these things remind me of the good things about football....when people put rivalries aside....its true we are all the same really arent we. 96 RIP
I never for one moment believed any of that **** that the Sun printed. I've never trusted it since the '84 miners strike when I witnessed police brutality first hand with my own eyes and no doubt the police, government & certain tabloid press collaborated on that as well. Having said that, organisations I trusted such as the BBC & ITN were reporting that Liverpool fans were partially responsible for turning up drunk & ticketless en mass. Last night at work I read the main points of the report & now that the fans have been vindicated, I feel ashamed that for so long I have allowed what I thought were trustworthy news channels to cloud my judgement & pull the wool over my eyes. We play each other on Saturday. We will stand shoulder to shoulder with you in solidarity. Now you have finally got the truth, I hope you get justice as well. Let the bastards fall on their swords. The fact that it almost happened at the same ground, in the same end THREE times before it did & was completely ignored stunned me. Stay strong, YNWA.
I was at Highbury that day and reports filtering through to the ground from Sheffield were that a few people had been killed due to hooliganism, by HT it was clear that something really serious had happened and the numbers of dead just kept rising. I'll never forget getting home and seeing my poor mum who had been watching it all on TV and worrying about me, even though I was in North London. The scenes on the TV that day will never leave me. It's taken twenty three years for the truth to finally come out, hopefully now the process of real justice for the ninety six can begin. Although this tragedy affected Liverpool the most, it was shared by all football fans. Anyone who stood on the terraces in the seventies and eighties would know how fans were treated by police and the authorities. Herded like cattle and all treated like hooligans. Hillsbrough was a tragedy waiting to happen, and it seems now that the authorities knew this. So for the brave and dignified fight from the families who have worked endlessly to bring the real truth to light, all football fans thank you. From the Gooner family - YNWA
I remember watching the incident as the game began and was and always will be grateful that my Liverpool supporting fan was helped out of the trap by Bruce Grobbelaar. It was evident even before the ref stopped the game that there was a problem and Bruce had left the pitch to try to help fans escape. My son was one of the lucky ones as Bruce was there and he was pulled out. It has taken a long time but now finally the names of those fans and the reason for their deaths can be told with full honesty. My son was never the same after that day and I hope that this release of the truth will help him and many in his position to finally come to terms with the horror seen that day. The name of your club has been tarnished ever since that day and all to save the face of the police. Now finally the truth will remove that stain. The idea of a minutes silence is a great one and one which every club in the land should honour.
Wasn't sure which thread to post this on but after having a look this seems the best place. This is kind of an apology/explanation on my part really so here goes. When Hillsborough happened I was a teenage match going lad and knew the ground, having watched United there frequently in the years before, and Liverpool fans only too well. The relationship between us and you in the 80's was savoury to say the least, the general attitude of the 80's fan was bad and the attitude of the police was worse. The stadiums were ****. I had myself gone to Anfield on a Wednesday night for a Milk Cup game not long prior and been punched freely by the police after getting off the bus from the station. I'd been set upon by a friendly bunch of scouse lads one Easter sunday at Southport fair, the day before we played you at OT. Heysel was also fresh in everyone minds as, relatively, it had only just recently happend. The reason I say all this is that it was on this basis very easy to listen to the police give why they thought it had happend and believe it. It's not like I hadn't seen United fans or whoever arrive late at games pissed, even without tickets, so it was easy to accept that this had caused the incident. That 'Pool fans had forced their way in. I don't and have never read The Sun so I have always taken that with a pinch of salt, having watched the footage live I never believed that Liverpool fans could have been robbing their mates etc. I did though go along with them being a contributing factor to the incident, not the aftermath. I now fully accept this is all bullshit. I had been long coming round to that idea anyway but the report confirmed it to me, anything I had long since believed might have happened is utter ****. No one, whoever that may be, goes to football to die. I'm sure a lot of us stood on terraces worried but we just took it as the norm. The 'songs' must stop and those accountable for the Hillsborough tragedy must be brought to book and prosecuted, including those in the Thatcher government. Including her. Peace.
Thank you Rufflad. I believe the vast majority of fans, including united fans, now see what really happened before, during and after this terrible tragedy. I thank you for your honesty and openness, and know that many supporters, especially united supporters, believed the bile being circulated because it was everywhere. I had a ticket for the match but couldn't go as I had proper flu. Thank you to all the fans and their words of support, particularly for the families. This is important for the whole country - not just Liverpool. Justice for the 96. YNWA.
I had a chance of going - tickets were available via our local club rep in Bristol, but I was keen to get back early on the Saturday as I had the hots for a certain young lady and wanted to make an early start. I couldn't believe what I was hearing on my Sony Walkman as I stood watching Bristol Rovers v Brentford. A lot of my mates asked if it was all kicking off again - Heysel was still fresh in the memory (I was there for that one) and from what the BBC were reporting, the initial guesses were that it was crowd "trouble". It was only later that the full, awful truth began to emerge. My emotions have run the gauntlet this last 24 hours, from sadness, sorrow, relief, pride, but now a certain anger has set in - anger that so many of those that died could have been saved if the authorities had just done their job properly, rather than trying to cover their own asses. We have exoneration. Now we need justice.
I hold my hands up and say that I am one of those who believed so many of the reports at the time, for that I apologise. It was only as time passed by that I realised something wasn't quite right and I applaud the strength and determination of those families and Liverpool supporters who have finally managed to open the truth up to the world. Just a shame that it took 23 years before the world would listen, I hope all those responsible for putting those families through the hell they have been through are prosecuted accordingly.
Agreed. I was at Heysel as well. Whilst completely different, people fail to realise how vile their fans were and what sort of provocation there was. The place was a death trap as well. Anyway, that's not what we're discussing.
I can vouch for that, as a United fan myself all of my United supporting mates and workmaetes all feel the same way I do about this. Why it took 23 years for the truth to come out is shocking in itself. Some of the details that have come out are even more shoking. I never once believed that the disaster was caused by the Liverpool fans though it's easy to to have seen why some people may have been led to believe that they may have contributed. But One thing is sure now, those poor people who lost thier lives can now be called innocent victims as they should have been in the first place. A mistake made that costs lives is terrible, a mistake made that costs lives and is covered in the way this was is damn near unforgivable. I can't help but feel for those who have lost thier friends and relatives, but at least they can be propoerly viewed as blameless for the first time.
Thanks Dave, We lost 96 brothers and sisters and never gave up the fight for them or their families and its posts like yours and Ruff's that show the fight was worthwile.
Thanks Dave. Sadly there will always be a minority (at both our clubs) who will spout bile about each other. Even on the day when the report's findings were made public, I walked into my local after work and there was a united 'supporter' in there vocally propounding the view that there were forged tickets being used which caused the tragedy. Impossible to comprehend.
Unfortunately that's true, but I never let the small minority of idiots whatver side of the fence they sit on tarnish the many. Fans sharing banter and having a dig is one thing, but no one should ever consider a tradgey as an opportunity to banter or have a dig. Some still do, but those people are best ignored.
As a Sunderland fan I can only echo the words everyone is saying on this board, absolutely heartbreaking for the families to have waited 23 years for the truth to finally come out. The people we're supposed to trust the most have lied through their back teeth to cover their own arses, no matter how much hurt they've caused. South Yorkshire Police, hang your heads in shame and I hope they get sued to the rafters.
As a football fan first and foremost, its hugely gratifying to read posts from all corners of the football family tree come together on this one. I'm looking forward to continuing that on Saturday prior to kick off and then hopefully doing the memory of those fans some real justice with a great football match afterwards. Surely the best and most fitting way to celebrate their memories and this victory for ALL football fans.
