Hillsborough inquests - February 11

The Hillsborough inquests commenced on March 31, 2014 and are the subject of reporting restrictions that have been imposed by the Attorney General's office. Liverpool Football Club is respectful of these restrictions and will therefore only be making available updates from other media channels for the duration of the inquest.

The report below - and the witness testimony contained within it - does not necessarily reflect the views of Liverpool FC. Please be aware that the reports on these pages will contain evidence about the day of the disaster which may be distressing.

To view archive reports from each day of the inquest hearings, click here.

Courtesy of the Liverpool Echo - February 11

The exit gate through which fans entered the Leppings Lane terrace in the build-up to the Hillsborough disaster would only have been opened on police authority, a Sheffield Wednesday steward has told the new inquests.

Ian Marsh, who was stationed on Gate C on the day of the disaster, gave evidence for a second day in Warrington after telling the jury yesterday he was 'extremely confident' he would not have opened the gate without police authority.

In previous evidence Mr Marsh, who the court heard has problems with his long term memory, had said the gate had been opened by police, or that he could not remember who had opened it.

Under questioning from Fiona Barton QC, on behalf of South Yorkshire Police, Mr Marsh and the court were shown CCTV footage relating to his movements prior to the 2.52pm opening of Gate C.

The jury has already heard that Gate C was also opened at 2.48pm and 2.59pm but it was the 2.52pm opening that saw the main influx of fans outside the ground, who then proceeded into the already packed Leppings Lane central pens, causing the lethal crush which killed 96 Liverpool supporters.

Mr Marsh confirmed he had never had the opportunity to closely examine the footage until he was interviewed by officers from Operation Resolve in November and January.

Ms Barton referred to a statement made by Mr Marsh after viewing the CCTV video in which he said that he could see from it that prior to the opening he had no interaction with any police officer before opening the gate and was unable to identify any officer, senior or otherwise, who gave an instruction to open gate C.

The statement said: "I don't know where I got the authority from, but I must have got it from somewhere or I wouldn't have opened it."

Ms Barton suggested he would not have needed authority if he was letting a fan out, rather than letting fans in, and showed further footage of Mr Marsh in the build-up to 2.52pm.

The court saw Mr Marsh involved in the opening of the gate twice within a minute at around 2.48pm to eject fans, and then again at around 2.51pm apparently in conversation with a man in a top with striped sleeves, who appeared to bend down by the gate and speak with him before being let out of the gate.

Ms Barton suggested Mr Marsh opened the gate to let him out without authorisation, which he confirmed he wouldn't have needed if the fan wanted to exit the ground, but he said that he didn't know he was a fan and he could have been a plain clothes policeman.

Further footage was then showed in the period up to the main 2.52pm opening of the gate in which another spectator could be seen talking to Mr Marsh with no police officers in the vicinity, apart from one with his back to him, before Mr Marsh's arm went up to the mechanism of the gate.

Mr Marsh agreed with Ms Barton's suggestion that he was letting a fan out.

When asked in his Operation Resolve interview why his first accounts were so different to the CCTV, he said: "Perhaps I didn't want to accept responsibility for it."

Mark George QC, on behalf of 22 families who lost loved ones in the disaster, then proceeded to show Mr Marsh and the court more CCTV footage containing police officers in the vicinity of Gate C, believed to be Inspector Purdy and Sergeant Morgan.

Mr George said Sgt Morgan could be seen outside the gate at the time Mr Marsh was inside and footage was shown of Mr Marsh opening the gate, with the first person through it being a police officer.

Mr George said: "What we've seen is this, isn't it, Mr Marsh, an officer has come up to the window of the gate from the outside, you are on the inside.

"There is a brief interchange, it takes two or three seconds and then you open the gate to the right hand side?

"That is your authorisation, isn't it?"

Mr Marsh agreed with that and also with Mr George's suggestion that it was 'pretty obvious' that the opening of the gate had been a police operation, saying the only part he had played was to unlock the mechanism.

Mr Marsh's questioning concluded with more questions on behalf of the coroner by Jonathan Hough.

He referred to Ms Barton's suggestion that Mr Marsh opened the gate at the request of a fan and asked: "Do you recall any fan making such a request?"

Mr Marsh said no and says he would not have opened the gate for such a request.

In reference to Mr George's suggestion that the gate had been opened on the instruction of the officer outside, Mr Marsh said he could not remember interacting with an officer outside and that footage shown of an officer opening the left side of the gate could explain his account of police being involved in the opening.

Mr Marsh confirmed that he thought a police officer asked him to open the gate but was not certain whether that officer was inside or outside the ground.

The inquests continue.