Hillsborough crowd incident at Sheffield Wednesday vs...

Sheffield City Council claims that following a licensing body investigation, an overcrowding incident in

Hillsborough’s Leppings Lane End was a “near miss.” The incident happened on January 7, 2023, when Newcastle

United travelled to Sheffield Wednesday for a third-round FA Cup match. Ahead of kickoff, away fans complained

about safety concerns, with some having to tear nets away from seats to create space.

Ninety-seven Liverpool supporters were illegally killed in a crush at the Leppings Lane stand during the 1989 FA Cup

semi-final.

Wednesday first commissioned a review with Sheffield City Council, which concluded that only “minor

recommendations made about the matchday experience” were necessary and that “all aspects of safety at the

stadium complied fully with the club’s safety certificate.”

However, it was later discovered that these “minor recommendations” actually amounted to a considerable capacity

reduction after Newcastle submitted a Freedom of Information request to the council. The lower tier’s capacity

decreased from 1500 to 1300, while the upper tier’s capacity decreased from 3200 to 2400. For the game, about

4500 Newcastle supporters travelled to Sheffield.

The council’s licensing board then conducted a thorough inquiry, which resulted in a report that was released this

week. “The initial concerns were raised by a journalist’s photograph and we actually reached out to Newcastle United

supporters to give them their insight into exactly what their actual concerns were about being at that particular end

of that particular stadium,” said Matt Proctor, the council’s lead officer for sports grounds and events, during a

meeting.

“We conducted a thorough inquiry after receiving replies from Newcastle supporters who brought up other concerns

than those brought up by the journalist.

“We classified it as a near miss, and as a result of the feedback, changes have been made to the way that specific

stadium operates.”

The Hillsborough Survivors Support Alliance’s Peter Scarfe told the BBC that the Leppings Lane End was still

“extremely dangerous.”

Supporters are supposed to fan outward after entering the bottom tier through a single, sloping tunnel in the middle

of the stand.

Scarfe declared, “That area of the stadium must be demolished and rebuilt.” “A catastrophe is just waiting to

happen.”

Hillsborough crowd incident at Sheffield Wednesday vs Newcastle a ‘near miss’, says council