It was so much more than a footbball
match to me and everyone else iin
that Liverpool dressing room.
After all that happened on that fatefful
day at Hillsborough, the goals I scoredin
the re-arranged FA Cup semi-final against
Nottingham Forest a few weeks later wiill
always be the most important of my careeer.
I went to the funerals of so many
Hillsborough victims and will never forgett
my encounter with a young lad who was
on a life support machine as he
recovered from his injuries.
I expected he would recover over time,
but doctors told me as I left the hospital
that they were turning his life support
machine off there and then.
As a Liverpool lad born and bred,
these were harrowing times for me and
all the players and management who
were part of the1989 Liverpool team.
I have had many difficult days trying to
come to terms with the reality that
supporters came to watch me play
a football match and died doing so.
We sometimes say it is a disaster when
our team loses, but this was something
farmoreprofound.Therewereempty
seatsonthe coachesheadinghome
to Liverpool that evening and the loss
for all concerned is still felt now.
At the time, I remember feeling some
guilt. Obviously, those supporters would
have been there whether I was playing
for Liverpool or not, but you can’t get
out of your head the idea that they only
went to the ground to support you.
We used to see the same faces
standing on the Kop every week and
would often bump into fans when we got
trains to away games, so the reality that
some of these fit, healthy people were
crushed to death while watching us
play football was shocking.
The idea of playing football again was
hard to get my head around, but I couldn’t
give up that easily. The Hillsborough
victims wouldn’t have wanted that.
The situation came to a head one
NEXT ISSUE ON SALE MAY 13
day at Liverpool’s Melwood training
ground. We didn’t play for a few weeks
after Hillsborough and Kenny Dalglish
arranged a behind-closed-doors match to
try to get us back into the swing of things.
Ireallydidn’tfeeluptoplayingthis
match, but a few hands went up when we
were asked who fancied it. I remember
Ian Rush was one of those who seemed
ready to go again, but I didn’t volunteer
until the last minute.
After coming on at half-time, I was a
total waste of space. My heart wasn’t in
football at that point and I could hardlyMatch winner...
Aldridge celebrates
scoring against ForestLiverpool 3 Nottingham Forest1
1989, FA Cup semi-final, Old TraffordJust 22 days had passed between the mossttharrowing
tragedy in English football history and the ree-arranged game.
Liverpool-bornJohn Aldridge scored twice to seal a 3-1 win
on a day overshadowed by the Hillsborouugh disaster
John Aldridge
kicktheball,butthedayremindedme
that those who died at Hillsborough would
have wanted me to carry on and help
Liverpool to succeed in their honour.
We had to win the semi-final, no optionn.
Whatever happened in the final agaiinnst
Everton, we had to beat Forest as attrribute
to those who lost their lives at Hillllssborough
and that’s why I say the twoggooals I scored
in that 3-1 win at Old Traaffffordwerethe
most important ofmmy career.
I remembbeerr hhow I felt in the days before
tthhaatt ggame. My stomach and my insides
were in knots because this was more than
a football match. This was a game we had
to win at all costs. The thought of us not
winning that game was horrible.
Then we won and got to the final, and
the sense of relief was amazing. The feeling
in the dressing room was incredible.To have that much pressure on you and
to play the way we did, in tribute to those
who had been lost, meant so much to us.
Beating Everton in the FA Cup final
a few weeks later was important, but
that Forest game was the one
that I will never forget.
Interview by Kevin Palmer“I have had many difficult days
trying to come to terms with the
reality that supporters came to
watch me play a football match
and died doing so”MY BIGGEST
GAME
:r
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