SIR: I am deeply saddened for the Club, the fans and the town, by the relegation of Bolton Wanderers, especially after their recent improvement. I have supported Manchester United ever since the Munich disaster. As a six year old, I remember praying on February 6, 1959, for the team, and especially for Sir Matt Busby and the incomparable Duncan Edwards, who initially survived. I well remember how Bolton, with Nat Lofthouse and Denis Stevens, who has become a good friend since I came to work in Bolton, beat United in the 1959 FA Cup Final.

It was therefore appropriate, that to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Munich, United played Bolton on February 7, 1998, at Old Trafford. Like many, I went to pay my tribute, my only concern being that the tribute may be spoiled in some way. I need not have worried. The behaviour of Bolton Wanderers and their fans, especially during the one minute silence, was immaculate.

Long after Bolton's relegation, and indeed their return to the Premiership as next year's Nationwide champions, the memory of how Bolton and their fans elevated themselves to the very highest level is the one which will endure.

?Dr K J Moriarty,

Royal Bolton Hospital,

Minerva Road, Bolton.?

Converted for the new archive on 14 July 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.