Been busy moving house – back to blogging and where to start? Last time it was lamenting the woes of young Wayne and other villains. Honestly, there is a long list of players one could comment on! Good guys? Well, Michael Owen didn’t make the list but he is good egg, Scott Parker too. Now, as for meanies I could have dipped back into time and mentioned half the Leeds team of the 70’s or Argentinian teams of the past. Zinedine Zidane? That’s an epic.
March 24th 2012 Update:
With another anniversary approaching, government papers have been leaked to the BBC - it shows how Merseyside Police blamed 'drunken Liverpool fans' for the disaster. Below are some links to BBC webpages that give a little more detail. Just click to pull them up:
1) BBC reports the 1989 papers have been leaked
2) Reaction from a victim's mother
James Aspinall - 18 when he died at Hillsborough. His mother, Margaret, is the Chair of the Hillsborough Family Support Group (HFSG). You can visit their webpage, find out more and see how you can help - just click on the logo - left.
3) Subsequent and ongoing government inquiry into the leak itself
Sept 25th 2012 Update:
The release of secret government papers finally brought the truth to the public and those who had been battling for justice for the 96 who died at Hillsborough.
Prime Minister Cameron Apologizes...
Going through personal items as you move house is a really great experience. You get to cleanse possessions yet remind yourself of so many great memories. I have so many West Ham shirts it is ridiculous – quite a few England too but always worn with disappointment. I found the claret and blue flag I waved as I sat in the Arsenal end of the old Wembley in 1980. I remember little from that day, just riding on the tube to Wembley Park, the excitement, Brooking’s goal (13th minute and my lucky number) and simply the enormity of the event. I even dug out the 2nd Rayleigh cub scout outfit I wore as a cover to get picked for the cub soccer team. Now that takes me back to misty cold mornings and collared shirts smelling Persil clean. I sit have those boots I polished so often the toes turned purple. My mum pulled them out of the bargain bucket from a shoe store called Bata. Apparently that company has sold 14 billion pairs of shoes world wide – 25% of them to Imelda Marcos. I have no idea how much they cost back then, maybe $5? My mum would remember and my Dad probably still has the purchase written in pencil in the accounts he kept – we ran a tight and efficient ship. I now own a personalized pair of Adidas Predators worth $300. How things change…
Sorry, rambling a bit here! In looking through the newspaper cuttings my dad kept about West Ham I found some great pics and stories. I want to save them for a blog coming soon. I need to read and pull them together – but I can say it includes:
West Ham team photo with Moore, Hurst, Best, Heffer and Greaves.
Picture of the man with the planet’s biggest chin – Jimmy Hill.
A story from around 1970 entitled ‘Soccer will succeed in the States’.
But instead, April 15th 1989. Sheffield.
West Ham team photo with Moore, Hurst, Best, Heffer and Greaves.
Picture of the man with the planet’s biggest chin – Jimmy Hill.
A story from around 1970 entitled ‘Soccer will succeed in the States’.
But instead, April 15th 1989. Sheffield.
A friend shared a story with me about the 1989 Hillsborough Disaster. For many English football fans it was a ‘JFK’ moment – where were you at the time. It was a semi-final cup match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest. In those days the semi finals were played at a select few grounds around the country that could cope with the crowds. The investigation has never been made public up to now and many has been pushing hard for this to released. It was a turning point in football ground safety. The Hillsborough Stadium Disaster Inquiry Report, also known as the Taylor Report changed stadia for ever. 96 people died, 94 at the ground itself. The Police failed to open the gates that released onto the pitch – these were the days following many years of crowd violence and one solution was fences around the terraces. Many thought the reason for the deaths were fans arriving late and crushing those already there. Many families still lack the truth about this horrific and terrible event.
The most significant outcome of the Taylor Report was the requirement for all British Stadia to be all-seated. Other points introduced control of the sale of alcohol, turnstiles, ticketed seating and safety revisions. That being said, in 1989 fans were crammed into a space impossibly too small for the number of people present.
The incredible fact is this entire event was broadcast live on TV.
The ‘terraces’ were always a special place to watch soccer. At Upton Park my dad remembers how the men would pass the boys over their heads as the ground filled up. The boys were sat on the pitch side of the low wall around the ground. When you stood at West Ham in the old stand you were lower that pitch level and kids would stand on milk crates to see over the wall. The only way you avoided people being crushed were the placement of bars in certain spots. This was an attempt to contain the crowd as they surge forward when a goal is scored. That was part of the excitement - everyone getting squashed while cheering.
The story is really worth listening to. Football is the beautiful game but as Bill Shankly said "Some people believe football is a matter of life and death, I am very disappointed with that attitude. I can assure you it is much, much more important than that."
March 24th 2012 Update:
With another anniversary approaching, government papers have been leaked to the BBC - it shows how Merseyside Police blamed 'drunken Liverpool fans' for the disaster. Below are some links to BBC webpages that give a little more detail. Just click to pull them up:
1) BBC reports the 1989 papers have been leaked
2) Reaction from a victim's mother
James Aspinall - 18 when he died at Hillsborough. His mother, Margaret, is the Chair of the Hillsborough Family Support Group (HFSG). You can visit their webpage, find out more and see how you can help - just click on the logo - left.
3) Subsequent and ongoing government inquiry into the leak itself
Sept 25th 2012 Update:
The release of secret government papers finally brought the truth to the public and those who had been battling for justice for the 96 who died at Hillsborough.
Prime Minister Cameron Apologizes...
Bishop James Jones of Liverpool, who led the panel, said the
documents offered clear evidence of failures by British authorities. He
said they showed authorities' extensive attempts to shift blame for the
tragedy onto fans and some proof that a number of Liverpool fans were
denied medical treatment that could have saved their lives
"The tragedy should never have happened," Jones said. "There were
clear operational failures in response to the disaster and in its
aftermath there were strenuous attempts to deflect the blame onto the
fans."
The tribute held at the recent Liverpool v Man Utd game also raised some important issues re supporters treatment of each other. A little too much emphasis was placed on the 'handshake' between Evra and Suarez, nevertheless, efforts by both clubs to do the 96 justice were achieved.
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