Cardiff City head coach Brian Barry-Murphy spoke about the emotions surrounding tributes to the Aberfan disaster of 1966 after Cardiff's 1-0 victory over Birmingham. Cardiff's squad and management had visited the memorial garden in Aberfan.
Visit to Aberfan
Barry-Murphy said he had not fully appreciated the suffering and significance of the disaster in the area 20 miles away from Cardiff. He said: "I had an awareness of what happened there, but I never knew the depth of what went on or what people experienced."
He said: "It was very important for the players to watch the footage to understand what the people there have been through." He added: "We organised to go there and it was very, very important."
Disaster toll
The report says 116 children and 28 adults died when a coal tip collapsed and engulfed Pantglas junior school.
Barry-Murphy said: "While you're there, it's naturally emotionally very difficult because you start to see the gravestones of the people who passed there."
He added: "But also the stories of the different people there that day. It's very difficult to comprehend what they went through."
Silence and performance
BBC Sport reported that a minute's silence was held before kick-off and, according to the report, it was respected impeccably by Cardiff and Birmingham fans.
Barry-Murphy said he had stressed to his players the importance of delivering a performance that "understood what we were playing for". He said: "Football is football and we couldn't guarantee that we were going to win today, but we had to produce a performance that looked as if we understood what we were playing for."
He added: "On such a poignant day, it's very important that we played the way we did."
Dennis Moss on the trip
Barry-Murphy said academy coach Dennis Moss made the visit to Aberfan 24 hours before the 60th anniversary commemorations. BBC Sport reported that Barry-Murphy said Dennis Moss had been among the rescuers at Aberfan.
Barry-Murphy said: "He was there with us and you see the effect it had on him to be back there."