Accrington Stanley put up for sale by owner after Saturday night social media row

Accrington Stanley Football Club has been dramatically put up for sale by Chairman Andy Holt following a series of ‘no holds barred’ exchanges on social media on Saturday night.

Redefining the phrase “well that escalated quickly” Holt started his Saturday on X (formerly Twitter) inviting fans to ask him questions. 

The owner of Wham, or What More UK, a manufacturer of plastic housewares, Holt joined the club’s board in 2015 and assumed control of the club in October of that year, when it was on the verge of folding due to debt levels of £2m.

But the latest social media outburst appears to be more than just a rant.

Taking to the platform at 8:47 after appearing to quit Twitter in March 2023, he said: “All questions about @ASFCofficial and my time at the club will be answered honestly.”

By 10:41 he posted: “So now @ASFCofficial is up for sale. I won’t let the club fail, but I’m done.”

On Sunday he reiterated his wish to sell the club in response to fans further questions and said he’d was now “free”, saying in response to one post: “I’m happy to have offloaded Carl. I stopped doing twitter and fan meetings because I couldn’t be honest about my feelings. That only has a short shelf life. Now I’m free.”

But the row that triggered his dramatic end to the evening was his pent up frustration with the behaviour of manager John Coleman and his assistant Jimmy Bell, which boiled over when Holt posted:  “Accy needs to change and become a new club with new methods. I have nothing more to offer the club. I’m spent.”

Relegated from League One to League Two last season Holt was clearly angry that Bell and Coleman had, he claims, used media interviews to push for clarity on their futures, as recently as last week. On BBC Radio Lancashire Bell confirmed that he and Coleman had not been offered new deals, with their contracts due to expire next summer.

When quizzed on it by fans on Saturday Holt exploded, stating: “When we got relegated last season the first thing our managers said was ‘give us a new contract or sack us’.

“There was no way their performance deserved anything but the sack. But their past with the club got them a ‘get out of jail free card’.

“Had they buckled down and proved they still had the hunger and desire to rebuild the club, I would discuss new contracts.

“Instead, after a few wins, they went to the media. They tried to use fans to pressure me – which was a mistake.”

Holt has frequently spoken out about football’s need to be responsible and sustainable and has also been critical of his local council Hyndburn.

He returned his “freedom of Hyndburn” award in December after Stanley’s social club was served with a noise abatement order. On Facebook he said: “I don’t want to be a Freeman of Hyndburn. I want to be free of Hyndburn. The poison at its heart has seen it continue on its inexorable downward path.”

In other news, on Saturday Accrington Stanley beat much fancied MK Dons 1-0.