Malcolm Hutton - A Tribute
by Callum Gerrard
Scottish Table Tennis was shocked and saddened by the sudden death of Malcolm Hutton. Malky was a great character – an extremely popular player and a tremendous competitor.
The first time that I picked up a table tennis bat and went along to my local sports centre, looking for a club to play table tennis, Malky was there and he continued to be an ever present influence in my table tennis career from that day on.
Malky was a member of the Gibshill Table Tennis Club in Greenock in the 1970s and 1980s and thereafter a member of Greenock Table Tennis Club. He was a member of the Greenock Table Tennis team which won the Scottish National League in the early 1990s, a team which included the likes of Brian Wright, myself, Willie Wilson and Alan Mitchell.
In 2003, Malky played a starring role when Greenock Table Tennis Club won the West of Scotland League. The Greenock side required to win their last match 7-2. Malky in typical fashion played a blinder to win the last match in front of a home support at Larkfield Community Centre in Greenock.
Malky in fact spent much of his working life in the local community centres in Greenock and he loved that aspect of his work, meeting people and in a way giving something back to the community. He was a hugely popular character in the various community centres where he worked over the years.
Malky was a regular competitor in the Scottish Table Tennis tournament scene. Over the years, he played regularly in assessment tournaments and open tournaments throughout the country. More recently, he became heavily involved with the Scottish Veterans’ Table Tennis Association, playing for Scotland at veterans’ level in the annual Six Nations tournaments.
His finest performance was probably in the Six Nations Veterans’ event held in the Isle of Man. Malky produced several blistering performances to beat the top English players and was unlucky to be beaten in the individual event in the semi-final of the men’s singles. After his heroics, the Scottish Veterans’ website gave Malky the title “the best left hander in Greenock” and he loved to wind me up about that.Of course, there was much more to Malky than just playing table tennis. He was a dedicated family man, who loved to spend time with his wife, Margaret, his children and of course he doted on his grandchildren.
In view of his lifelong connection with Greenock, it is perhaps not a great surprise that he was an avid Greenock Morton fan.
The various tributes from the Scottish Veterans’ players on their website sum up Malky the man. It was fitting that his funeral was so well attended, with many table tennis players travelling some distance to come and pay their respects.
It is with great sadness that I write this, knowing that I will not again spend time with Malky. On our many car journeys to tournaments and league matches over the years, Malky often said to me that he wondered how many miles we had travelled to play table tennis in all that time. I could not begin to guess.
Malky, thanks for the memories.