Oldham’s match against Salford was abandoned after home fans stormed the pitch to protest against the club’s owners with the visitors leading 2-1, with their relegation from the Football League being confirmed two hours after the game. Oldham were facing a must-win match against Salford on Saturday to avoid relegation to the National League.
But they were trailing 2-1 entering the final minutes of the match before hundreds of angry Oldham fans raced onto the pitch holding a banner which read “Get out of our club”. With the game being abandoned, Oldham’s relegation was not officially confirmed.
However, their relegation to the National League has now been confirmed, meaning they are the first former Premier League club to be relegated from the Football League.
The fans refused to leave the pitch with the police arriving 10 minutes after the start of the protest to marshal the supporters. Oldham manager John Sheridan was spotted speaking with supporters on the pitch.
After a 20-minute stoppage, the game was abandoned. Salford owner Gary Neville was in attendance at the game and tweeted a photo of the protest, quoting the banner on display.
It’s the latest in a long line of protests from Oldham fans against the club owners. Owner and chairman Abdallah Lemsagam has come under heavy criticism from fans with the supporters urging him to sell since last September.
Back in September during a game against Hartlepool, fans were seen carrying a coffin marked with ‘RIP OAFC’ with some supporters wearing clown and grim reaper costumes. The protest came after Lemsagam hit back at the backlash in an open letter to fans, insisting he had no plans to sell.
“I am aware of the protests at my ownership and the anger and hatred that many fans have for me and my brother,” he said. “I receive emails and texts, and so do those close to me, on a daily basis calling me all sorts of names and asking me to “go home”; many of them are outright racist.
“Since I took over in 2018, I accept that mistakes have been made… But each mistake has been made honestly, and with an intention to help the club. I have never done anything intentionally to hurt the club, I never would.
“What I find hard to understand is the strength of reaction against me compared to when the previous ownership stripped a key asset from the club and neither you as a supporters trust, nor any of the fans, did anything at all.”
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