Jimmy Calderwood was like a dad to me at Aberdeen – he even gave me advice on the morning of my wedding
From teenage defender through to his own debut season in the dugout, Zander Diamond hails Jimmy Calderwood as his ‘father figure’ in football.
The former Aberdeen defender describes Calderwood’s death at 69 as an enormous loss to the Scottish game. Calderwood was the centre-back’s manager for five seasons at Aberdeen from 2004 to 2009. Diamond credits the ex-Dons, Dunfermline, Kilmarnock and Ross County gaffer for moulding his career for over two decades.
He was a promising teen when Calderwood arrived at Pittodrie in 2004. Now boss at Broomhill in the Lowland League, Diamond says he remains influenced and inspired by Calderwood to this day. So fond was Diamond of his old boss, he kept in regular contact with Calderwood’s partner Yvonne Buchanan throughout his health struggles. Calderwood went public on his Alzheimer’s diagnosis in 2017. Diamond last visited his great friend only a few months ago.
The 39-year-old said: “I’m deeply saddened by Jimmy’s passing. I was very close to Jimmy. He was a true gentleman and a father figure to me from when he first came to Aberdeen. Football has lost a massive character in Jimmy in more ways than one.
“He’d been battling illness for a long time but, being the fighter he is, he hung on. It’s a terrible disease. Prior to that catching up with him, he clearly wanted to enjoy his life to the maximum.
“He will be remembered fondly by myself and, I’m sure, by everyone from Aberdeen Football Club at that time. When he came into the football club, he warmed to me and I warmed to him.
“He shaped my career. Even now, being a manager, he shaped what I expect from my team. It was a five-year relationship that prolonged and it’s very sad to learn that the illness has caught up with him.”
Calderwood arrived from Dunfermline in 2004 after Dons finished second bottom of the league. He took them to fourth place on three occasions, sixth in 2005/06 and third spot the following season. That led to the highlight of Diamond and Calderwood’s alliance – a run to the last 32 of the UEFA Cup.
Calderwood ranked a heroic 1-1 draw away to Dnipro as a career highlight as Aberdeen qualified for the group stages. They lost to Atletico Madrid and Panathinaikos but a Diamond goal earned a 1-1 draw with Lokomotiv Moscow. And a 4-0 thumping of Copenhagen on closing night booked them a knockout tie against Bayern Munich.
Calderwood schemed a 2-2 draw against the Bundesliga giants in the first leg at home before succumbing to a 5-1 loss a week later. Diamond recalls: “He’s mentioned that night in Dnipro as his best night ever.
“Then, in the group campaign, he gave the fans a bit of pride back in their football club. Because let’s remember when he came in, everyone knows it was on a downer and he raised the standards.
“There was a great warmth about him. He was a great man who managed to unite the fans, the players, the club. I don’t think you can put a price on that. For him to get Aberdeen going the way he did for those five years was a credit to him.
“He was a true leader and a true inspiration to me. We bonded as he was such a straight-talker. He wouldn’t mess about, never minced words. He was very honest in his approach to the media, the players. He got Dunfermline to the higher end of the top flight and a Scottish Cup Final, then moved to Aberdeen and we were barely ever outside the top five. The right end of the table all the time.
“Every player of that era will admit the biggest grievance was that we never got Jimmy to a Cup final. Yes, we had Europe but we let him down in that respect. He was a person you always played for. If he said ‘run’, you’d say, ‘how quick would you like me to go, gaffer?’. I really missed him after he left Aberdeen. When he left there was a big hole. I do miss him now.”
Diamond will never forget how Calderwood threw caution to the wind in wild fashion in the final game of his first season. The defender was left as one of just two playing at the back as Dons chased goals and European qualification. They needed a six-goal swing on the day more commonly known at Helicopter Sunday.
Calderwood’s team did manage to beat Hearts 2-0 but it wasn’t enough as Hibs lost only 1-0 at home to Rangers. Diamond said: “We played a 2-4-4! We had to go for it. I was a centre back and he said if everyone did their jobs, there was nothing to worry about.
“That was the straight-talking way of things. That was all done pre-season, we went to Holland and he put some formations up. No one had EVER seen a 2-4-4. But we did win that game. Winning 2-0 effectively wasn’t enough. Tactically, he was great. But he also got the best out of every single individual for a long time.
“It helped that he knew everyone’s family, kids, wife, girlfriend, mum and dad. That’s credit to him. He’s the best manager I played under and I had a good few. I was very close with Jimmy. He was at my wedding in 2015 to Nadine. Even on the morning of my wedding, he gave me some advice! That was very thoughtful of him.”
