TWENTY years ago today, the Hillsborough disaster shocked the world, and changed the face of football as a spectator sport.

The Taylor Report, published in 1990, recommended all-seater stadia and criticised police chiefs for failing to control the crowd.

But the fact that no one has been prosecuted for the catastrophic failures, which led to the deaths of 96 people, remains an entirely understandable source of anger.

Only those who were there can really appreciate the horror of what happened at Sheffield Wednesday’s famous old football ground on April 15 1989.

Those of us who were not there should never forget what they went through, nor underestimate the strength of their feelings in demanding that some kind of justice be done.

The families of those who died, and the survivors who still bear scars, can take comfort in the knowledge that Hillsborough was a catalyst for radical change in the way we watch our national game.

But their grief will always weigh more heavily as a result of the questions of accountability which remain unanswered two decades on.

For example, who removed CCTV tapes from a locked control room at Hillsborough?

And why was a statement from a police officer on duty that day amended on the orders of a more senior officer to remove criticism of the force?

The operational mistakes that were made were grave enough, but it is the understandable suspicions of a deliberate police cover-up which fuel the enduring grief and bitterness of the people of Liverpool.