Long-serving north referee Billy Baxter will call time on his quarter of a century as an official at Hampden next week. The 55-year-old from Inverness will retire a week on Saturday after being an assistant referee for the Championship clash at the national stadium between Queen’s Park and Inverness Caledonian Thistle. Baxter, who came back from a knee operation nine years ago, has been a regular in the Breedon Highland League for the last 21 years. His final appointment in the division as a referee Memorable moments for ref Baxter At Highland League level, Baxter has officiated more than 400 games – including three North of
Scotland Cup finals, two GPH Builders Merchants Highland League Cup finals, a Qualifying Cup final and an Inverness Cup final. As an assistant referee, he has covered more than 250 matches in the SPFL, as well as being on the line for two Scottish Cup semi-finals and one League Cup semi-final. On the international stage, Baxter has served as an official for three European under-21 internationals, one women’s international, two Scotland v
England schoolboy internationals and three semi-professional home international fixtures. Reflecting on his decision to retire, he said: “I could have kept going. But I want to go out when I’m still seen as being up to the
Job and not totally past my sell-by date. After the match yesterday both & presented Referee Billy Baxter a gift for his retirement. Billy has been a match official for over 25 years and has decided it’s time to retire at the end of the season. We wish Billy all the very best in his retirement. — Keith
Football Club (@KeithFC) “I’ve been humbled by some of the gifts I’ve been given by clubs in recent weeks. “Brora v Wick is a good game to finish in the Highland League and then I’m doing Queen’s Park v Caley Thistle next week. “When I said I would be stopping the SFA asked me which ground I wanted to finish at and I’d forgotten all about it – then when I asked about what game would be my last, they said I’d be finishing at Hampden, which will be special. “I’ve done games at the national stadium in my 30s, 40s and 50s and I don’t imagine there’s many folk who can say that.” How it started Baxter played amateur football before his refereeing career began by chance in 1999. He added: “Some of my pals had arranged a friendly game and they had enough players and asked me to referee it. “That showed I wasn’t a particularly important player when they asked me to referee. “I did that game and it went OK, and after that I thought I’d do the referee course so I could referee amateur football in the summer and stay involved at that level – it’s just gone on from there. “I’ve always been a football fan and I’ve got some great memories. It’s great being part of the game. “The most memorable game I’ve been involved in was probably Aberdeen 4-4 Celtic (in February 2010). “Another that stands out was when Brora beat Hearts in the Scottish Cup (in March 2021) because it was such a big upset. “When I look back on my time as a referee, I think I’ve made a small amount of talent go a long way.” Baxter urges others to take up refereeing baton With referees in short supply across the country, Baxter is keen to encourage more people to give it a go. He said: “I would urge anyone thinking about doing the course to have a go. Football can take you in so many different directions and can present so many opportunities. “If you do well, there’s the potential to go to so many grounds in Scotland and even go to European level. “It keeps you fit, you make
Friends for life through football and refereeing and it’s a great way to be involved in the game.”