Scannal: Hillsborough Disaster
Deich mbliana duairce a bhí sna 1980idí ó thaobh pheil Shasana de. B’uafásach an fhadhb í amhsóireacht ag cluichí peile sa bhaile agus thar lear araon, agus bhí fadhb mhór ann freisin ó thaobh sábháilteacht i staideanna. Ar an 11 Bealtaine, 1985, fuair 56 leantóir bás nuair a chuaigh ardán adhmaid trí thine i Valley Parade, staid pheile Chathair Bradford. Ar an lá céanna, maraíodh buachaill 14 bliana d’aois nuair a bhris ráig foréigin amach ag cluiche idir Birmingham agus Leeds. Maraíodh 39 duine de lucht leanúna Juventus 3 seachtaine ina dhiaidh sin nuair a d’ionsaigh lucht leanúna Learphoill iad i dtubaiste Staid Heysel.
Ach ba in olcas a bhí cúrsaí ag dul. Chuimhneofaí ar an 15 Aibreán 1989 mar an lá ba ghruama ar fad i stair spórt Shasana – an lá ar imir Learpholl agus Nottingham Forest i gcluiche leathcheannais an FA Cup, lá ar bhásaigh 97 duine de lucht leanúna Learphoill.
Sna laethanta ina dhiaidh sin, mhaígh na húdaráis gur “fórsáil” leantóirí Learphoill geata, agus treisíodh an maíomh ag cruinnithe faisnéise leis na meáin. Scaipeadh an bhréag ar fud an domhain, i bhfeasacháin nuachta ar teilifís agus ar raidió. Lean nuachtáin leis an scéal, agus chuir siad an milleán ar leantóirí “ólta gan ticéad”. D’oir sé don insint gurb ar leantóirí Learphoill, arbh iad ba chúis le tubaiste Heysel, a raibh an locht as an tragóid in Hillsborough freisin.
Ba é tátal an fhiosrúcháin bhreithiúnaigh a rinne an Tiarna Breithimh Taylor ná gur “tuaiplis den chineál is measa” a bhí sa teip an tollán a dhúnadh agus mhol sé freisin an t-aistriú go staideanna lánsuí. Mar sin féin, bás de thimpiste an bhreith a tugadh de thoradh an choiste cróinéara, lena maíodh go raibh na híospartaigh ar fad marbh faoin 3.15pm, 9 nóiméad tar éis deireadh a bheith curtha leis an gcluiche, maíomh a shéan muintir na ndaoine a fuair bás go láidir. Níor tugadh duine ar bith chun cuntais.
Ba ag an bpointe sin a thosaigh feachtas 20 bliain a raibh teaghlaigh na 97 íospartach i mbun stiúrtha air, iad ag troid gan stad gan staonadh chun ceartas a bhaint amach dá ndaoine muinteartha. Bhí frustrachas ar bhaill Ghrúpa Tacaíochta Teaghlaigh Hillsborough mar gheall ar an easpa cuntasacht oifigiúil agus ar deireadh thiar, thug siad cás príobháideach i gcoinne cheannasaí an chluiche, David Duckenfield, agus a leascheannasaí, an ceannfort Bernard Murray, ag cur dúnorgain ina leith.
Fuarthas Murray neamhchiontach, agus níor éirigh leis an giúiré teacht ar bhreith maidir le Duckenfield. Ba bhuille eile é do na teaghlaigh, ach ní ghéillfeadh leithéidí Anne Williams, ar bhásaigh a mac Kevin sa tubaiste. Seanscéal is meirg é seo do mhuintir na hÉireann: scéal ina ndéantar tuilleadh íospartha ar íospartaigh sa chóras mar nach bhfuiltear sásta lochtanna an chórais a admháil.
Lean an fheachtasaíocht ar aghaidh ar feadh scór bliain, agus i mí Eanáir 2010, ceapadh Painéal
Neamhspleách Hillsborough chun athbhreithniú a dhéanamh ar fhianaise nach bhfacthas roimhe sin. Tar éis dó athbhreithniú a dhéanamh ar 450,000 doiciméad, lena n-áirítear cinn a bhain leis an iarPhríomh-Aire Margaret Thatcher agus póilíní Merseyside, d’fhoilsigh Painéal Neamhspleách Hillsborough a thuarascáil agus nocht sé feachtas póilíní chun an milleán a chur ar lucht leanúna Learphoill. Thacaigh sé le maíomh na dteaghlach freisin go mb’fhéidir go mbeadh 41 díobh sin a bhásaigh tugtha slán. Cuireadh na fíoraisc ón bhfiosrúchán bunaidh, ar glacadh leo le breis is 20 bliain, ar neamhní san Ard-Chúirt agus ordaíodh fiosrúchán nua.
I mí Aibreáin na bliana 2016, tugadh Fiosrúcháin Hillsborough chun críche agus socraíodh gur mharú neamhdhleathach a bhí i gceist le bás na 96 leantóir Learphoill a bhásaigh i dtubaiste na bliana 1989. D’aontaigh giúróirí nach raibh baint ná páirt ag an lucht tacaíochta leis na básanna agus, ina áit sin, cuireadh an milleán ar laigí na bpóilíní, fabhtanna le dearadh na staide agus freagairt na seirbhíse otharchairr, a raibh moill uirthi. Lá cinniúnach a bhí ann do theaghlaigh na marbh, ach in ainneoin trialacha éagsúla le blianta beaga anuas, níor ciontaíodh duine ar bith riamh as ar tharla in Hillsborough.
San eipeasóid seo de Scannal, caithfimid súil siar ar thubaiste nach ndéanfaidh an lucht leanúna in Éirinn dearmad uirthi go brách. Rachaidh Garry Mac Donncha go Learpholl chun casadh le John Aldridge, duine den cheathrar Éireannach a bhí ag imirt ar fhoireann Learphoill an lá sin, a raibh sé deacair aige labhairt faoin eachtra ar feadh na mblianta ina diaidh. Labhróidh sé le George Hamilton chomh maith, a bhí ag tráchtaireacht ar an gcluiche do RTÉ de réir mar a thit an t-uafás amach agus buailfidh sé le Peter Breen, duine de lucht tacaíochta Learphoill as Baile Átha Cliath a bhí 9 mbliana d’aois nuair a thug a dhaid leis é chuig an gcluiche in Hillsborough.
Rachaidh Garry go Doire chun casadh le Tony Doherty, duine de dhaoine muinteartha íospartaigh Dhomhnach na Fola, ar maraíodh a athair Paddy ar Dhomhnach na Fola. Labhróidh Tony le Garry faoin gcaidreamh idir teaghlaigh íospartaigh Dhomhnach na Fola agus teaghlaigh
íospartaigh Hillsborough. Is iomaí uair a chas teaghlaigh an dá thubaiste sin le chéile i gcaitheamh na mblianta agus thacaigh siad lena chéile sa throid ar son an chirt.
Cloisfimid freisin ó Cheann Spóirt TG4 Rónán Ó Coisdealbha agus ó chraoltóir Raidió na Gaeltachta Máirín Ní Ghadhra.
“Dá fhaide a lean sé ar aghaidh ba ea ba mhó imní a chuir sé orainn, chualamar daoine den
lucht féachana sa phasáiste ag screadach agus ag béicíl, bhí siad ag rá go raibh daoine ag fáil
bháis amuigh ansin.” John Aldridge
“An íomhá a mhaireann i mo chloigeann ná íomhá de cheann de na cláir fógraíochta sin á iompar agus fear sínte air. Agus an fear a bhí ar an gclár fógraíochta, bhí a cheann clúdaithe le seaicéad. Agus ag an bpointe sin, bhuail an tuiscint mé, maraíodh duine.” George Hamilton
TX: DÉ MÁIRT an 11 Deireadh Fómhair, RTÉ 1 @ 7.00
Láithreoir / Tuairisceoir Garry Mac Donncha
Léiritheoir / Stiúrthóir Dermot O’Hanlon
Scannal – Hillsborough Disaster
The 1980s was a dark decade for English football. Hooliganism was a huge problem at football matches at home and abroad, while safety at stadiums was also a huge issue. On May 11, 1985, 56 fans lost their lives after a fire broke out in a wooden stand at Bradford City’s Valley Parade. On the same day, a 14-year-old boy was killed following violence at a game between
Birmingham and Leeds. 3 weeks later, 39 Juventus fans were killed as they were being attacked by Liverpool fans in the Heysel Stadium disaster.
But the worst was yet to come. April 15, 1989 would go down as the darkest day in the history of English sport – an FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest where 97 Liverpool fans lost their lives.
In the days that followed, the authorities claimed that a gate was “forced” by Liverpool fans, a claim reinforced in briefings to media sources. The lie goes around the world, in TV and radio news bulletins. Newspapers take up the story pointing the finger at “drunk and ticketless” supporters. It suited the narrative that Liverpool fans who caused the Heysel disaster were at fault for the tragedy at Hillsborough.
The judicial inquiry, conducted by Lord Justice Taylor, concluded that the failure to close off the tunnel was “a blunder of the first magnitude” and he also recommended the move to all-seater stadiums. However, the coroner’s inquest returned a verdict of accidental death, stating that all the victims were dead by 3.15pm, 9 minutes after the match was stopped, a claim strongly disputed by the bereaved families. No-one was held accountable.
What followed was a 20-year campaign led by the families of the 97 victims, who fought tirelessly to get justice for their loved ones. Frustrated by the lack of official accountability, the Hillsborough Family Support Group eventually mounted their own private prosecution of match commander David Duckenfield and his deputy, superintendentBernard Murray, for manslaughter.
Murray was acquitted and the jury failed to reach a verdict on Duckenfield. It was another blow for the families but the likes of Anne Williams, who lost her son Kevin in the tragedy, would not give in. It is a story all-too-familiar to Irish people: one in which the victims became further victimized by a system that refused to admit to its own failings.
After two decades of campaigning, in January 2010 the Hillsborough Independent Panel was appointed to review previously unseen evidence. After reviewing 450,000 documents, including those relating to former prime minister Margaret Thatcher and Merseyside Police, the Hillsborough Independent Panel published its report and exposed a police campaign to blame Liverpool fans. It also upheld the families’ claims that 41 of those who died might have been saved. The High Court quashed the original inquest verdicts which had stood for more than 20 years and a new inquest was ordered.
In April 2016, the Hillsborough Inquests concluded the 96 Liverpool fans who died in the 1989 disaster were unlawfully killed. Jurors agreed fans played no part in the deaths and instead blamed police failures, stadium design faults, and a delayed response by the ambulance service. It was a momentous day for the families of the victims, but despite various trials in recent years, no-one has ever been convicted for what happened at Hillsborough.
In this episode of Scannal, we look back at a tragedy that Irish fans will never forget. Reporter Garry Mac Donncha travels to Liverpool to meet John Aldridge, who was one of four Irishmen playing for Liverpool that day, who found it hard to speak about the disaster for years. He also talks to George Hamilton, who was commentating for RTÉ on the match as the horrific scenes unfolded and he meets Peter Breen, a Liverpool fan from Dublin who was 9 years old when his dad brought him over to the match in Hillsborough.
Garry travels to Derry to meet one of the relatives of the Bloody Sunday victims, Tony Doherty, whose father Paddy was killed on Bloody Sunday. Tony tells Garry the story of the relationship between the Bloody Sunday families and the families of the Hillsborough victims. Families of the victims of both tragedies met numerous times over the years and supported one another in their fights for justice.
There are also contributions from TG4’s Head of Sport Rónán Ó Coisdealbha agus Raidió na Gaeltachta broadcaster Máirín Ní Ghadhra.
“The longer it went on the more worrying it got, we heard fans in the corridor screaming and
shouting, they were saying people are dying out there.” John Aldridge
“The image that lives with me, is of seeing one of those advertising boards being carried with a man on- on it. And the man on the advertising board, his head was covered with a jacket.
And in that moment, the realization hit me, there has been a fatality.” George Hamilton
TX: TUESDAY 11th October, RTÉ 1 @ 19.00
Presenter / Reporter Garry Mac Donncha
Producer / Director Dermot O’Hanlon