Football in England pays tribute to the 96 lives lost at Hillsborough on the 25-year anniversary

SPECIAL FEATURE: A tribute to the 96 fans who lost their lives in the Hillsborough disaster, which occurred 25 years ago to the day.

AT six minutes past three on April 15, 1989, the youngest member of Liverpool’s team, 20-year-old Steve Staunton, walked over to take a regulation throw-in near to his goal in the FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest. It is a moment frozen in time.

In the seconds it took for the Irishman to stride the final few yards to collect the ball, referee Ray Lewis brought play to a halt. The throw-in was never taken and the repercussions for Britain’s sporting landscape have lasted 25 years.

It is an indication of the chaos and confusion that ripped through Hillsborough that afternoon that most of the players did not know immediately why Liverpool fans were spilling on to the pitch from the Leppings Lane terrace.

But, as the team’s left-back, Staunton was closer than almost any of them to the horror unfolding in front of his eyes. As a witness, he could tell instantly that something was dreadfully wrong.

“I don’t want to be too graphic but I could see youngsters, children, being pressed against the barriers so hard they were changing colour,” says Staunton, his voice faltering as he remembers.

‘There was blood on the pitch and people screaming. There were supporters trying to throw other supporters over the fence to save them but some were being caught on the spikes.

“It was all happening just a few yards away but I felt so helpless, there was nothing I could do. I just stared — like a rabbit trapped in headlights.

News_Image_File: April 17, 1989, fans arrive to pay their respects.

“I was in shock but I remember Bruce Grobbelaar [Liverpool’s goalkeeper] and the linesman shouting at me, ‘You’ve got to get off the pitch’. I was still staring into space, not believing what I’d witnessed.”

When he finally got to the dressing room to wait with his teammates for more information, it became clear that the extent of the tragedy was still not known to everyone.

“Some of the players had been in the Forest half. They didn’t really know why the fans were on the pitch or how bad it was,” he said. “We were even told to keep stretching in case the referee sent us back out to finish the game.

“I kept quiet but I knew what I’d seen. I remember thinking to myself, ‘There’s no way we’re going back out there, people are dying.’ The manager, Kenny Dalglish, then left the room and seemed to be away for ages. When he didn’t come back quickly, it dawned on everyone that something very bad must be going on.

“When Kenny finally returned he was white - like a ghost. He knew something terrible had happened. He told us, ’Get in the shower, lads. We’re not playing football today.’”

News_Image_File: A banner from 2012 after Liverpool’s supporters were cleared of wrongdoing.

For the past 25 years Hillsborough has remained high on the news agenda. The call for ‘Justice for the 96’ — the number of people who were victims of the disaster — has echoed from the streets of Merseyside to Parliament, and a new inquest to determine what happened opened last week in Warrington.

The tragedy changed football, too. All-seater stadiums became compulsory and the Premier League was formed with new grounds and better facilities.

Staunton, 45, went on to enjoy a successful career with Liverpool, Aston Villa, Coventry City and Walsall, plus the Republic of Ireland, who he also served as manager. But he was so affected by what he witnessed at Hillsborough on that dreadful day that, until now, he has never felt able to talk at length about what happened.

The subject of Hillsborough remained off limits, even to close friends and family, as a traumatised Staunton blanked the horror out of his mind. To this day there are events connected with the tragedy that he cannot remember.

He explained: “The Liverpool players went to hospital to see the injured supporters on the Monday and Tuesday after the match.

News_Image_File: The 96 has become a part of Liverpool and football history.

“I was meant to be comforting the families but I could barely say a word. When the funerals started, the club made sure there was at least one player at each one. I think I went to one funeral — but I can’t remember it.

“Later, Steven Gerrard told me I’d been to the funeral of his 10-year-old cousin, Jon-Paul [the youngest victim]. I had to take his word for it.

“Kenny Dalglish realised I wasn’t coping with the situation. Quietly, he made sure I wasn’t asked to go to any more funerals. I wasn’t helping anyone by being there.

“After Hillsborough I became really withdrawn, I couldn’t or didn’t want to share anything. Visitors to my house would hear me burst into tears for no apparent reason.”

Nothing in his life had prepared Staunton for tragedy on that scale. Until then, it had been a dream existence for the Dundalk boy.

Snapped up by Liverpool at the age of 17, he was part of the first team within two years, alongside legends such as John Barnes, Ian Rush and John Aldridge.

While many of his colleagues were already multiple trophy winners, the FA Cup semi-final against Forest was Staunton’s first. It was meant to be an afternoon of great excitement. Afterwards, he says, it felt like the end of Liverpool Football Club.

“The first few days after Hillsborough, it felt possible that Liverpool Football Club would never play another match.

“We weren’t training, we weren’t talking or thinking about football. The grief consumed everything. We weren’t thinking about playing — it was the furthest thought from our minds.

“But, in time, the families said they wanted us to play again, to try to win trophies for the football club and the city. They said it is what the supporters at Hillsborough would have wanted.”

Three weeks after the tragedy, Liverpool and Nottingham Forest did replay their FA Cup semi-final, this time at Old Trafford. The emotion was overwhelming but for Staunton, getting back on to the pitch again with the families’ blessing gave him a purpose. He recalls the pressure the players felt under.

News_Image_File: Bobby Robson hands a boquet of 96 flowers to Ian Rush in 2012.

“Talk about having to win a game,” he said. ”I felt it more strongly against Forest than any other match before or since. But we did win and Steve McMahon told me it was the best game I’d ever played for Liverpool.

“Compliments were rare in that Liverpool side because standards were so high. I remember thinking, ’I must have done well for him to say something like that’.”

Liverpool ended the season beating Everton in the FA Cup final at Wembley and every trophy since, including this season’s Premier League, has been fought for with ‘The 96’ in mind.

News_Image_File: Steve Gerrard’s uncle, Ronnie Gilhooley, whose 10-year-old son Jon-Paul Gilhooley, died.

Staunton, who scouted for Sunderland last season and is currently involved in a television programme that will give the best young footballing prospect in Saudi Arabia the chance to come to England, plans to go to the 25th anniversary memorial service at Anfield on April 15. For Liverpool, the horror of Hillsborough will never be forgotten.

“It’s taken a long time to get anywhere near the truth,” said Staunton. ”For those of us who were there, it’s still not easy to talk about what happened that day.”

HOW FOOTBALL IS PAYING ITS RESPECTS

Liverpool Football Club will on Tuesday hold their annual memorial service for the 96 fans who lost their lives in the Hillsborough disaster, which occurred 25 years ago to the day.

Manager Brendan Rodgers will be joined by Everton boss Roberto Martinez in giving readings at the service, to be held at Liverpool’s iconic Anfield stadium.

They will be joined by directors, victims’ families, fans and players, including captain Steven Gerrard, whose 10-year-old cousin Jon-Paul Gilhooley was the disaster’s youngest victim.

The fans were crushed to death during Liverpool’s FA Cup semi-final with Nottingham Forest as too many fans were packed onto terracing behind the goal at the Sheffield stadium.

A new inquest into the disaster resumes on April 22 after the initial accidental death verdicts passed down in 1991 were quashed in the High Court.

Liverpool is currently on the brink of its first league title since 1990 after beating Manchester City on Sunday.

News_Rich_Media: The blockbuster, potentially title deciding, clash between Liverpool and Manchester City is the pick of the action in the Premier League on Sunday.