It hit home when we got to the police cordon.” Since most of my players are parents, it was very touching to see all of the teddy bears, butterfly balloons, bracelets, candles, flowers, and messages.
Bebe King, age six, and Elsie Dot Stancombe, age seven, perished in a knife attack on July 29 while taking a dance lesson with a Taylor Swift theme. The next day, nine-year-old Alice da Silva Aguiar passed away in the hospital from her wounds; two adults and eight other girls also suffered injuries.
Less than a mile separated Southport Football Club, which opened the doors to its Big Help Stadium ground, and the scene of the attack in the sleepy northwest English town.
In the days that followed, Southport supporters donated hundreds of pounds to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital, which treated some of the survivors, and helped clean up after the violence broke out. Bentley and his players also paid a visit to the police cordon on Hart Street to leave flowers.
Before a home friendly against FC United of Manchester, Southport supporter and Salvation Army member Brian Johnson addressed the audience, saying, “Fly high, three beautiful butterflies.” Home Secretary Yvette Cooper also paid a visit to the football team.
According to Peter Mitchell, chairman of non-league Southport, “the grief and fear that Southport has endured will no doubt have a lasting impact on the community.”
