Chants from the Anfield crowd were threatening to drown out the Everton chairman as he cleared his throat on the touchline. Bill Kenwright, though, didn't mind a jot.
"I'm not going to stop you," he said as the strains of 'Justice for the 96' boomed around the stadium, its message resonating far, far beyond Merseyside.
The occasion was the 24th Hillsborough memorial service in 2013, the first to take place following the independent review that highlighted police failings and an attempt to blame Liverpool supporters for the disaster, leading to the High Court ordering new inquest verdicts and quashing the previous ones of accidental death.
Everton chairman Bill Kenwright dies aged 78
Bill Kenwright dies aged 78 - Everton statement, updates and tributes
And while nobody could ever doubt Kenwright's love for Everton, his subsequent speech showed how that was allied to a deep-rooted affinity for the city of Liverpool itself and its people. He knew when it was time to stick together.
There was barely a dry eye left inside Anfield or the homes of those watching on television as Kenwright - who has died at the age of 78 - regaled with heartfelt tales of his time on the Kop, his warmth for the Liverpool crowd, and on being at Villa Park when, after Everton had won their FA Cup semi-final against Norwich City, word began to trickle through of what had happened in Sheffield.
"We felt like we had been relegated," said Kenwright. "We didn't feel like we'd just got to Wembley. We all thought it could have been us, if the balls had come out of the bag differently, it could have been us. And it happened, tragically, to you. And I hope since that day you'll have known the support of Everton Football Club for you."
That much was
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