Ibrox disaster
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The Ibrox disaster refers to two accidents, in 1902 and 1971, which led to major loss of life at Ibrox Stadium (formerly Ibrox Park) in Glasgow, Scotland.
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[edit] First Ibrox disaster
On 5 April 1902, during a Scotland vs England football match the back of the newly built West Tribune Stand collapsed due to heavy rainfall the previous night. Hundreds of supporters fell up to 40 feet (12 m) to the ground below. 25 people died and 517 were injured.[1]
The stand at the time consisted of wooden terracing supported by a steel girder frame. Following the accident such frameworks were discredited, and replaced throughout the United Kingdom by terracing supported by earthworks or reinforced concrete.
The tragedy occurred after 51 minutes of the match, which was declared void by the two Football Associations. All proceeds of the replayed match at Villa Park, Birmingham on 3 May 1902 went to the disaster fund.
[edit] Further incidents
During 1963 there were concerns about the safety of the stairway adjacent to passageway 13 (colloquially known as Stairway 13) the exit closest to Copland Road subway station. On 16 September 1961 two people were killed in a crush on the stairway, and there were two other incidents where several people were injured. However Rangers had spent £150,000 on improvements, a very significant sum for the time.[2]
[edit] Second Ibrox disaster
The second major incident occurred on 2 January 1971 at the end of a Rangers vs Celtic game. After 89 minutes of scoreless football Celtic took a 1–0 lead and many Rangers supporters left the stadium. However, in the last seconds of stoppage time, Colin Stein scored an equaliser for Rangers.
As the crowd was leaving the ground, barriers on Stairway 13 gave way causing a massive chain-reaction pile-up of spectators. The tragedy resulted in the loss of 66 lives, including many children - five of them schoolmates from the town of Markinch in Fife. Most of the deaths were caused by compressive asphyxia, with bodies being stacked up to six feet deep in the area. Over 200 other fans were injured.
Initially there was speculation that some fans left the ground slightly early when Celtic scored, but then turned back when they heard roars from the crowd when Stein scored the equaliser, colliding with fans leaving the ground when the match ended. The official inquiry into the disaster indicated that there was no truth in this hypothesis, all the spectators were going in the same direction at the time of the collapse. However, the "myth of the Stein goal" became widely believed and repeated for many years after the disaster.
[edit] Consequences
The 1971 disaster led to a huge redevelopment of Ibrox, spearheaded by the general manager at the time Willie Waddell, who visited Borussia Dortmund's Westfalenstadion for inspiration. Ibrox was converted to an all seater stadium, and was subsequently awarded UEFA five star status.
For some years after the 1971 disaster there was only a small plaque at the corner of the ground where it took place. However around 30 years later a larger monument was erected at the corner of the Bill Struth Main Stand and the Copland Road Stand, including the names of everyone killed in all three incidents, and a statue of John Greig, Rangers captain at the time of the 1971 disaster.
[edit] Casualties
| Those who never came home | ||
|---|---|---|
| Robert Maxwell (15) | Robert McAdam (36) | James Sibbald (28) |
| David Duff (23) | James Trainer (20) | John Gardiner (32) |
| Thomas Grant (16) | Nigel Pickup (9) | Peter Easton (13) |
| Matthew Reid (49) | Charles Livingston (30) | Margaret Ferguson (18) |
| Alex McIntyre (29) | Charles Dougan (31) | Thomas Melville (17) |
| Walter Raeburn (36) | Walter Shields (15) | John Jeffrey (16) |
| Ian Hunter (14) | John Buchanan (32) | David Anderson (45) |
| William Somerhill (17) | John Crawford (23) | Donald McPhearson (30) |
| Francis Dover (16) | Adam Henderson (42) | Douglas Morrison (15) |
| Ian Frew (21) | Robert Grant (21) | William Shaw (30) |
| Richard Barke (15) | Robert Carrigan (13) | Peter Farris (26) |
| Charles Stirling (20) | Andrew Lindsay (18) | George Smith (40) |
| Thomas Dickson (32) | Martin Paiton (14) | Robert Cairns (17) |
| Peter Wright (31) | Donald Sutherland (14) | Duncan McBrearty (17) |
| Robert Rae (25) | George Wilson (15) | Thomas McRobbie (17) |
| Russell Malcolm (16) | Thomas Stirling (16) | Alexander Orr (16) |
| James McGovern (24) | James Mair (19) | George Adams (43) |
| George Irwin (22) | George Findlay (21) | David McGhee (14) |
| John Semple (18) | Brian Hutchinson (16) | James Grey (37) |
| Brian Todd (14) | Robert Mulholland (16) | Thomas Morgan (14) |
| Mason Phillips (14) | John McLeay (23) | Richard McLeay (28) |
| Hugh Addie (33) | John Neil (29) | James Rae (19) |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Sheils, Robert (2007-05-17). "The fatalities at the Ibrox disaster of 1902" (PDF). The Sports Historian (British Society of Sports History) 18 (2): 148–155. http://www.aafla.org/SportsLibrary/SportsHistorian/1998/sh182k.pdf.
- ^ Ferrier, Bob; Robert McElroy (2005). Rangers: The Complete Record. Breedon Books. pp. 67–8. ISBN 1 85983 481 7.
[edit] External links
