Thousands mark Hillsborough anniversary at Anfield

Thousands of people have marked the 25th anniversary of the Hillsborough disaster at a memorial service in Anfield.

Ordinary fans joined the families of the 96 who died on April 15 1989 to pay their respects and remember them at the sombre service.

The 96 Liverpool fans died in the crush on the Leppings Lane terraces at Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough stadium after going to see their team play Nottingham Forest in an FA Cup semi-final.

Before the service began, thousands of people began converging on Anfield.

Groups of fans stood around in bright sunshine in front of Anfield’s permanent Hillsborough memorial, reading the names of the dead, among them the youngest victim Jon-Paul Gilhooley, aged 10 and the cousin of Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard.

At the centre of the memorial burns an eternal flame, next to the Shankly Gates, festooned with scarves left by fans of different clubs to show their support.

Beneath the scarves of teams including Manchester City, Everton and Chelsea were placed a growing carpet of floral tributes laid down by visitors.

Traditional football hymn Abide With Me was sung before the names of the 96 fans were read out.

At each name a light was lit, one by one, on a large piece of sculpture entitled the Band of Life, until all the lights were illuminated.

As the time reached 3.06pm, the exact moment the match was abandoned while the tragedy unfolded, a minute’s silence began.

Across the city, public transport halted, the Mersey Ferry blew its funnels, and barriers at both Mersey Tunnels were lowered as bells tolled 96 times at the Anglican Cathedral, Liverpool Parish Church, the town hall and other civic buildings and churches.

The hum and noise from outside the ground faded as a hush fell across the city while Anfield, often a cauldron of noise, also fell into a sombre stillness.

Heads bowed, some fans wiped away silent tears as they remembered the scores of lives lost in Britain’s worst sporting disaster.

The minute’s silence ended with a round of applause, as across the city bells tolled 96 times at churches and civic buildings.

Joe Wright, 58, from Widnes, was one of the people who laid flowers.

Mr Wright, a season ticket-holder on the Kop, was accompanied today by his wife Jill.

He said: “I was at Hillsborough on the day and I just felt I needed to come today.

“My mates were in Leppings Lane but they all got out. It affected everyone on that day.”

Robert Vannucci, secretary of the 1st Bangor Liverpool Supporters Club, was with eight others from Northern Ireland laying a wreath of red roses at the Shankly Gates.

Mr Vannucci, from Bangor, said: “We just felt we wanted to be here for the fans who lost their lives so unjustly. We felt we wanted to be here to pay our respects.”

The global support of the club was evident, with scarves from French team Paris St Germain along with the flag of Lebanon tied to the gates.

Current team manager Brendan Rodgers will give a reading at the service later, where loved ones of victims will join players, staff and senior representatives of the club among 24,000 people attending.

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson said: “This year marks a pivotal moment in the history of the Hillsborough tragedy and the families’ long fight for justice.

“Not only is it the 25th anniversary of the tragedy but we also have the start of fresh inquests into how the 96 lost their lives.”

At Lime Street, the city’s main railway station, a huge screen displayed a photo of each of those who lost their lives.

Some of those present at today's memorial are witnesses in the new inquest into Britain's worst sporting disaster, which began last month and resumes next week.

The original accidental deaths verdicts in 1991 were quashed in the High Court in 2012 after a long campaign by the fans’ families.