Soccer-Dalglish recalls anguish of Hillsborough disaster

LONDON, April 12 (Reuters) - Kenny Dalglish, Liverpool's manager on the day of the Hillsborough disaster 20 years ago, said on Sunday he still often thought of the tragedy and was eternally grateful his own children survived it.

The disaster, on April 15, 1989 occurred at the FA Cup semi-final between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest when 96 Liverpool fans were crushed to death at the Leppings Lane end of the ground in neutral Sheffield.

With the 20th anniversary of the disaster approaching on Wednesday, Dalglish was asked by BBC Five Live's Sportsweek programme whether he still thought about the tragedy.

"I do think about it quite a lot," he said, adding he was grateful his daughter Kelly, then 13, and son Paul, who was 12, and who were both at the match, came home from the disaster.

"We were one of the lucky families," said the Scot, who was also one of Liverpool's greatest players.

"Our children came home to us that night and obviously we are eternally grateful for that but that doesn't mean to say we don't have a great deal of sympathy for those who were not as fortunate as us."

Dalglish, who attended many of the victims' funerals in the days following the disaster, added: "I always feel for anyone who was there and for anybody who is a Liverpool fan or has any feeling for Liverpool.

"But more important than that is the feelings of the families. I don't think that Liverpool Football Club have ever shirked their responsibilities and I don't think they ever will.

"One fantastic thing to know is that not just Liverpool fans, but football fans in general, have never vandalised in any shape or form the Eternal Flame that burns outside the Anfield Road end, which shows the great respect that football fans have everywhere." (Reporting by Mike Collett, editing by Rex Gowar; to comment on or query this story email sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)