Some quotes from the Sun the days after the Hillsborough disaster

[Hij]

Hillsborough Disaster, 15 April 1989
FA Cup Semi-Final, Liverpool v Nottingham Forest

The Sun newspaper coverage - TRANSCRIPT

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Monday, April 17, 1989
20p
Saturday’s sale: 4,160,562
Thought: You don’t walk alone

THEY DIED SO YOUNG
Photo: close up picture of fans crushed and unconscious against the fence.
[NOTE – confirmed on Friday, April 21st that they were found alive]

This was the nightmare of Hillsborough. Young fans battle for breath as they are crushed in the soccer disaster that claimed 94 lives. Fencing designed to stop hooligans had killed the innocent.

16 PAGE SUN DISASTER SPECIAL STARTS ON PAGE 2

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Wednesday, April 19, 1989
20p
Yesterday’s sale: 4,410,811
Thought: Kop of shame

Logo: GATES OF HELL
THE TRUTH
Some fans picked pockets of victims

Some fans urinated on the brave cops

Some fans beat up PC giving life kiss


Picture: Superintendent Marshall
Under fire … Superintendent Marshall

DRUNKEN Liverpool fans viciously attacked rescue workers as they tried to revive victims of the Hillsborough soccer disaster, it was revealed last night.

Police officers, firemen and ambulance crew were punched, kicked and urinated upon by a hooligan element in the crowd.
Some thugs rifled the pockets of injured fans as they were stretched out unconscious on the pitch.
In one shameful episode, a gang of Liverpool fans noticed the blouse of a girl trampled to death in the crush had risen above her breasts.
STUNG
As a policeman struggled in vain to revive her, they jeered: “ Throw her up here and we will **** her.”
Sheffield officers – stung by criticism of themselves and their boss Superintendent Roger Marshall – hit back yesterday to reveal their side of the story.
As the death of a 14-year-old boy brought

By HARRY ARNOLD and JOHN ASKILL

the toll to 95, cops claimed their rescue effort was hampered by hooligans tanked up at a three-hour boozing session.
One furious policeman who witnessed the disaster on Saturday stormed: “To paint all the Liverpool fans lily-white is wrong.
“As we struggled in appalling conditions to save lives, fans standing further up the terrace were openly urinating on us and the bodies of the dead.
“And as policemen on the pitch tried to save
Continued on Page Two

THE TRAGIC TRUTH
Continued from Page One

the injured they were hampered by other Liverpool fans kicking and punching them.”
His story was confirmed by Police Federation rep Paul Middup, who revealed how several of his members broke down and wept as they told him what they had witnessed.
“I don’t doubt these stories are true,” he said. “I am sick of hearing of how good the crowd were.
“Some arrived tanked up and the situation faced by officers was simply terrifying.”
But Pc Middup stressed that only a small minority of the Liverpool fans behaved so badly
Most police officers refused to be named because of the impending full scale inquiry.
But a high ranking officer at the ground said: “They were just acting like animals. My men faced a double hell – the disaster and the fury of the fans who attacked us.”
South Yorkshire ambulance chief Don Page revealed one of his men was so badly assaulted by drunken fans he needed hospital treatment. A fireman was also attacked.
A second police officer added: “As one young officer gave the kiss of life and heart massage he was given a savage kick by a lout.”
A third policeman said: “There was a lot of pilfering.
“Personal possessions were missing as well as cash. People were picking up coins which had fallen from victims’ pockets. It was sickening.”
The police claims were backed by Sheffield MP Irvine Patnick, who spoke to officers on duty in the mortuary hours after the tragedy.
“They told me they were hampered, harassed, punched, kicked and urinated on by Liverpool fans,” he said.
“I have kept quiet about this because I didn’t want to inflame a delicate situation.
“But these are the stories told to me by policemen just after it had happened. I saw the bruising on their bodies.”

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Thursday, April 20, 1989
20p
Yesterday’s sale: 4,301,148
Thought: Nothing but the truth

Logo: GATES OF HELL
I WAS ROBBED BY KOP YOBS

A SICKENED publican told yesterday how he came to the aid of Liverpool fans after the Hillsborough disaster – and they repaid his kindness by robbing him.

Landlord Richard Wright took pity on a group of lads who claimed to be shaken after seeing the soccer tragedy which claimed 95 lives.
He let them use his private phone to tell their parents they had survived.
Wife Linda even made them ham sandwiches.
But the callous yobs WRENCHED his cigarette machine off the wall, NICKED packets worth £300 and PLUNDERED brass ornaments from behind the bar.
Richard, of the Travellers pub at Birdwell South Yorks, stormed: “This lot have brought shame on decent football supporters.

SHAME

“The [sic] took everything they could lay their hands on. They knew exactly what they were doing. I can’t believe that any fans
Continued on Page Five

PAGE ONE OPINION
The truth hurts
THE truth hurts. But that is no excuse to hide from it.
On Page One yesterday, we reported the unpalatable facts about the behaviour of SOME of the Liverpool fans at Hillsborough.
Many of those who stormed into the ground had been drinking. Some urinated on rescue workers trying to save dying youngsters. Others looted the pockets of the injured.
We did not invent that horrific report. The facts came from the police, an MP, local publicans and taxi drivers.
The people of Liverpool
Continued on Page Four


Page 4 & 5

THEY DRANK US DRY
Picture: Richard Wright
Sickened landlord Richard … the fans who robbed him ‘have brought shame on decent football supporters’
Fear of the publicans invaded by rampaging Mersey mob
Logo: GATES OF HELL
By MARTYN SHARPE and ALASTAIR TAYLOR
SHAKEN Sheffield publicans revealed yesterday how Liverpool soccer louts drank them dry before Saturday’s disaster.
The Mersey mob emptied two pubs and four supermarkets of beer.
And after a frightened landlady failed to find fresh stocks, a gang of teenaged thugs smashed up her bar.
Some Liverpool fans were seen quaffing cans of ale in a Sheffield car park at 8.30am. Others were hammering on pub doors at 10.15am.
By the time their marathon booze binge was over, hundreds were so incapable they were slow getting to the ground.
And their late, drunken arrival is believed to have contributed to the stampede which trampled and suffocated 95 people to death. Keith Ollerenshaw, manager of Sheffield’s Owl pub, was besieged by Liverpool and Nottingham Forest fans from 10.15am.
“There were about 300 of them waiting to come in. The Liverpool fans were the worst,” he said.
“All they seemed interested in was getting as much booze under their belt as possible.”
Mr. Ollerenshaw was left with nothing on his shelves but fruit juice and low alcohol lager.
“Some of them were drinking solidly for four hours,” he said. “Their attitude was the worst I have ever seen in a pub.
Worst
“There were loads of them who left in the minutes running up to the kick-off.
“There was no way they could have got into the ground on time.”
Liverpool fans also drank dry the Royal Hotel, one mile from the ground. And after landlady Shirley Sykes ran out of beer, her bar was wrecked.
Fans TORE pictures off the wall, HURLED glasses at each other and JUMPED up and down on the pool table. Mrs Sykes said:

“The police are being blamed for what happened on Saturday. But I want to put the record straight.
The fans could not get enough booze. They drunk four big supermarkets dry around here.
We had to send out for extra stocks of cans but we could not get any.
It was fine until about 2 o’clock when a dozen 18 and 19-year olds came in. They were swinging on light fittings, pulling them off the walls.
My pub looked like a battleground after they had finished. We eventually shut our doors.”

In the village of Birdwell, eight miles from the ground, fans travelling in a 53-seater coach stripped an off-licence’s shelves bare.
Manageress Gwen Glossop said: “When they left half of my stock had been taken.

FANS HIT OUT OVER COP ‘LIES’
By TIM BUCKLEY and ROBERT KELLAWAY
OUTRAGED Liverpool fans yesterday slammed as “lies” the claims by police that they were attacked while reviving Hillsborough victims.
Angry fans swamped The Sun switchboard as they demanded proof that rescuers were punched, kicked and urinated on.
Sobbing Scouser Joseph Murray stormed: “I can’t believe these lies. It’s just the police trying to squirm out of it. They were pushing the fans back in and now they are trying to cover their backsides.”
David Williams, 23, from Liverpool, said he did not see anyone urinating over policemen, but added: “I did see people wet themselves from shock and fear.”
And he said: “There WERE people who had been drinking, but they were not drunk.”
But devoted Liverpool fan Charles Hollsworth, 43, said everything the police said was TRUE.
Charles , from St Helens, added: “I think the police need sticking up for.
“Everything that the police said did happen.”
POLICE chief Peter Wright yesterday DENIED there had been a cover-up.
The South Yorkshire chief constable added: “I can understand the fans’ anger. But many of the comments have distressed my men.”

THE SUN SAYS
Continued from Page One
are angry that The Sun published the truth. Misguided local radio DJs urge listeners not to buy the paper.
Will that bring back the dead? Of course not.
But hopefully telling the world exactly what went on at Hillsborough will mean that something is done to prevent such a disaster happening again.
If the price to be paid is that some of you stop buying The Sun, then so be it.
You have a choice.
The 95 who died at Hillsborough had no such choice.

I WAS ROBBED
Continued from Page One
would do this after we showed them sympathy.”
Linda said: “We feel bitter. It was a shame it happened on that of all days.”
The kind-hearted couple rushed to help the group of 10 after Saturday’s carnage at the FA Cup semi final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest.
The Travellers is the nearest bar to the M1 junction which Liverpool fans use to reach Sheffield.
LOOT
The fans spent two hours in the pub.
But the cunning mob waited until Richard turned his back.
Then they wrecked the cigarette machine, searched the bar for cash and fled with what loot they could grab.
Richard said: “I dashed outside. They were about to drive off in a van.
TIME
“I demanded ‘give it me back’ but they just roared off.”
He added: “I’ve very angry at being taken for a mug.”
Richard’s pub is next door to an off-licence called D & G Ltd – and that was ALSO rifled after the game.
How Could God Let This Happen – Page Six

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Saturday, April 22, 1989
20p
Yesterday’s sale: 4,271,209
Thought: True devotion

p. 2

AFTERMATH OF HILLSBOROUGH ++ AFTERMATH OF HILLSBOROUGH
SOCCER TRAGEDY FILM ‘CLEARS’ LIVERPOOL FANS
Movie given to judge
By ANDREW BYRNE and JOHN SCOTT
A FAN’s film of the Hillsborough death-crush clears Liverpool supporters of blame, it was claimed last night.
The colour film, shot by 22-year-old computer analyst Andrew Jones, shows fans struggling for life at the Leppings Lane end of the Sheffield ground.
The Liverpool Echo newspaper, which reproduced the film across six pages, claimed it showed “the real truth of the disaster.”
The paper said it was proof that a breakdown in crowd control and stewarding inside the stadium led to 95 deaths at Saturday’s Cup semi0final with Nottingham Forest.

Inquiry
The Echo says the film, with the ground’s digital clock clearly in view, shows that:
It took 11 minutes for ambulances to arrive

Police formed a barrier to hem fans in as they struggled to escape

Only one policeman can be seen directing fans to a safety gate.

The film has been handed to the disaster inquiry led by Lord Justice Taylor.
West Midlands police, who will gather evidence for the inquiry, revealed their investigation could take NINE MONTHS.
It will be the biggest disaster inquiry held in Britain, with 500 officers taking part.
The team will be based in Sheffield, Liverpool and Birmingham and will be linked by satellite.
A Freephone line will be installed to encourage fans to give statements.
West Midlands assistant chief constable Mervyn Jones said yesterday: “We want to interview anyone who has anything material to say.”
His officers will also study all TV films and pictures taken at match. [sic]
Meanwhile South Yorkshire Chief Constable Peter Wright accepted responsibility for his officers’ actions at Hillsborough.
He told his police committee: “Those officers were appointed by me and it follows that I accept full responsibility for the police action.”

Police made 43 arrests
THERE were 43 arrests at the Hillsborough disaster – 19 of them drink-related, it was revealed last night.
And 19 police officers were treated for injuries, Home Office minister Douglas Hogg said.
He told MPs the arrests were made inside and outside the ground.
One was for obstructing or assaulting the police and another for urinating in a public place.
A further ten fans were thrown out.
There were NO arrest for robbery, looting or pilfering.
Some emergency staff are being treated for stress as a result of the tragedy, said Mr Hogg.

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Tuesday, April 25, 1989
22p
Yesterday’s sale: 4,252,455
Thought: Who CAN you trust?

p.5

Yob fans attacked 999 men
Three ambulancemen were assaulted during the Hillsborough disaster, Home Office Minister John Patten revealed last night.

He told the Commons: “The chief ambulance officer reports that, so, three staff have reported an assault but that the debriefing of his staff is not yet complete.”

Mr Patten added that details of attacks on police officers had not been collated, and the fire brigade had reported no trouble.

[Danny Trejo]

Fuck Kelvin Mackenzie

[Hij]

Real.

I never read the actual writing before, just the headlines of the day, the actual stuff inside the paper is worse than the paper itself.

Justice.

[DTI]

Real.

I never read the actual writing before, just the headlines of the day, the actual stuff inside the paper is worse than the paper itself.

Justice.

typical blameless scouse mentality.

They knew not to hold a minutes silence tonight because it would be fucking jeered and understandbly so

[Danny Trejo]

typical blameless scouse mentality.

They knew not to hold a minutes silence tonight because it would be fucking jeered and understandbly so

So you'd jeer a minute's silence for 96 dead fans, some of them children? You're a cunt, straight.

[DTI]

So you'd jeer a minute's silence for 96 dead fans, some of them children? You're a cunt, straight.

Didnt say I would jeer it. Would liverpool fans pay respect if a similar memorial took place at anfield? probably not.

The fans that boo through things like this do so because of the general feeling towards liverpool supporters. If united came to the bridge and did something for munich, i guarantee there would be total silence.

The fact is that there is a high dislike for liverpool fans at chelsea.

[Curphey]

Real.

I never read the actual writing before, just the headlines of the day, the actual stuff inside the paper is worse than the paper itself.

Justice.

.

Never buy The Sun, they still print lies on a day-to-day basis.

[Eagle]

so were all of the eye witness reports made up?

[DTI]

so were all of the eye witness reports made up?

Exactly, Now im not blaming the whole disaster on ticketless liverpool fans, but what about the fans who attacked the police as they aided the injured, or robbed the people on the ground?

And all this 'Justice' Shit. Who are you looking to get justice from? the event was the culmination of many factors...nobody can be blamed specifically

[Curphey]

exactly, now im not blaming the whole disaster on ticketless liverpool fans, but what about the fans who attacked the police as they aided the injured, or robbed the people on the ground?

And all this 'justice' shit. Who are you looking to get justice from? The event was the culmination of many factors...nobody can be blamed specifically

nobody attackted the police or robbed dead fans.


So fuck off.

[DTI]

nobody attackted the police or robbed dead fans.


So fuck off.

Yeh man mature response. So as already posted, were all the reports entirely made up? You lot just have a shitty repuatation to be honest, Heysel, Athens ... List Goes On

[Curphey]

Yeh man mature response. So as already posted, were all the reports entirely made up? You lot just have a shitty repuatation to be honest, Heysel, Athens ... List Goes On

Yes they were.

If I wanted to I could have compiled a mature in-depth responce, but really you aint worth the time of day.

So fuck off with your heartless Anti-Liverpool views.

[6]

Didnt say I would jeer it. Would liverpool fans pay respect if a similar memorial took place at anfield? probably not.

The fans that boo through things like this do so because of the general feeling towards liverpool supporters. If united came to the bridge and did something for munich, i guarantee there would be total silence.

The fact is that there is a high dislike for liverpool fans at chelsea.

Fuck off you ignorant prick. The same fans who clapped through the Everton anthem when it was played at Anfield after the death of one boy, would boo through a memorial for nearly 100 dead fans?

[DTI]

Yes they were.

If I wanted to I could have compiled a mature in-depth responce, but really you aint worth the time of day.

So fuck off with your heartless Anti-Liverpool views.

Cool Bro thanks for the mature discussion.

See you at the bridge.....wait, liverpool fan from south london....well its on ITV anyway.Enjoy

[Curphey]

Chelsea fans are the only ones stupid and ignorant enough to sabotage a memorial.

[DTI]

Chelsea fans are the only ones stupid and ignorant enough to sabotage a memorial.

http://www.transparentsport.com/cfcu....php?id=101298

A good read

[Danny Trejo]

Yeh man mature response. So as already posted, were all the reports entirely made up? You lot just have a shitty repuatation to be honest, Heysel, Athens ... List Goes On

Yeah, the Sun reports were effectively complete fiction under the helm of Mackenzie, his sole "reputable" source a misquoted Tory MP. The Sun effectively contributed towards a police coverup of their failings on the day wherein they wouldn't open up the front to let the fans out. The admittance of culpability on the police's part is at the heart of the justice campaign. No-one denies that the overcrowding was partially due to a portion of scousers with no tickets, but the police allowed them in by opening the gates en masse so as to avoid the delays etc.
When the Sheff Wed away end is a descending funnel, it was a ridiculous action.
As for reputation, the old school Chelsea firm had one of the worst and was proud of it. To vilify us for two legitimate disasters displays a strange mentality and a disturbing lack of humanity. The concept of jeering a minute's silence beggars belief- try and find an instance of it happening at Anfield. I'll wait.

[Danny Trejo]

good on that Chelsea lad btw

[Curphey]

http://www.transparentsport.com/cfcu....php?id=101298

A good read

Yes.

But he says that Liverpool fans are the Murderers when really it was the Yorkshire police who forced the fans into one side of the stadium for a laugh and caused the 96 deaths.

They, the Police, were aware of two other enterances that they could have gone through but instead they forced them all in to one.

The police are the murderers.

[DTI]

Let me make it clear im not mocking the incident at all, for 96 people to die in those circumstances is a tragedy and 99% of all football fans realise this. Its the attitude of some liverpool fans that causes a reaction at Chelsea