Boys Brigade member and a strong swimmer.

It was John who jumped in and saved his life, and who was later awarded a certificate for his heroism.

A momentous year too for us, the Badminton community of Scotland , because 1948 was the year that the same 15 year old picked up a badminton racquet for the first time. Thus beginning , with wife Mary’s continuing approval, the longest love affair of his life.

He was fortunate in that his first coach was Alistair Russell who lived in nearby Carstairs. Alistair was not only Scottish No.1 but British No. 1, and is perhaps better remembered now as the father of 3 fine players Bruce, Keith and Stewart, and as the grandfather of rugby international Finn Russell.

It was Alistair who drilled into John the importance of physical fitness, which was to become the hallmark of his long playing career.

It was not long before John won the Scottish Junior under 21 title, and set off on his amazing capture of 23 Lanarkshire Championship restricted titles, 18 of which were consecutive.

International honours followed as a member of the Scotland Thomas Cup team on 3 successive occasions between 1957 and 1963.

He was National singles finalist no fewer than 5 times, losing out each time to the incomparable Robert McCoig MBE, Scotland’s greatest ever all round player. And it is a mark of the quality of both men that they became firm and lifelong friends.

I first played against John in the early 70’s . I was a junior internationalist. I had watched John play in the earlier rounds. He was well into his 30’s by then, small in stature, with not much of a smash and no backhand at all.

I reckoned he was easy meat.

In the event, outrun, outmanoeuvred and completely outfoxed , I was not the first nor the last, to be sent homewards to think again.

He never stopped playing , winning 6 World Master Titles and assorted Veteran’s tournaments all over the globe.

He even won an unlikely bronze medal playing with wife Mary in the World mixed doubles championships in Australia.

I have never seen Mary play, but I did see John at mixed doubles, and all I can say is that Mary must be some mixed player.

But all of these are merely scores and results, and with each passing year they recede further into the mists of time.

What left an indelible mark on me was how John , like many of his generation, played the game.

Amateur in the true sense of the word, a lover of the game;

Gracious in victory and defeat, fiercely competitive but scrupulously fair, winning was important to people like John, or Robert McCoig or , if I may embarrass him today, Mac Henderson, but it was never everything.

He played for the love of the game, for sportsmanship and for comradeship. And John and Mary’s many badminton friends from around the globe are testimony to their great gift for friendship.

His legacy endures in other areas.

A painter and decorator by trade, John was lightning fast and meticulous with a devoted clientele.

If you wanted John Barrie to decorate your house, you joined a waiting list.

Lanark elected him Lord Cornet in 1977 and he went out every year since on the Lanimer Border Ridings.

He was a ferocious fundraiser for badminton, with a contacts list of sponsors, including in particular his great and generous friend John Chapman of Chapman Butchers Motherwell. There was no more fearsome sight in Lanarkshire Badminton circles than John Barrie bearing raffle tickets. He raised tens of thousands for the sport.

John became President of the Scottish Badminton Union in 1995 and presided over the 1997 Scotstoun World Championships. And almost his very last words to me when I visited him in hospital , were that he would be at the Emirates for the 2017 World Championships.

And he never stopped coaching using his beloved Lanark YMCA as a base. He and fellow enthusiast Marissa Baird have a current roster of 80 children whom they coach regularly in Lanark.

I have lost count of the number of times John confided in me that he had discovered the next great Scottish Badminton champion. And if none of his pupils ever quite achieved that eminence, they had the incomparable experience of learning the life lessons of discipline, commitment and humility from one of the great masters.

His lifetime enthusiasm and dedication to the sport were officially recognised by the award of an MBE in 2014. This was but the guinea stamp, we knew all that already.

“Legend” is a word which is used far too lightly these days, but in John’s case, it is entirely appropriate

1948 truly, was a momentous year for the Badminton family.

John, we were lucky to have you.

John died after a long struggle with an asbestos related illness, which he bore with resilience and stoical good humour.

He is survived by wife Mary, his daughters Jill and Ruth, and his much loved grandchildren Hannah and Russell, and Hamish and Iona.

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Ronnie Conway, Chairperson, Badminton Scotland.