Hillsborough memorial

[dylanisabaddog 6,146]

Am I still bitter about missing out on Europe so many times or does it strike anyone else as a bit odd that Liverpool never has a minute silence for the 13 people their fans murdered at Heysel? 

[TIL 1010 5,246]

39 not 13.

[Thirsty Lizard 3,215]

"Murdered" is a bit OTT Dylan. Murdering someone means deliberately trying to kill them and there is no evidence that that is what the Liverpool fans were trying to do. 

I don't know whether Liverpool have had a minute's silence for the Heysel victims, but the club has definitely commemorated the disaster and the victims in a number of ways. 

https://www.liverpoolecho.co.uk/news/liverpool-news/heysel-1985-liverpool-fc-team-9345510

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-1281153/Liverpool-honour-Heysel-victims-permanent-Anfield-memorial.html

[Alex Moss 2,167]

Crazy to think we qualified for European competition no less than 3 times during the subsequent 5 year ban.

What might have been, eh?

[K Lo 246]

I was rather hoping that this post was going to be about that horrifically sobering day 30 years ago that a good few of us on here, I'm sure, witnessed unfolding whilst at Villa Park.

I was 16 back then, with my friend and our respective fathers. No mobile phones or anything like that back then, just a few around us in the Holte End with pocket radios and that big display screen in the opposite corner of Villa Park that merely stated "Match delayed at Hillsborough".

I didn't think much of it at the time. Just thought they'd maybe delayed kick off to allow the crowds to get in. It was only later into the first half that those around us with pocket radios were telling us that people had died. I'm not sure how far it was into the match but from then on, few of us were watching the Norwich match and were eager to learn more about what horror was unfolding at Sheffield.

Even then, when I was 15, I vividly remember thinking "This is another football disaster, happening right now, then will never be forgotten in my life time". That thought alone was very chilling and here I am, aged 46 seeing that it's still in the news and many families' lives were utterly destroyed.

If any people wish to level blame at the Liverpool fans, then just have a search for the 1981 FA Cup Semi Final at Hillsborough for Spurs Vs Wolves. It was virtually the same scene then, with fans climbing over barriers and fences to avoid being crushed. 

It's the utter inability of the authorities to have acted on the warning signs that were there at least 8 years earlier that is so frustrating.

 

[Edited post to say I was 16 back then, not 15]

Edited April 16, 2019 by K Lo

[BarclayWazza 93]

8 hours ago, dylanisabaddog said:

Am I still bitter about missing out on Europe so many times or does it strike anyone else as a bit odd that Liverpool never has a minute silence for the 13 people their fans murdered at Heysel? 

One of my earliest footballing memories and with this was the culture of football at the time - pitch invasions, fighting in the terraces and warnings not to travel to games if you don't have a ticket. 

Whilst what happened to the 96 should never happen at a football ground what I find extremely odd that the various inquiries lay the blame at the feet of police and stadium staff who had to identify in a short space of time whether the issues were hooligan related or a genuine health and safety incident against the backdrop of the problems in football at the time and the pressure to keep a high profile game running. 

Regardless of any of this, I believe this doesnt happens at all if you don't have fans there without tickets. IMO any justice for the 96 should be sought from any fan who went to that game and tried to gain entry without a ticket as much as it should from any official.

Edited April 16, 2019 by BarclayWazza

[CanaryChris 147]

25 minutes ago, BarclayWazza said:

One of my earliest footballing memories and with this was the culture of football at the time - pitch invasions, fighting in the terraces and warnings not to travel to games if you don't have a ticket. 

Whilst what happened to the 96 should never happen at a football ground what I find extremely odd that the various inquiries lay the blame at the feet of police and stadium staff who had to identify in a short space of time whether the issues were hooligan related or a genuine health and safety incident against the backdrop of the problems in football at the time and the pressure to keep a high profile game running. 

Regardless of any of this, I believe this doesnt happens at all if you don't have fans there without tickets. IMO any justice for the 96 should be sought from any fan who went to that game and tried to gain entry without a ticket as much as it should from any official.

I am sorry but this is not true. There were numerous communication failures across the ground that contributed to this. There is also the TV network's pressure on stadium authorities to keep to the kick off schedule for the purposes of broadcasting.

There were traffic delays for supporters to get into the ground. There was a lack of acknowledgement from stadium organisers, security (including the police) regarding the delays of supporters and rush and pressure to gain entry. No one was monitoring (at least sufficiently) movement and control of the crowd. Someone should have taken control of the situation, knowing that crowds were pouring in without control so that security monitoring the ground weren't adding to the issues by trying to beat people back who were being crushed against the fence. I think the number of people without a ticket pales in comparison to these shortcomings of what should have been in place, with sensible crowd control and management. The kick-off should have also been delayed.

It was a horrible day. I was only 10 when it happened, the same age as poor John-Paul Gilhooley. May this never, ever happen again in any sport.

Edited April 16, 2019 by CanaryChris

[dylanisabaddog 6,146]

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-merseyside-32898612

Contrary to an earlier post, it seems that Liverpool have just air brushed this awful event out of their history. 

Anyone on this forum who has visited Annfield and seen Norwich win will know that they lose their famous 'sense of humour' when they lose. What happened to the Manchester City players there last year was disgraceful and should have led to another ban. 

One place I definitely won't be going next season 

[Herman 11,136]

I think it is important that we remember the people that died at Hillsborough, ordinary football fans like you and I, and the consequent cover up, so that it can never happen again. 

The tragedy at Heysel should also be remembered, for exactly the same reason. You can do both. 

[K Lo 246]

17 hours ago, Herman said:

I think it is important that we remember the people that died at Hillsborough, ordinary football fans like you and I, and the consequent cover up, so that it can never happen again. 

The tragedy at Heysel should also be remembered, for exactly the same reason. You can do both. 

I agree. This was the first time, when I was 16/17, that I realise that the authorities can be corrupt. What the families of those that died that day went through must be beyond torture. To lose a close loved one is one tragedy to contend with but to then be told that it was their fault when you knew it wasn't was mental torture.

[Herman 11,136]

After this and the debacle of the Iraq war, where I fell for the authorities lies, it made me far more cynical and it should have done for the general populace too.