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Kenny Dalglish Feared For Son At Hillsborough

Former Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish has told the inquests into the Hillsborough disaster that he feared for his son's safety.

Paul, then 12, was among the crowd that spilled onto the pitch after the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest was stopped.

Dalglish said he went to look for him and to his great relief found him safe and well.

The 63-year-old was manager of Liverpool at the time of the tragedy in 1989, which claimed the lives of 96 fans.

They were fatally injured in a crush on the Leppings Lane terrace at Sheffield Wednesday’s Hillsborough stadium.

Dalglish said earlier he remembered the referee stopping the match after six minutes and returning with his players to their dressing room.

He said: "I think the police had spoken to the referee to get the players off the pitch... I don't think anyone understood what was happening.

"We were told there were fatalities. We weren't told what the cause was. Stories were coming from every angle."

Dalglish said he and Forest manager Brian Clough were asked by police to make an announcement.

They agreed and were taken to the police control room but the microphone was not working.

They then went to another location and made a "brief statement that people had been injured".

Dalglish was also quizzed about a section of his autobiography on ticketless fans "bunking in" to games by John Beggs QC.

Mr Beggs asked him if he was "prepared to agree" that if 2,000 or 3,000 Liverpool fans turned up late for the Hillsborough match, they would have contributed to the disaster.

But Lord Justice Goldring intervened, telling him: “He can't answer that question."

Dalglish, who also played for Liverpool and is regarded as one of the club's greatest strikers, was giving evidence at the final session of the inquests, in Warrington, before Christmas.

The hearing, which has now been adjourned, will resume in the New Year.