Oldham Athletic fans are still coming to terms with the fact that their club will no longer be in the Football League next term.
The Latics were relegated from League Two on Saturday in chaotic fashion, with the final minutes of their ultimately fatal defeat at home to Salford City having to be played behind closed doors following a pitch invasion by home fans against the club's owner Abdallah Lemsagam.
Unhappy supporters stormed the pitch at Boundary Park with 11 minutes of the game remaining forcing it to be considerably delayed after it was suspended by the match officials. The home side were 2-1 down at the time and that's how the game finished, albeit almost two hours later than planned and in an empty stadium. It means Oldham will play in non-league next season. In doing so they become the first team to play in the Premier League, since its formation in 1992, and go on to be relegated into non-league.
The earlier protest saw hundreds of supporters enter the pitch with one of the most striking images coming when fans held aloft a huge banner saying 'get out of our club' - aimed at the absent Lemsagam. The Moroccan former football agent has owned the club since 2018 but his premiership has been nothing short of a disaster with a second relegation in that time the nadir.
He has, perhaps understandably, kept a low profile of late. The last Oldham fans heard of him was back in January when he said he was open to selling the club. He said at the time: "I want the best for the club and I think the best for the club is that it is now passed on to new owners. My team is speaking to certain credible bidders and I am happy to speak to others."
Former Oldham non-executive director Richard Bowden believes that the only logical solution to the club's woes is for Lemsagam to indeed sell the club up. Speaking on Sky Sports News, he said of a potential sale: "Every fan wants that and I think it's the only logical outcome.
"There can be no other solution to this. The issues are what is the valuation, who can clear the debt and what is the investment required now in the National League? It's a difficult league that's not easy to get out of.
"It's been a series of mismanagement (since Lemsagam bought the club). I think as well it's a lack of understanding about the recruitment that is required at League One and League Two and how to stabilise. I look at the contrast with Forest Green, who have just been promoted into League One and how they go about stuff and the culture. We need to get that back. Oldham have been known as a family club and a community club and we need to return to that."
Bowden, who was a director between 2019 and 2021, also said he understands the frustrations of the fans which led to the pitch invasion.
He added: "We don't want to necessarily see that type of thing, and it's not good for the game. It may have future ramifications for the club which is very sad. But I can understand their frustrations. The fans have been brilliant since John Sheridan came in. I've been to some home and away games in recent weeks and the support has been extraordinary. But the protests against the owners have come back to the fore again."
Oldham's social media channels have not posted any updates since confirmation of the delayed finish on Saturday, with no reaction from manager John Sheridan, statements from Lemsagam or interviews with the club's players.
