Ibrox Disaster: How horror unfolded

Sixty-six Rangers supporters were killed, and more than 100 injured, at Ibrox Stadium on 2 January, 1971. The match between Rangers and Celtic was drawing to a close when fans began exiting the ground via Stairway 13.

There are various theories as to why a fatal crush ensued. The most popular myth is that, when Jimmy Johnstone scored for Celtic with a minute left, thousands set off down the stairs, only to turn and come back when they heard that Colin Stein had equalised for Rangers.

This, though, has been dismissed by eye-witnesses who say that somebody fell, either a child on an adult's shoulders or a supporter who had bent down to pick up a scarf. The resulting domino effect meant that the heaving mass of supporters behind, usually so tightly packed that they descended the steps almost without touching the ground, poured down on top of them.

Most of the deaths were caused by compressive asphyxiation. The youngest victim was nine-year-old Nigel Pickup, who had travelled to the game from Liverpool with his grandfather. The only woman to die was 18-year-old Margaret Ferguson who had made a doll for Colin Stein's baby daughter, and sent it to him the week before Christmas.

Sheriff J Irvine Smith, who led the fatal accident inquiry, condemned the Rangers board for failing to heed the warnings of 1961, 1967 and 1969 when there had also been accidents on Stairway 13. If anything good came of the disaster, it was that Rangers, and more particularly their manager Willie Waddell, who vowed it would never happen again, set about transforming the stadium into the safe and modern arena it is today, a monument to those who lost their lives.