Manchester United secretary Ken Ramsden thinks the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster will help build bridges with their city rivals.Sunday's Manchester derby will be the climax of a number of events to remember the crash on 6 February 1958, where 23 people were killed, including eight United players.

There will be a minute's silence at Old Trafford, and Ramsden is confident all fans inside the ground will respect it.

Ramsden said: "At first we thought, 'oh hell's teeth, we've got City' but then you reflect on it and what we're doing.

"It was an event that hit the whole of Manchester and it may be an opportunity to build a few bridges.

"When Sir Matt (Busby) died, the next game was Everton and it would be fair to say that our best relationships have not been with Merseyside clubs but they behaved impeccably. The Everton fans recognised the event for what it was and it was really good.

"Notwithstanding that (former City goalkeeper) Frank Swift was a victim of the air crash, City have been very helpful throughout and they're wearing a special shirt as well, which shows you the significance they're attaching to the event.

"They see it as a Manchester event and I think it may turn out to be a good choice of match.

"What we're doing is asking people to be quiet for one minute and show some respect for a football team that died 50 years ago.

"It's not a big deal really. If they want make up for it in the next 90 minutes with noise and support for their team then great.

"The responsibility of the fans, both blue and red, is such that they're under enormous pressure to behave and conduct themselves properly."

Ramsden came to United in 1960, two years after the crash. His mother and aunt already ran the laundry for the club and had been deeply affected by Munich.

He added: "The club was tiny in the sense of the staff and when I came in 1960, we had about 11, not including the playing staff and everyone mucked in and everybody helped.

"They'd washed the shirts one week and polished the coffins the next, because all the coffins were brought back to the gymnasium at the ground and it was a temporary mortuary before they went on to their various destinations.

"My mum was devastated and they were like family but it was the culture at the time. People in those days got on with life, they didn't know what counselling was and they had no concept of that sort of thing.

"I'm flabbergasted that people like Les Olive, who became secretary at the age of 28, with a staff of none and no money, could carry the club forward.

"Les and a handful of volunteers just got on with running the club.

"They'd be at funerals one day and then selling tickets for the next cup tie the following day and that game was just 12 days after the crash. You just can't comprehend that that would ever happen now.

"The club had no money. When I joined in 1960, everything we bought was second hand. Nothing was new and we had absolutely no money at all. The club carried on."

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