Bradford City remembered

[Glostergull]

I was a little reluctant to put this straight on the forum at first but asked Dave. He said it was ok so here is a commentary of our away day a few months ago which should have gone up then. Please forgive the lateness of the final draught.

BRADFORD CITY

This post should have been put up when we went away to Bradford a few months ago. But due to me forever forgetting to do this in Word. I inevitably tried to do it directly to the forum and it took so long it timed out and I lost the lot. So much for 3 hours work.
So here we are again with the return fixture and my thoughts on the away day.
I decided in the interests of common sense to wait until it was relevant again.

No one could have believed what was to come at the end of the 1984/5 season. Bradford were having a storming time at the top of what was then Division 3 now league 1. Bristol Rovers didn’t exactly have a visit to remember when they went up 3 months earlier but I was in the crowd that day trying to enjoy my football with little in the way of cares in the world. My Daughter was about to be born. I had been just made redundant and we were looking at where we would go next in life.
3 months later and I settled down to a Saturday afternoon watching the footy on TV when the cameras went live to Bradford with another report of the match against Lincoln City, which was a celebration of Bradford’s promotion to Division 2 now the Championship.
As John Helm was commentating he noticed that there were flames breaking out from under the seats in the main stand. For those of you who are too young to picture where this is. The main stand at that time was where the very large new stand is now..
I watched at first in amazement as the flames took hold and then it turned to horror as the fire suddenly engulfed the whole stand in seconds as a huge fireball fed by intense heat and taking hold under the roof which was coated with bitumen roiled down the stand with an intensity which belied belief.
None of us had seen a disaster before let alone one at a football ground. The Ibrox disaster wasn’t on TV it only got into papers and seemed at such a distance that it didn’t seem real.
Here was a disaster of such proportions that it was unreal. We couldn’t comprehend the full meaning of what we were witnessing yet it was right in front of us in detail such that it was more than in your face, it was boring right into your very consciousness.
The fire from start to the engulfing of the whole stand to the point that the roof was falling down took only 4 minutes,
Take into account that near enough a whole minute was over before the realisation from everyone that this was serious and they had better evacuate and fans had 3 minutes to get out. Then take into account that after 3 minutes and you were likely to be injured and probably seriously at that and you can see that very little time was available to move.
There was also the added complication that there were 11,000 inside Valley Parade that day and the adjacent terraces were packed and you begin to understand that if they got out of the stand there were very little in the way of places to go.
There was one final problem with stadia at that time. Fire escapes and exits tended to be locked to prevent people entering illegally.
As we watched with incredulity the inferno took hold and anyone who was anywhere near would be set alight just because they were over heated in the radiated heat across the pitch. I watched as fans were desperately trying to climb over barriers to escape with smoke pouring from their clothing. Many had clothes on fire and some had their hair on fire, I saw one man burning from heard to toe as fans and the Police desperately tried to save him. Even Policemen were burning..
Most don’t remember that Terry Yorath was manager of Bradford and had his family in attendance in the main stand. But for the grace of God his daughter Gabby Logan would have perished that day as they were in the back corridor where the fireball raced down from one end of the stand to the other. Terry Yorath himself was one of the 265 injured as he was burned trying to save other fans trapped in the building next to the dressing rooms. The full horror was not to dawn on us for a while as we just sat watching. But unbeknown to all, many fans were desperately trying to exit from the rear of the stand, but with the doors locked and some with chains there was no escape. They perished where they stood.
As the fire was damped down it became apparent that fans had died after all. We all hoped with our hearts that none had suffered any more than injuries from burns, But with the aftermath of the ashes being damped down, news was filtering through that fans had indeed died.
The fire raced through with such ferocity that two fans were found where they sat. They had been overcome before they could even get out of their seats.. I can only assume they were up near the back of the stand where the heat and smoke were at their most intense.
It also became apparent that many were injured in the crush to get away witness by many badly bent barriers on the terrace.
Later on that evening the main news carried the horrific story as it unfolded that many had gone having been trapped in the rear corridor and by the following morning we woke up to the fact that over 50 had died.
What can you say about something that you have never witnessed before? Disasters like this were anonymous to us until that fateful moment. The pictures still go round in my mind as if I was still watching that day.
The final toll of that awful day was 56 men women and children dead. 265 injured some seriously. Even the players were not spared with injuries as they assisted in helping others escape.
I have never forgotten that day. I never will. It was only a few weeks since I had sat in the ground. But for the Grace of God. It could have been any teams fans involved. Lincoln City will never forget either that they lost two fans that day. They were the reported two who died where they sat. Tears filled my eyes for weeks as I could not get the scenes out of my mind. The eyes still mist now.
With that all in mind I decided to pay my respects when we went up there earlier this season. Accompanied by Brett and Martin Rice. I with other Bradford fans and stewards look at the touching memorial to a day forever etched in our memories.
As we looked at the black marble with gold letters, so simply and effectively placed, surrounded by flowers. We took in the names. In several cases it was 2 or 3 generations of the same family lost. Many young children, and Grandfathers of those children. Could we even take in the implications of such a loss.
Many fans stopped to thank us for the thoughts. I didn’t feel like being a hero or anything to make a fuss about. It was only right that we never forget. It was the least I could do..
25 years on and it’s still fresh. I doubt it will dim much but as time goes by I sincerely hope that we have all learned some lessons. Maybe we ought to be that little more careful how we discard that litter or cigarette end. How we behave at matches etc.
It seemed to touch a nerve with Bradford City as well. They were indeed touched that we had gone to the trouble after all this time.
I had mailed them to inform them of my intentions and to ask if they minded.
They mailed back and said they would be indeed touched by my small gesture. I had also said that I would send them copies of the photo’s we took and they replied that if I put in a comment on them they would save a page in their Northampton Programme for a piece on the visit.
I was duly sent a copy of the programme and near the back was a whole page with pictures. Anyone who would like to see it can mail or PM me anytime.
I am also going to try and attaché the pictures we took that day. It was a memorial day for me. The result went against us but that didn’t matter. I had done what I felt I needed to do. And anything else was trivial.
One thing did impress upon my though.
As I wandered on up the hill to the main stand with it’s memorial I met many Home fans. I at first thought they looked a little rough around the edges and didn’t fancy a meet in a dark alley. How wrong can a guy be.
The events of the day had brought everyone together. They couldn’t have been a nicer bunch of guys. Maybe some good can come out of such dreadful days. I for one hope it has made us all that little bit closer together. More caring and thoughtful. Less selfish and more inclined to think of others. If so then it will hopefully not have been totally in vain.
Many were affected for the rest of their lives by this day. John Helm. The Yoraths. My wife and myself. All the fans of Bradford and Lincoln and I imagine many who watched the events unfold live on TV.
I sincerely hope I never have to witness events like these again.
May those souls all rest in peace.
Glostergull