Richard Hawley

a sad, sad day that brings back many memories for me.

R.I.P

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http://www.reverbnation.com/davesleney

and me,i lived with amongst other folk.....a policeman in a shared northern counties flat on oxspring bank just under the five arches at the time,i was only a nipper looking back.......i heard it all happening just two hundred yards away and didn't know exactly what it was but knew something was very wrong,he was at the match,i won't mention his name it wouldn't be fair,he came back from it hours later in a total mess he had lost most of his uniform covering the bodies of children it messed him up severely for years,he left the force after that.....i haven't seen him for many years but he was a great fella and we became good friends he used to go to work with red wedge t-shirts under his uniform....a good man........we should remember this event and never forget.......so so sad..............and that such horror should ever happen at a football match it still upsets me to this day that so many lost their lives so needlessly.........and no one EVER took the blame,terrible

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now,then!

I was working that afternoon in a pub just up the road from the ground. At about 3.30 we had a call from the police telling us to lock the doors and not let anybody back in the pub as there had been an 'incident'. We had fans streming back up just wanting to use the phone to let people know they were ok....we ignored the police and let them in.

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http://www.reverbnation.com/davesleney

Thanks for posting, Dave.

It's been a very emotional day here in Liverpool. So many families were affected by the tragedy. Most of the victims were young men and women seemingly with their best years ahead of them.

I'm not too proud to say I've shed a few tears today thinking about what happened 20 years ago. As a journalist at the time I covered many of the heartbreaking stories and I've reported on the campaigning many times since.

The tragedy has produced a remarkable bond between many Merseyside communities and farther afield, such as Nottingham and Sheffield.

Despite time passing, the strength of feeling over the perceived injustice is growing. The police and the FA share the blame for 96 deaths, yet both parties shift and squirm, refusing to accept it.

South Yorkshire Police messed up with their planning and how they executed their plans on the day (not to mention the despicable cover-up), but the FA showed contempt for fans by holding a high profile fixture in a ground which had already proven itself unsafe.

Unfortunately, we live in a selfish society where decision-makers (usually highly-paid public servants) think first about how they can protect themselves if or when things go wrong, rather than focusing on getting the job done right and protecting those who need it.

I cannot help feeling that someone somewhere would have been forced to accept the blame had 96 racegoers been crushed to death at Royal Ascot due to negligence.

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Jean Oeufs Nouveaux pretentious? I think not.

Good article and lots of memories here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/stevewilson/ ... rough.html

I interviewed Brian Laws 10 years ago when he was Scunny manager (I did the Scunny fanzine). He was a Forest player that day. The interview was about other stuff - we looked like we were heading for the Play Off final - but I was due to publish an issue on the 10th anniversary of the Hillsborough tragedy, so I asked him one question about it as I'd wanted to put it on a separate page of its own as a tribute, just a quote from him... but it all came flooding out. Even then, 10 years after it, he was visibly shocked and shaken when he thought about it. I liked Lawsy anyway but my respect for him grew that day as he struggled to describe his take on events. I said "We'll move on to something else" but he wouldn't. He REALLY wanted to say his piece and do the 96 justice and pay them respect.
(edit) ... and how ironic that he should end up managing at Hillsborough.

As a family of Liverpool fans this day has brought back a lot of sad memories. It was a terrible tragedy. I am feeling very emotional today.

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